I have an 87 350 TPI motor that needs a crank, rod and pistons.
Thinking I might as well go with a cast 383 bottom end kit with 9:1 compression.
For this compression, will I need dished pistons?
I want to keep the TPI.
I want lots of low-midrange torque. Not really interested in exceeding 5K rpms.

Will the TPI fall completely on its' face before 5K rpms?

Will I really need more flow than the stock L98 iron heads provide for this type of eng?

If I do, the Vortecs look good for the price.
Do they have the 3 threaded holes in the front for the accessories?
May try polishing the stock heads, but if I try porting, I'm afraid I'll wind-up mismatching the cyl flows.

Does anyone know of a TPI/Vortec intake other than the $400 SD intake?

If I rebuild it with the 383 bottom and a slightly torquey roller cam, everything else stock (including entire exh sys), will the MAF-type computer/EEPROM be OK, at least for break-in period?

What's the going price for a .030" bore, hot dip, cam bearings, and freeze plugs these days?

When doing the clearance work for the 383 crank, should it be done before or after machine shop work? If I do the clearance work after the bore and hot dip, seems like I would get metal shavings all thru the eng, plus if a hit a water jacket, I'm out all the money for the bore, dip, and cam bearings. If I do the clearance work before the bore and dip, the new pistons won't fit since cyls haven't been bored yet.

When doing the clearance work, is any meat taken off the rotating assy? If so, wouldn't that effect the balance?

Will the stock roller cam clear the 383 crank?

Sorry for all the questions, but the more I think abt this, the more questions I have abt it.

 

well...basically the tpi barely breathes enough for a 350- since it was designed for a 305,it is too small for a 383.You either need to port the plenum and runners and base,or buy a new stealthram or something,cuz it wont breathe right at all.Depending on what you actually want to do with this engine the stock heads will either need to be ported and ploshed as well, or you need to purchase a new pair of heads.If you go vortecs tho,you wont be able to get a stealth ram or anything,bu you can get the tpi base from sdpc2000.com,and i believe thats the only one, and that will flow much better than the stock base,and then port your plenum and runners.But just dont go with too aggressive of a cam,because the bortecs have small springs (but you can always upgrade them if you need to).

Hehe thats all i know i hope it helps a little.