I am planning on building up a 350 soon and want to use roller lifters. I was wondering what to look for at a junk yard to find a 350 block with factory rollers and If they only came on the TPI cars or did TBI have them also ?

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86 TPI 305 Iroc-Z
700R4 (rebuilt)
Accel HEI SuperCoil
Flowmaster
K&N Filters
Comp Cams H268 218@.050 454/454

 

All the post-87 F-Body V8's were rollerized, that includes the TBI's. None of the TBI's were 350s though. Some of the trucks got TBI 350s but, not all of them were roller (none?). Somebody on here probably has casting numbers for the roller 350 blocks...

-Mark W.
'88 SC Camaro w/ 305 TBI

 

yes all were roller ! all!!! and also all were balanced from the factory!(atleast the crank was!)

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1989 firebird formula

Mods: converted from T.B.I. to a carburator 305 to a 350. Flowmater exhaust,hedman shortie hedders,202 heads,350 horse cam,bored.40 over, Edlebrock torker2 and a 600 edlebrock manual choke.

Future mods performer rpm air gap intake (polished) comp roller cam, and way better headsa 400 defintely in the works!

 

As far as I know they all got roller blocks ready to accept roller hardware. I know the early ones came with tappet cams but am not sure if they eventually upgraded to roller. The one I have is a 4-bolt main '88 truck block.

 

Thanks. I know the roller cam/lifters free up alot of friction and allow higher lift with less duration (right ?) than hydralic flat tappet, but are they really worth the extra $$$. I paid right at $150 for my cam and lifters, when roller lifters are about $200 and cam around $300. Just wanted to get some opinions.

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86 TPI 305 Iroc-Z
700R4 (rebuilt)
Accel HEI SuperCoil
Flowmaster
K&N Filters
Comp Cams H268 218@.050 454/454

 

Not to belabor a point, but the following is not an absolute, that said...
Roller blocks were introduced in the '87 model year, however, not all blocks in '87 were roller. Truck engines after '87 were machined to accept all the roller stuff, but were generally equipped with flat tappet hydraulic cams and accessories.
As for whether it is worth it or not... well typically in a street motor, there will be no discernable difference, and usually on the dyno they don't translate into a good cash/power ratio. Unless you are starting out with a roller block with all the hardware, it typically is not worth it.


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"Question with boldness even the existence of a God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason, than that of blind-folded fear."

-Thomas Jefferson

 

There's one word that makes it worth it to have the roller setup. Longevity. The biggest problem with the older small block chevys is that the cam is usually the first thing to wear out due to the lobes flattening. This problem is virtually eliminated with the rollers. If you get a motor already equipped with a roller setup, the expense shouldn't be too bad. You can usually reuse the lifters without a problem. Probably the only thing you'd want to purchase would be a cam that's a little more aggressive than the factory profile, and of course a new timing chain and gear set.

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89RS w/350 TPI; 69RS/SS w/450 HP 350/Muncie 4-Speed "Too weird to live, too rare to die."