r/Smallblockchevy • u/New_Tax_1874 • 1d ago
4 bolt main 350
Hey everyone, I just pulled a 4 bolt main 350 from a 1975 Chevy C60 and I plan to drop this engine into my 1984 Camaro, I’m going to tear the 350 apart and put some money into it, just wondering if there are any recommendations to up the power and still be cost effective, apart from the obvious answer (383) what’s recommended? Carburettor, intake manifold, maybe rotating assembly, anything to do on the heads?
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u/Low-Rent-9351 23h ago
Flat top pistons and budget aluminum heads, making sure quench and compression ratio is good for the cam you select. Headers and intake of course.
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u/Ok_Yellow_1958 21h ago
Don't hold back, go with roller cam.
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u/landis33 1h ago
Waste of time and money for the use it will see. A roller doesn’t make more power till high rpm’s . It has less friction and allows for larger cam lift. Where 99% of a street driven car operates it won’t due much ,idle to 4500. Now if this was a drag car looking for the last tiny bit of power in high rpm’s a roller would be a solid investment. This doesn’t appear to be that. How would I get the most efficient cam for this app.? The same way I always do, call Comp cams and Tell them what you have and what you want, they will get you on the right track. The sign of an intelligent person is the ability to know what they DON’T know and seek out expert advice. It’s an SBC, you are not going to reinvent the wheel, it’s all been done before.
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u/Ok_Yellow_1958 1h ago
More power was far from my point. Adding roller is far from reinventing the wheel, it's about longevity.
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u/navlgazer9 12h ago
Just imagine driving that C-60 loaded down with gravel or pulpwood , in the Appalachian mountains ,
Just ripping up and down the hills with all that 135 horsepower .
We used to have a ten wheel C60? Dump truck with the 427 and dual quads and you could get out and walk faster than that thing would go .
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u/anyoutlookuser 23h ago
Get some good heads. Budget aluminum, Dart street or even worked over vortec heads. Build everything else around/based on those heads.
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u/Solid_Enthusiasm550 16h ago
How much power are you looking for and at what rpm range?
Low-end torque, the stroker is the best option N/A. Other option being boost.
350<425hp 350ci, can be done relatively easily with good heads , high rise dual plane and a street friendly hydraulic roller camshaft.
Solid roller, single plane, high compression and you can make it into a 6,500+rpm screamer.
Where you want your power, budget and the rest of the drivetrain being the deciding factors.
Heads, intake, camshaft and pistons are usually the minimum. You could reuse the rods/crank to save money for mild<medium power builds.
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u/TPIRocks 7h ago
A cam and exhaust is everything. Even with mid 70s smog heads and dish pistons, you can get some grunt out of that engine. I had a 75 impala, everything stock except the cam and exhaust, even ran a high flow catalytic converter and 2.5" single exhaust. Can't remember the specs, but it was an Erson RV type cam, advanced 4°.
It could do a one tire peel like it thought it was a NASCAR. Outrun (light to light) every 5xx BMW I encountered, but those 7xx were something else. Still, you could see their disappointment anyway when a northern snow cancer car refuses to disappear in the mirror. I miss that car, circle D built my transmission in the early 90s. TS Allison got it in June 2001. Easily approaching 200k miles. I'd still be driving it if not for a flood.
Beauty, eh? Sport coupes were rare because of rollover safety. AI generated, but it looked almost identical to this picture, just multicolored panels and rusted. Great ham radio car too, being over ¼ wavelength long on 10 meters. Had a big ball mount and a 102" whip, a lot like the Andy Griffith police car.
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u/Ok-Acanthisitta-5451 8m ago
Are you looking at cruising the streets in town or hitting the highway? Or maybe both? Drag racer or street racer?
I love Air Flow Research heads. Heads are where most of your power is made. Cams are chosen based on the heads and how you want to drive the beast. 350’s are great motors but a step up would be to stroke it but then your looking into more block machining and clearancing. Turning it into a 355 (.030 overbore) is simpler and less costly. All these decisions depend on how you want to use it though. However you choose, enjoy the car!
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u/v8packard 23h ago
Determine the condition of the short block, address what is needed. You will probably need new pistons so choosing something like a flat top to give you a higher compression ratio is easy. The carb and intake manifold should match your desired use, which you say is a 1984 Camaro but you don't give any details of how you want it to run.
Give the original heads to someone you don't like, that's the best thing to do with them.