So i'm now at the point of reassembling me engine back together and i have now starting to buy my new components.

The engine is a 1979 carb 350 and i was planning on using the vortec heads and rpm intake kit that Scoggin Dickey sell. I'v have just been browsing Summit and have found this kit for sale


http://store.summitracing.com/partde...4858290&orig=1

The cam duration looks quite savage , i was going to use the XE 274 comp cam , but is it a good package ? and what sort of power do you think it would produce , bottom end has been bored .030 " and has got forged pistons in.

Thank you in advance

 

Just looked again and see that its basically the Edelbrock RPM package.

Apparently the RPM package bolted on to a 350 will give around 420bhp does this sound about right ?

 

yes i've heard some people who have the package, and gives about 420 hP

 

If you have a "79 350", then the RPM package is most definitely not a good choice.

The cam sucks, for any motor. But it's especially a bad choice for something that's going to give low compression like that. Those heads, on top of a stock 79 short block, will give less than 9:1 compression. That cam needs closer to 11:1 with aluminum heads.

And even then, whether you get 420 HP peak or not, it's still far from the best cam going.

And worse than that, there's a WHOLE LOT MORE to characterizing how a motor will run, than just quoting the peak HP number. All of those other characteristics; gas mileage, low speed driveablility, "area under the torque curve", and so forth, the RPM cam is a loser.

The heads in that package are excellent, for a street cruiser. They'll never "make the most power", compared to others; but they will probably give better results on the street than most. But the cam is pitiful.

 

a lot of people are going with cheapo summit cams, and edelbrock rpm cams lately, hoping to get great power from a cheapo cam. Must keep you pretty busy sofa

he's got it bored .030" and forged pistons. fin, what pistons? flat tops? has the block been decked?

vortec heads and edelbrock rpm intake from scoggin is a good, relatively inexpensive combo.

Then call up summit/jegs and just get a lunati voodoo series, or comp xe series cam. Get the springs to match the cam, hopefully you can get away with 1.25"OD springs, and save on machining that on your heads. look for +.050" offset valve locks, that'll let you have a bit more lift, without having to machine the heads more.

IMHO, edelbrock makes wicked top notch intake manifolds, but for other stuff, consider looking elsewhere.

 

Yeah you got it Sonix the short block is far from stock. Its been bored .030" and is running forged flat top pistons , forged connecting rods , hardened pushrods .

The crank is stock but has been machined .010" under , i was told the stock crank is good for about 400 bhp and i'm aiming for 380 bhp ,.

Now that work has been completed im going to send the bits off to be balanced. I decided to leave the RPM package and go for the comp cam XE 274 along with the scoggin dickey modified vorted heads and the edelbrock rpm intake , although i have not ordered these parts yet so ite still up for debate ,.


What do ya think guys ?

 

Sonix you mention decking the block . Is this the proccess of skimming the short block deck to ensure flatness ? If so would it increase my CR

 

yes and yes.
it will change your piston deck clearance value. When assembling it, measure how far your pistons are down in the hole at TDC, then use that # in a compression calculator. Then you can pick your heads cc value based on what compression you want to have...

 

And what do ya think about my head / intake and valve train combo mate ?

Any improvements you can think of

 

That other combo would be alot better to go with what you've got, now that you're telling us some of the details about what you've really got. Which isn't a 79 motor at all.

There is so much you can to to a 350, that just quoting what year it was and even what car the block casting came out of, tells nothing whatsoever about what you have. If you want a more immediate and direct answer, tell us what's REALLY in there, because it makes a HUGE difference.

The part about the block being a 79, by itself, is useless for picking heads to match the best with it, if it's been rebuilt. As far as what heads would work best on it, it would make no difference if the block was a 79, or 69, or 89; or whether the block came from a Vette, truck, Camaro, Impala, van, Nova, or whatever. A block is just a block. The guts are what gives it a personality. The pistons and the machine work that's been done to it, above all else.

 

Cheers sofakingdom.

I said it was the '79 block just to give you guys an idea of what i've come from , i.e a smogged up L48 engine with a CR of about 8.1 ,.

The pistons have been brought and machine work has been done so i am getting all my components ready for sending them away for balancing .

I'm looking to get a CR of around 10.1 so Its a case of matching up the parts to get the desired results.

I'm eager to get the engine rebuilt and back in for the summer, i live in the U.K , so its time for me to stop mucking about and buy the parts i need because for about 6 months now i have been reading everything posted in this section just to make sure i buy the right parts first time as shipping parts over means its not just a case of nipping down the store to return them.

something i am having difficulty in is ordering all the little gaskets , bearings and all the other small components that go into the bottom end . I see you can buy rebuilt kits but they all seem to come with pistons , do they do them without the pistons ?

 

engine rebuild kits are overrated. Just buy all the parts seperate, get what you want.

here's what you'll probably need:
summit part # FEL-KS2600
I just bought the summit brand gasket kit, it's a bit cheaper, and basically the same. that covers your gaskets, it's basically a one size fits all for the SBC, since you're probably not looking for all the exotic gaskets...

