I think I may be buying a 355 shortblock and was wondering about sugestions for cam and heads. This is sort of a budget build so I would kind of like to stay under 1000 bucks when all is said and done. It is not a roller block btw. It will be going on my 85' and running 12s would be nice, but consistant low 13s would be acceptable.

 

12's and TPI ....with no power adder is a tough one The LTR design favors the bottom end ....while drag raceing seems to require RPMS to be better . Pick out your parts you want ..... find out what it all flows ....then call a cam company ....give them the numbers ...and they will usually hava grind in mind for ya

 

too bad its not a roller block. is it going to be a tpi? if it is ,there are some nice cam profiles out there. converting to a roller will put your cost up. a cam with 212-228 @ .050 would work well in the engine. you can use an aluminum head if your cost permits, or get a 350 tpi steel head . with some porting and bowl work they will really perform well. my old engine was a 357, trick flow heads,(the old twisted wedge style) a zz-9 cam, and superram. i used edelbrock headers and a flowmaster cat-back, and 3.73 gears and a 5 sp. the car ran 12.90s all day long, with 1.68 ft., from drag radials. i know it can be done. it will cost a few more bucks than a grand though, unless you do your homework before you buy anything. alot of good used stuff out there. ..good luck, ...tom