Hey guys, the time has come and I've decided to get the ball rolling on having a trusted engine builder build me a 383 stroker for my 86 trans am. I've gone through craigslist and found a 350 4bolt main 2 piece rear main seal "010" casting.

The add says the block has already been stripped of the cam bearings and freeze plugs, oven baked, and crack tested. it also comes with brand new ARP main studs in the original box. it's been on craigslist for around 20 days and hes dropped the price from $400 to $300.

does this sound like a decent value for what I'm getting? I'm hoping since it's already been baked and checked for cracks it'll save the engine builder time. I sent him the add and he says it sounds good to him. what are your thoughts?

 

010 is probably the single most common 350 block (actually 302 & 327 as well) from the 70s.

Also as prone as any, to having The Problems that were so prevalent back then from the s****y machine work and "quality control" of the day... starter bolt holes drilled too far from the crank, lifter bores that don't point at the cam, bell housing dowel pins not centered on the crank, cylinders not perpendicular to the crank, and on and on and on and on.

On top of that, it's a 70s block; no roller provisions, LH dipstick, 2-pc RMS.

On top of that, I'm not seeing any mention of its present overbore... who knows, for example, if it has The Cyl Perpendicularity Problem, whether there's enough meat left to bore them back out in the right place?

On top of that, it's too much money.

Not a good deal by any measure.

Instead, go get a 638 or 880 casting. Find a TBI or Vortec 350 out of a truck that's messed up somehow (make sure its defect doesn't involve the block: a TBI w cracked heads for example) and pay like $50 for it.

 

IMO, I would look for a 87-2000ish 1 piece seal roller cam block. No need for a factory 4bolt main either.

 

Thanks for the info guys, it still has the standard factory bore. Was unaware of all the issues with the 70s castings, very good info.

i was worried about it being a non roller block and would prefer a 1 piece rear main so I think I'll pass on this one. Thanks guys

 

just tracked down a 5.7l vortec out of a 96-k2500. the guy is hard to understand but he said "yes it had a lower bearing knock but i did not lock up in the block is still good and the crank you can get turned if you want." only wants $200 for the long block.

Obviously I'm not concerned with the crank but do you guys have any pointers for what I should be looking for when checking this out?

 

Every block, including top brand names, cnc or what have you, can have core shift, lifter issues and dowel problems. My machinist just did a block, I wont name block manufacture, but it was a cnc block, the lifter bores were off almost .070 by the time he got to #8 lifter bores. Build the motor you want to build. The key to building a great engine is finding a good machinist who has the tooling and equipment to check and fix the problems.

 

The key to building a motor WITH NO UGLY SURPRISES AT THE END is to start out with the best core you can put your hands on. Beats THE HELL outta trying to outguess what the factory effed up and pay for whatever machine work it takes to set it straight.

A 96-2000 motor with a bottom end knock for $200 sounds AHELLUVALOT better as a CORE (starting point raw casting) than a 70s POS for $400 or even $300. I know which way I'd go, sight unseen, without looking back.

 

well then you'll be glad to know I picked up that block today along with the Vortec heads for $200. I'm fairly sure I won't be using the heads but I can probably sell them on to recoup a little bit of my money.

Thanks again for the help everyone

 

The vortec heads are a great cyl head. May want to keep those

 

yeah that's also a possibility. When I first got the car I was planning on a 350 vortec/lt4 hotcam build and read about how capable the heads are when reworked. Now that I'm going with a 383 stroker I feel like they'd be a bottleneck even after being machined out.

I'll hold on to them for a while and see what comes around.

 

They won't be a bottleneck compared to any other GM production casting. Don't know what your budget looks like, but assuming we're not talking an all-out race car, pretty hard to do better than AFR's stuff.

 

AFR heads are what I've been looking into, the engine builder said he has some ideas so when I hear his suggestions I'll post them on here to see what you guys have to say.

my budget is about $4500 max, maybe a little more when push comes to shove. The car isn't gonna be an all out race car but I would like to get my absolute money's worth in terms of power