ok i am looking into building a race motor for my camaro and need a little info i have a 350 block 30 over i just got a turbo 400 3500 stall b@m shift kit. i am thinking about some brodix track 1's but havent really thought about the intake or cam i am going to use i really wanted to go with a tunnel ram but not really sure if that will be the best bet. oh i am using a 9 inch for the rear end. i am hoping for low low 11's high 10's.

 

Whatever you do don't use a tunnel ram. They are really old technology and have been much approved upon today.

To get 500hp your best bet is to use a Victor Jr. and a large solid roller cam.

 

you will have more luck with >380 cid and less rpm. I doubt I would reuse the track1s I have. Not satisfied with the $ to results ratio.

 

As a low buck alternative, you can also use a solid lifter cam, I am running a 355 NA motor in my own car on pump gas and it makes in excess of 500hp with AFR 195 street port heads (brodix would be fine also) 10-1 comp. and a victor jr. . The cam doesn't have to be very big also. It just has to be ground to work best with your combination. for example, I'm running is only .550 lift on the intake with 1.5 RR.
hope this gives you some ideas on what is needed to get to your goal.

 

Lower you can keep the revs the longer it will live, doing stroker is the best bet with a sbc imo. Also depending on the weight of the car, you really need alot of bottome end grunt to get that weight in motion-stroker wins again.

Stay away from tunnel rams, they look cool-sometimes-but unless your running some kind of heads up class, keep it simple with an open plenum. Tunnel rams I've seen the average joe attempt always backfired on them when trying to tune for consistency.

You can look at my sig for ideas and I run just fine on 92 octane

 

Track 1s will support 500hp easily on a 383.... See sig.... And mine is only 10.7:1 with a hydraulic cam... Run a big solid roller and bump the compression to 11.5-ish and I bet it would make 600hp. Granted it needs to spin pretty high to make the power, but I built it with that in mind from the get go. It all has to work together....

 

Depending on ultimate combo, it wont "need" to spin very high. Shifting mine at 6K gets me the same results as shiftinfg at 7K, so I'll take the lifetime motor at 6K anyday.

Track ones should work very well, I have'nt seen any flow sheets at our head shop on them, but they gots to better than Dart Pro 1's

 

Yeah, I'm referring to making 600+ HP on a 383... Mine makes its peak power at about 6400 RPM which isn't all that high either really. So like you are saying, 500HP out of a 383 won't need to spin very high at all. Should be able to make that power at or even slightly under 6k really, with the right heads/cam/intake/compression....

Here are some flow numbers for the Track 1s (unported):

Lift.......INTAKE / EXHAUST
0.200........124/103
0.300........179/138
0.400........228/164
0.500........264/178
0.600........276/186
0.650........278/188
0.700........279/190

Mine (CNC Ported by M2 from Brodix):

Lift.......INTAKE / EXHAUST
0.200........150/116
0.300........213/150
0.400........258/185
0.500........285/208
0.600........303/219
0.650........305/224
0.700........305/227

The unported ones are more than enough for 500HP but they are also fairly large (221cc intake ports) and have 67cc chambers. The CNC'd ones I got are 215cc intake ports (227cc are available as well with better higher lift flow on the intake side) with 68cc chambers. You'll have to run a fairly thin head gasket or shave the heads down a bit even with a 0 decked block to get the compression up. My block is 0 decked and I have two relief flat top pistons and mine still is only 10.7:1.... I would like to see 11.5-ish on mine really. The key is that you will want the compression higher to work with a large port head like all of these to get the port velocity up (unless it is a very large cubic inch engine of course that will do it naturally on its own).

 

The real problem with getting 500hp out a 350 is the revs involved - you will need to spin it up to about 6500rpm to make 500hp. A motor that is 10% larger (like a 383) will only need to rev about 6000rpm.

You will also need a great set of heads that can flow a minimum of 250cfm to get your 500hp. Problem is most of those heads have large (or even huge) ports that kill bottom end power - making a big gear and big stall necessary to get the car moving.

That is why I suggest going to a bigger motor (based on a 350 block), such as a 383 or 396; both of which can be built out of a stock 350 L98 roller motor.

Hope this steers you in the right direction.

 

i was always thinking of the 383 but really dont know what is involved in making a 383 dont you bore it .060 over and put a 400 crank in it but i dont know what else is involved. i was thinking a 400 block to but i heard good and bad things about them would a 400 2 bolt be a good block to start with are the parts more expinsive. i dont have the 350 block yet thats what i was going to use but cant really make up my mind on what to use. i seen a 400 2 bolt at the swap meet saturday for $250 standard bore i should have picked that up.

 

383 is a .030 350 block with a 3.75 stroke crank (400 crank), kits are becoming cheaper by the day since 350's are now starting to become less built since strokers offer more cubes at realativly the same cost. ( before flaming starts I know 350 rebuilds still far out wiegh 383's, but in the near future I think the tide will change since cost is really no longer an issue) Only thing you have to watch out for when assembling is rod to cyclinder wall clearance at the bottom of the cylinder, using a diegrinder and a cabide bit you will need to clearance this are. If you opt for higher priced stroker rods, you wont have to remove quite as much material. Also if your using a small suration/lift cam you can use a regular cam shaft. Once you start getting into large cams you will have to opt for a small base circl cam so the rods dont come up and hit.

Stock 400 blocks are 50/50 depending on who you talk to. Some guys have great luck with them, and others say if your going to build bigger cubes, the factory 400 block just is not a wise choice-so go to an aftermarket block since it will have maore material in critical areas.

 

anybody have any of their own engine/chassis dyno sheets and graphs they can post to show just what kind of power they are making, torque curve, etc. to match up with their combos they are using?

 

I wouldn't advise trying to use a stock (cut) 400 crank in a 350 block and attempt to make 500hp - not a good idea.

For a 500hp 383 (or 350), you will need good parts, most of which cost almost the same for either a 350 or 383 - so why go for a motor 10% smaller?

Steel crank
Steel rods (6")
Forged pistons
4 bolt splayed mains

The only real problems with a 383 over a 350 is internal balancing (may cost more if the crank was meant to be externally balanced - like a stock 400); plus the possible grinding of the block rails for rod clearance. A small base circle cam (if needed) is a minimal increase in cost.

But the extra 10% increase in displacement is worth 10% more TQ and either 10% more peak power (at the same rpm) or the same power at 10% lower rpm.

Hell, if you can get the parts and get a reputable shop to do it, go for a 396 (350 block with 3.875" crank).

 

I heard it would also be easyer to build a stout 400hp motor and add a 100 shot.

 

I am pretty sure my dyno graphs are up here somewhere posted on this board.... At least from one of the dyno sessions but I don't remember which one....

But basically I made the power stated in my signature and you can go to my site for details on what is all in it.

 

Especially if you're on a tight budget.