SUM-171010
SUM-172010
rod and main bearings. This is assuming the crank has been turned .010 under, you can get the other sizes.

MEL55 is your oil pump. You can reuse your oil pan and pickup if you want.

block has cam bearings in it right now?
need a timing chain and timing chain cover too? valve covers, tall to be safe? new fuel pump?

that basically covers everything 'major'. (i'm assuming you have rings on your pistons now)

you want to measure the depth from your block deck, down to your piston crown, that's your deck clearance. Use all the #'s you have so far, and calculate your compression ratio, with a few guessed head cc values. Then you'll know what head cc value you need to get your 10:1 CR. If it's around 64cc, that's what vortecs are, so you're ok for those.
You can use a different head gasket, or mill the heads, but might as well buy the right sized chambers in the beginning.

fin, basically the '79 block just tells us that it's a flat tappet block, drivers side dipstick. L48 is a useless code now, be happy for that, L48 wasn't much to brag about

sofa, which combo were you saying is good know that you know his info? the compxe274 and edelbrock heads?

 

Sonix i basically want to renew the entire guts of the engine. So fuel pump , oil pickup, pan, cam bearings , connecting / push rods will all be renewed.

Bolts is another nightmare . Is there a bolt kit for SBC engines ?


Guys this is cracking info and i very much appreciate it

 

yes! It's your lucky day, there are many bolt kits. Usually when I buy a new component, such as a timing chain cover, i'll buy the kit, so it comes with a gasket, pointer, and bolts. However, you can just buy a bolt kit, and gasket kit, then buy all the components by themselves. Your choice.

When you buy a bolt kit, the standard hex will probably be cheapest, then 12 point, then stainless, then allen. I hate 12 point, the one time I had to use it (my rear end girdle bolts), the socket was extremly loose, and was stripping the bolt... And I swear it was the right size.

My only recommendation is to use allen bolts on your intake manifold, stainless on your headers. Also buy a mess of anti-seize, I like the copper stuff. oh yea, buy a tube of assembly lube, arp or your cam brand, whatever.


if you've had the engine machined, and pistons are in it, they machine shop may have already put in cam bearings... if not, you'll need to make a tool to put those in, and make damn sure you put them in right. I let my machine shop do that.

ohio crankshaft has about the cheapest connecting rods i've ever seen. $159 USD.

 

Sonix the engine machine work has been completed but the crankshaft is yet to be installed.

What would you recommend for forged connecting rods mate. I'm trying to get everything form summit as they seem to be very helpful with shipping. Would you go for hardened pushrods ?

Thanks again. Craig

 

summits stage 1 conn rods are a good value, $230 I think?

Ohio rods were $159, and no order fee. The savings made up the difference of ordering from another company, quite easily.

You don't need anything better then your basic aftermarket rod really.

hardened pushrods depend on your heads and valve train. Have you decided on those? 1 or 2 piece, welded, pressed, etc etc...


CCA-7813-16 -$30
you don't need to spend $150 on pushrods for your application. I would think the stock 5/16" diameter is ok. not sure what length you'll need, probably stock, but that depends on the heads really. That's a tough one to order from summit in advance...

 

Yeah im almost certainly going to go for the fully assembled edelbrock rpm heads / intake with the comp cam XE 274 cam and lifter set. what do ya think ? hardened pushrods ?

I'm trying to get a drivable street car with a good amount of power / torque

 

i'm not super familiar with those heads. I'd make sure that the valve spring pocket is already at 1.43" or larger.

I'd make sure they have good springs on it, otherwise i'd buy it not assembled, and buy good springs etc myself. Some aftermarket heads that you buy assembled have crappy parts on them...

Double check what the max lift is on the heads. It's probably fine, but check.

does it come with screw in rocker studs, and guide plates, when it comes assembled? And requires 5/16" pushrods? Then yea, those pushrods I mentioned would be fine (they're hardened). Hardened is just for use with guideplates basically.

oh yea, trickflow has a lot of their pushrods on sale on summits website now (44% off), might be worth looking into. Get the right length! If you buy those heads assembled, they can probably tell you what length of pushrods you'll need.

You're in england? do you sleep??

 

im running the edelbrock rpm heads, edelbrock rpm air gap, and about to get the xe284.

they have scew in rocker studs, guide plates and require 5/16" pushrods. you definitely need hardened pushrods. the lift on the heads are good until .575 also.

i think edelbrock suggest .100+ on pushrods 7.900", but i would get a pushrod checker just to make sure, i have a brand new one, checks 7.800-8.800 i will sell it for 30$ shipped to you.

 

I'm just going to bed in a bit mate . lol

Here are the heads that im thinking about

http://store.summitracing.com/partde...232+4294838998

I've already checked that they accomodate the xe274 's lift

 

Thanks for that info mate . I'm in england mate so it would be a pain to buy that and get it shipped but thanks though dude.

 

no problem, the 60899 are the heads i have also, with that you should be making around 375-400HP.