Blaze2305 Posted January 4, 2019 Share Posted January 4, 2019 So the 57’ Chev im looking at comes with a 350 backed by a turbo trans, Now he says he thinks the motor is early to mid 70’s, he can’t figure it out as his words were, “castingg numbers show 1969 1979” so let’s say it’s mid 70’s. Would there be performance parts available for such an old motor? I’d like to get a stroker crank with a mild-aggressive cam.. So would that even be possible with this one? or should i get rid of it and maybe look at a later 80’s 350 as i believe there are plenty of parts for those. Any help would be great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted January 4, 2019 Share Posted January 4, 2019 You can get literally anything you want for a 1970s 350. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarlLaFong Posted January 4, 2019 Share Posted January 4, 2019 Drop the pan and check to see if it's a four bolt engine. If you're building a high performance engine, start with a solid base Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blaze2305 Posted January 4, 2019 Author Share Posted January 4, 2019 2 minutes ago, CarlLaFong said: Drop the pan and check to see if it's a four bolt engine. If you're building a high performance engine, start with a solid base 11 minutes ago, Bloo said: You can get literally anything you want for a 1970s 350. It is a 4 bolt main according to the owner, and would you suggest any sites to get parts from as i couldn’t find anything from summit racing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blaze2305 Posted January 4, 2019 Author Share Posted January 4, 2019 2 minutes ago, CarlLaFong said: Drop the pan and check to see if it's a four bolt engine. If you're building a high performance engine, start with a solid base 11 minutes ago, Bloo said: You can get literally anything you want for a 1970s 350. It is a 4 bolt main according to the owner, and would you suggest any sites to get parts from as i couldn’t find anything from summit racing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarlLaFong Posted January 4, 2019 Share Posted January 4, 2019 1 minute ago, Blaze2305 said: i couldn’t find anything from summit racing ??????????? The high performance industry is built upon the 350 Chevrolet engine. It is the benchmark engine. Summit, Jegs, everyone has everything you need to build one to any degree of horsepower you can imagine 1 minute ago, Blaze2305 said: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted January 4, 2019 Share Posted January 4, 2019 Small block Chevys aren't really my thing, but as I recall the big change on a later 80s block is a "real" rear main seal rather than a split one. That requires a different crankshaft. I think the change occurred in 1985-86. I wouldn't get hung up about the split seal. Modern seals that actually work are available for the split seal engines. Your stroker crank will be available for either kind of block. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blaze2305 Posted January 4, 2019 Author Share Posted January 4, 2019 28 minutes ago, CarlLaFong said: ??????????? The high performance industry is built upon the 350 Chevrolet engine. It is the benchmark engine. Summit, Jegs, everyone has everything you need to build one to any degree of horsepower you can imagine Maybe i missed something but the earliest year i could find on summit was an 85 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted January 4, 2019 Share Posted January 4, 2019 https://www.crankshaftcoalition.com/wiki/383/388_Chevy_stroker The year may not matter too much. The things to pay attention to on the block are the displacement, whether it is four bolt main or not, whether it is split seal or not, whether it has a factory roller cam, dipstick location (if you care), and whether it takes thick or thin end seals on the oil pan. Sometime in the 80s the heads changed so the valve covers have bolts through the top instead of around the edge. This takes a different valve cover and gasket. Also, IIRC when "Vortec" heads came along I think a different intake manifold design was needed. The combustion chamber size in cc, along with the bore and stroke of the engine determine what your compression ratio will be. The valve sizes are also important. 2.02" intake valves are usually used in larger displacement engines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHuDWah Posted January 4, 2019 Share Posted January 4, 2019 1 hour ago, Blaze2305 said: So the 57’ Chev im looking at comes with a 350 backed by a turbo trans, Now he says he thinks the motor is early to mid 70’s, he can’t figure it out as his words were, “castingg numbers show 1969 1979” so let’s say it’s mid 70’s. Would there be performance parts available for such an old motor? I’d like to get a stroker crank with a mild-aggressive cam.. So would that even be possible with this one? or should i get rid of it and maybe look at a later 80’s 350 as i believe there are plenty of parts for those. Any help would be great! The Generation I Chevrolet small block was used 1955 - 2003 with the same basic block in several displacements and it's still being built as crate engines. You can pin down exactly what the engine is but casting numbers don't tell the whole story. There should be several numbers on the block - google for their locations and how to decode them. Folks have been hopping up the SBC since 1955, so there's plenty of knowledge and parts available - again, Google is your friend. You can do a lot with bolt-on fuel intake/exhaust and ignition - I'd start there before getting deeper into the motor. 