I have a 305 that came stock in my 87 camaro. I believe it has a roller cam (not sure). It has a edelbrock intake and carb. The motor runs great but isnt powerful enough. I also have a 350 that came from a mid 60's camaro that has been rebuilt and also has an edelbrock carb and intake but it is a flat tappet motor. Im considering puttting the older 350 motor in my car but am not sure if i would end up losing some of my higher RPM range.

Should I keep the 305 and build it? find a roller 350 and build that? or just swap the 350 in and start throwing some mods at that motor?

THe car is an 87 camaro with t5 and 3.42 gears (eventually going to a higher rear gear). The car is a daily driver that i drive spiritedly.

Thanks for the input

 

Dont bother with the 350 if it's not a roller block. Seriously. Just move on.

 

I've also come to conclusion that the old school stuff needs to stay in the 60's, 70's I also thought that old school blocks an heads would make good power but learning on here that the newer stuff can flow alot more better especially vortec heads that's what I'm building now a vortec 355 hsr setup for my 88 if u decide to drop in a 350 find one from 87 an up better flowing heads

 

What's that got to do with it. You can put a roller cam into any block with the proper lifters. You just can't use OEM style keyed lifters.

 

Build the 350. Despite a great deal of enthusiasm for members here that have built some decent 305s, if you're starting from scratch (more or less) build a 350.
If you can afford it, put in a roller cam.
Almost ANY aftermarket head (steel or aluminum) will be better than an out of date OEM casting (unless you're an accomplished head porter).

 

Retrofit roller lifters - $300+
Retrofit roller cam - $240-$300
Reinforced timing chain cover + cam button - $50-$100

Compared to just using factory lifters that come with the engine plus any common factory style camshaft which can range from $300 to $100 depending on what it is. The LT4 hotcam is a heck of a deal if you find em used and you cant use those in a retrofit roller block unless you buy yet more conversion parts to make that work.

It saves a lot of money. Im not saying it can't be done, only that it saves a LOT of money, ESPECIALLY when you find a rebuildable core that already has lifters. But even if it's a bare block those factory roller lifters are pretty cheap. If you buy a used LT4 hotcam (nearly 400hp with Vortecs) and run factory lifters, that's anywhere from $400-600 savings depending on how you go about it. At the very, very least you save around $200 on lifters and $50 on dealing with the timing cover.

 

what about just running the 350 with a flat tappet and using a good flat tappet oil or oil additive to make the cam last. considering the motor is free (other than having to give my 305 away) would i still come out better?

 

There is still some value to running a flat tappet cam however it's cheaper than it's ever been to upgrade to a roller and the profiles and power potential are much better.

 

There's nothing wrong with it, it's just kind of a crapshoot. A lot of people do everything properly and still lose cams from some reason or other. The break in process is very delicate. Some people do fine with it. With a roller you just bolt it in and go. Roller cams make more power and are more reliable. The expense of going to a roller cam is just too high unless you get a roller block. If you get the old school 350 just be aware of how much extra you'll need to spend if you want the benefits of roller tappets.

 

I am old school but I know the new stuff flows good. I am using the 525 HP head off of a 1968 427 on my 454 I just love the sound and it is an eye catcher and a good cruising machine. Not to good on gas LOL