last year i built a 331
which is a .030 over 350 block with a 327 crank
11.5:1 compression, (which sometimes needs fuel additive)
the motor is a screamer, i would imagine 450- 500 hp?
at 30 mph kick down it will rip the tires off the back of the car
and the rpms are good till 9,000 (says local machine shop) but ive only pushed it to 8,000. anyways this winter i rebuilt my tranny, got a tranny brake, and a new torque converter with a stall speed of 4800
i have sub frame connectors, and i plan on getting a BMR torque arm
4.10's in the rear with a set of slicks. what times do you think this set up is capable of?

 

WOW what kind of heads and cam profile are you using? I say high 11's

 

better run quicker than that i'd think! low 11's if you can hook it.

 

12s if you're lucky maybe high 11s at best. no replacement for a 350, you're down on cubes here. high revving or not it'll not make as much power as a 350 with the same components

 

Agreed, you can't have low end torque and top end with small cubes. I have a friend who built a solid roller 350, that thing was a dog out of the hole but ran well up top. Ran mid 11's all year, but it took a 5000 converter and steep gears to do it.

 

I thought this thread was about what he will run with his setup and not why its never going to make more power than a 350.

 

It seems related to me, he destroked a motor that probably would have given him a better number with the stock strock. Seems relevant if he is interested in numbers. I say 4.10's or better for gears to compensate.

 

the heads are edelbrock 2.02's 64cc chambers, with differnt valves and springs (ones that were with it stock are junk.) as far as the cam, i dont remember off the top of my head but its a solid roller, i emptied my wallet into the top end and valve trane. i dont know why i wanted to de-stroke. at first thought it sounded foolish but if you look into it and arent afraid to loose a little torque (which going from my old sluggish 350 i think i actually have alot more torque) i think you'l fall into the same trance that i had. i discovered at my local track it wasnt an uncommon build. this engine revs faster, higher, and smoother than my old 350. and on the street i have smoked many built 350's and 383's. (not in the same style camaro so point is almost invalid) but so far im very pleased with its out come. but i'm a little nervous to see the time it will turn at the track. i think it may be a little slower than what im hoping for (mid 7's in 1/8th mile). im going to finish my plans with the suspension and then race it most likely in july. ill be sure to let you all know what it does.

 

it's OK, i'm thinking of a de-stroker myself...though it's because of cubic inch limit to weight break ratios...i'm thinking of a 352...i'm hoping to run some of Rich Maitre's events.

 

im satisfied with my de-stroker. all the old guys with big blocks hate me. cuz im this little sh$t head teen ager with an 85 camaro that destroys their chevelle's. but i must say after this one, im going to build a big block. i really really want to build a 427, or a 540. oh and matt, i polished those wheels and painted them again, im too afraid to put them on and ruin em. they look waaaay too nice hahah. ill have some before and after pictures of my car later on in july. and a little more off topic, but do you guys know how low of gears i can squeeze in that stock rear end, im dying to go lower, like 5.57 or crazier. everyone tells me its a stupid idea, but then again, everyone thought my new small block was going to be a slug

 

the shortest gear you can put in the 7.5 is a 4.56, though i wouldn't recommend it cause the pinion gear is so small and weak. it's time to build a better rear...12 bolt or 9inch and time to upgrade to a 30" tire and 5.30 gears.

i'd like to see pictures man! honestly, i'm kickin' myself for even selling those things, but i needed the money...i've got 91-92 16" wheels on her now, and it's just not the same, lol!

 

well today i borrowed a friends G-tech. did a 7.90 1/8 mile with a looooonnng burn out on the street. i dont know how accurate those things are, but just putting it out there. it can only be faster at the track. do you think its possible to run a low 7 in the 1/8?

 

at this point, you just need to get it to the track. running it on the street with a g-tech is only good to a certain point, but when your making real hp, tehre is simply no way to get it hooked on the street and you'll have to run it at the track.

 

am i going to need a roll bar?

 

it's possible...make one pass and if they tell you to go home and not come back till you have a roll bar, then i guess there is your answer!

what do you have for tires and rear suspension mods?

 

right now the suspension is all stock... im going to order a BMR torque arm come my next paycheck. ive got some drag radials. they make a huge difference on the street. but come track day i would deff come with some real slicks. i dont want go with to big of a tire because i want to keep my gear ratio just how it is. im not to excited about a roll bar. to be honost i really dont want one at all. i have a full interior, full body with GFX, ive done nothing to make it the car lighter. and im kinda scared of snaping my tranny,i just sank 1100 into it with a converter, rebuild kit and brake. its only a th350

 

i wouldn't worry about the tranny...that 7.5" is gone though.

i wouldn't spend the money on the torque arm yet, but first some lca's and lca relocation brackets. bmr makes some really nice ones.

what kinda drag radials do you have? i'm running m/t ET Street Radials and i swear they are faster than a full slick...and i'm not the only one that swears by that either. John Balinksi has been 8.3x's (1/4) on a 295/65/15 M/T Radial in a 3400lbs. 1985ish olds cutlass

 

BF goodrich, but its stock size 235/60/15. im not sure what im going to do with a torque arm. it deff needs something because the wheel hop is insane when the tires are trying to hook. especially at high speed its not comfortable.

 

lca relocation brackets will fix that problem. look on the suspension boards, there is a post by Mr. Dude that explains why the lca relocation brackets fix wheelhop.

go to a bigger tire too. a 275/60/15 is DEFINITELY in order here.

 

What cylinder heads are on the motor currently?

 

I always wanted to build a 406 sbc with TPI and put some 7.5x gears in them. That should jerk the wheels off the ground

 

would that be for those super short 330' tracks?

"anyone for some 1/16th mile racing?"

 

the heads i am currently running are pro toplines with 190cc intake runners, 64cc combustion chambers. may not be the best heads, but i was on a budget but, the smaller intake runners to make rpm. i dont agree the argument that a motor with a 350 crank will make much more power. i think they will be around the same,(atleast within 20) its just where the power comes in, i've done plenty of digging. i spent a long time wreslting with the idea of a 383, a 355 (which i already had) and even a 302, which is another destroked engine. i have pulled the engine to freshen up. with the high rpm's everything breaks down a bit faster after a season and a half its time for rings and bearings, they arent shot, but to keep the performance up im going to go thru it. we could argue all day long about what will make more power, but im going to say that im making just as much as a 350 with the same components. its just where the power comes in is different. its like a 2 stroke dirt bike. low rpm it bogs, you gotta really spin it untill it wakes up.

 

you are trading low rpm power for high rpm power to make the same HP. there is no way that if you built two identical motors that the longer stroked one wouldn't make more power at a lower more reliable RPM.

 

i agree with more power at a lower rpm but how much more? i dont think were talking gobs more? and for the money i have into this engine, im very satisfied. during the build, everyone poked fun, saying its not going to make over 350, blah blah, and when i finally got it done, everyone was amazed with how well it performs. its a blast shifting a car at 8,000. and i think it makes more torque than my old 355. which was a mostly stock motor, had a cam, intake, 600 carb,and some headwork. this 331 was a very low budget build, i probably spent 2500 at the most. i got lucky and got the bottom end, blue printed, balanced and decked for 500. but after this im done with small blocks. i want to build a 10.2:1 540. only because i cant find pistons at the 11:1 or 11.5:1 level at a .030 over bore. i've heard they you have to get them custom made but i think a high compression 540 is capable of 600 hp? if not more.