27 minutes ago, Blaze2305 said: It is a 4 bolt main according to the owner, and would you suggest any sites to get parts from as i couldn’t find anything from summit racing Dropping the pan is the only sure way to tell if it's a 4 bolt main. If you can't find SBC parts at Summit, you aren't looking very hard, e.g., https://www.summitracing.com/search/department/engines-components/make/chevrolet/engine-size/5-7l-350/engine-family/chevy-small-block-gen-i?N=4294891642%2B4294951399&PageSize=100. No offense, but do you really know what you're doing? A lot of this is stuff is pretty basic. The only dumb question is the one that isn't asked but maybe the best place to start would be reading everything you can find on the SBC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blaze2305 Posted January 4, 2019 Author Share Posted January 4, 2019 3 minutes ago, CHuDWah said: The Generation I Chevrolet small block was used 1955 - 2003 with the same basic block in several displacements and it's still being built as crate engines. You can pin down exactly what the engine is but casting numbers don't tell the whole story. There should be several numbers on the block - google for their locations and how to decode them. Folks have been hopping up the SBC since 1955, so there's plenty of knowledge and parts available - again, Google is your friend. You can do a lot with bolt-on fuel intake/exhaust and ignition - I'd start there before getting deeper into the motor. Dropping the pan is the only sure way to tell if it's a 4 bolt main. If you can't find SBC parts at Summit, you aren't looking very hard, e.g., https://www.summitracing.com/search/department/engines-components/make/chevrolet/engine-size/5-7l-350/engine-family/chevy-small-block-gen-i?N=4294891642%2B4294951399&PageSize=100. No offense, but do you really know what you're doing? A lot of this is stuff is pretty basic. The only dumb question is the one that isn't asked but maybe the best place to start would be reading everything you can find on the SBC. None taken, i haven’t done much with an old motor, mainly truck motors around 06’ which parts easier to find then picking out cereal at the supermarket. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 4, 2019 Share Posted January 4, 2019 47 minutes ago, CHuDWah said: Dropping the pan is the only sure way to tell if it's a 4 bolt main Don't believe anything the seller cannot prove. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHuDWah Posted January 4, 2019 Share Posted January 4, 2019 34 minutes ago, Blaze2305 said: None taken, i haven’t done much with an old motor, mainly truck motors around 06’ which parts easier to find then picking out cereal at the supermarket. Fair 'nuff. If you're like me, there's TOO DAMN MANY cereal choices. 🤣 Anyway, I take it you have general automotive/mechanical knowledge/ability. There's tons of SBC-specific info out there - if you're not familiar with it, getting familiar is a good place to start. It was the same basic engine for 45+ years so there's also tons of performance parts, and this forum and many others to get answers to questions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty_OToole Posted January 4, 2019 Share Posted January 4, 2019 The age of the motor is not a problem and neither is the 2 bolt mains, for street use. If you like the car, it runs ok, and you can get it for a decent price go ahead and buy it, don't worry about the motor. Give it a chance and see how you like it, it may be it has all the power you want. If you desire more power just buy a crate motor from Summit or your favorite supplier. It will be better and cheaper than rebuilding your old motor. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
46 woodie Posted January 4, 2019 Share Posted January 4, 2019 WHAT? It's a small block Chevy, the most hot rodded engine on the planet. Summit Racing is loaded with SBC parts!!!! As Rusty points out, you can get a crate motor of just about any HP you can want, probably cheaper than you can build it AND it will come with a warrantee. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty_OToole Posted January 5, 2019 Share Posted January 5, 2019 (edited) Out of curiosity I did a search for Chev 383 stroker engines on Summit. Lowest price for a complete engine, 383 210HP for $2999. Other models available with aluminum heads etc and twice the HP for more money but you can get a real good motor for under $4000. Short block 383 engine without heads as low as $2080. No wonder no one bothers to build their own motors anymore. This is the way to go especially if you don't want to rebuild your own engine, you can't buy the parts and hire the work done for that kind of money and these engines come with a warranty Here's the list, sorted by price. You can pay up to $8000 for a 525HP job.https://www.summitracing.com/int/search?SortBy=DisplayPrice&SortOrder=Ascending&keyword=383 stroker crate engine Edited January 5, 2019 by Rusty_OToole (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blaze2305 Posted January 5, 2019 Author Share Posted January 5, 2019 2 hours ago, Rusty_OToole said: Out of curiosity I did a search for Chev 383 stroker engines on Summit. Lowest price for a complete engine, 383 210HP for $2999. Other models available with aluminum heads etc and twice the HP for more money but you can get a real good motor for under $4000. Short block 383 engine without heads as low as $2080. No wonder no one bothers to build their own motors anymore. This is the way to go especially if you don't want to rebuild your own engine, you can't buy the parts and hire the work done for that kind of money and these engines come with a warranty Here's the list, sorted by price. You can pay up to $8000 for a 525HP job.https://www.summitracing.com/int/search?SortBy=DisplayPrice&SortOrder=Ascending&keyword=383 stroker crate engine i would never hire someone to work on my engine, that’s all done myself, maybe except boring, that would be the only exception, so in saying that i find it hard to believe that parts alone would add up to that when i’ve built an engine for a whole lot less Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty_OToole Posted January 5, 2019 Share Posted January 5, 2019 You could buy the parts for less than $2995 but you couldn't buy the parts AND pay someone to build it for that. In your case if you already have a good block, heads etc. you might buy the rebuild kit, of which they have a wide selection. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edinmass Posted January 5, 2019 Share Posted January 5, 2019 Well, if it runs and drives currently, what difference does it make. The small block Chevy engine is so inexpensive, just start by buying another core engine of the year and configuration you want, and build that one while you drive it around. A four bolt block is very common, we use to throw them away in the 80’s because they weren’t worth storing. Why make you life difficult. Just get another engine to work with. Ed 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oily rag Posted January 5, 2019 Share Posted January 5, 2019 This seems to be a HAMB question. The big thing now is to buy an off the shelf crate engine. As for old engine performance parts, there are some for the Ford Model "T". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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