Ok, mortec says my block is "Vortec truck, Gen.I crate motors and "ZZ4", roller cam, one piece rear seal"
Does that mean my engine is a LTx or LSx? or are the vortec 350s a different breed, i have the 193 swirl port heads... I am new to v8's so i am trying to learn as much as i can

do i need to throw some lt4 heads on it to open it up? or just any vortec or performance head with cam?

 

Are any of those motors LTx or LSx?

No.

Then yours isn't (wasn't) one.

880 block, I'm guessing?

ANY head besides that swirlie garbage that's on it, except for 70s smoggers. Vortecs would be a good choice, same as they would be for any other block casting.

 

thanks for the quick reply.. yes it is a 880 block. So I needed to ask to find out which heads to throw on it because im converting it to carb since the 305tbi is giving me trouble. What cam should i throw in while i am at it?

 

You planning on upgrading the rear gears?
Or stall speed in the tranny?

 

yeah eventually yes

 

If you use stock Vortec heads, the limit on the lift they will tolerate is around .465" before REALLY BAD things start to happen.

The Comp XE262 is known to work EXTREMELY well with those heads.

The only Vortec heads have casting #s 906 or 062. There are no substitutes. If someone tries to sell you "early Vortecs", "almost Vortecs", or (my all-time favorite!) "pre-Vortecs", run away. They are trying to rip you off.

The cheepest way to come up with a set is to go to the junkyard and pretend you're in some kind of an occupation where you use a truck for work (or maybe you don't have to pretend? whatever) such as carpenter, painter, farmer, etc. Tell them you want a set of heads OFF OF (not "that will fit on", you want OFF OF) a 97 Chevy pickup. DO NOT utter the word "Vortec", DO NOT tell them what casting #s you are looking for; just ask for them by application. Saying the magic buzzword or otherwise hinting that you are looking for hot-rod parts will automatically mark you as a hobyist who is merely playing with their toy (the EXACT OPPOSITE of the impression you are trying to cultivate), and you will get hit with the automatic minimum $150 per head cover charge. Just act like you've got a broke-down truck and you're in a hurry to fix it and get back to work. At that point, they'll bring you .... something. Look at it, and see if they're the right castings. If not, tell them they're not the right ones, you don't want them, they're not the same as the ones on your truck, you want the right thing. You don't have to tell them why you don't want them, you just DON'T. Remember, it's YOUR money, and they can't MAKE you spend it on something you don't want.

Get an Edelbrock Performer RPM intake, and a Holley 4-bbl carb, about 650-700 CFM should be good. A manual secondary (double-pumper) would be best.

 

Ok, with proper gears and stall speed, a comp XR270h or XR276H are both good. Lunati's voodoo roller stuff is also pretty good.
remember sofa, 880 roller block.
And yea, gotta machine heads for more lift.

 

if that is a ZZ4 cammed motor, then you dont need a new cam yet. ZZ4 is more than capable of 350 hp in the right setup

 

Something tells me with 193 heads, it isn't going to have a ZZ4 cam in it. . .

 

that was my thoughts...didnt think any factory motor came with that cam