ok im at a dellema... im wantin to build a 350 for my 89rs and im pretty confused on which block to get and a tranny to put behind it... im wantin to go FI (carbs dont like me) i would really like to build a tpi motor or something simillar. and i want to get rid of the 700r4 and go with a manual. HELP ME PLEASE!!

 

Have you considered an LT1/T56?

 

ya, but its a little far outa my price range. i just moved from colorado to utah and i havent checked cregslist yet but the cheapest lt1 i found was a block with 200k on it and they wanted 800 bucks for it. so i was thinkin about doin a 350 and some sort of tpi setup. wich block should i use if i do go the 350 route?

 

I think you need to expand your search. I've seen LT1/T56 complete take-outs on eBay for less than it would cost to build up a 350 and buy the TPI equipment to put on it, to say nothing of the additional cost of putting a manual transmission behind a TPI 350.

 

ok cool thanks don't LT1's have a 4 bolt main and 5 bolt heads? because i was thinking about maybe going with a TT setup later on. (im wanting to do a rear mount setup like on the corvettes, so if you know of any threads about that it would be awesome) and which LT1 should i go with? i've been hearing bad things about the opti-spark system, or do they all have it??

 

LT1's are "Gen II" SBC's. The block & heads have the same head bolt arrangement as the Gen I SBC's. I'm not sure if all are 4-bolt main, but suspect they are not.

All LT1's have the Optispark. It's much maligned, most of it undeserved.

 

ok i was told that they have 5 bolt heads... which LT1 should i go with exactly? ive seen ones out of camaros/firebirds, corvettes, and caprices'.

 

F-bodies and Vettes have aluminum heads. Vettes got the best cams, and f-bodies after that. Some prefer the B-body iron heads.

 

ok so is a 4 bolt main out of a caprice pretty much the same as the 4 bolt main out of an f-body or vette accept for the heads and cam? i was thinking about doin an LT4 conversion if i go the LT1 route any way..