So picked up a neat 327 engine.. was told it was a 383. It has TRW 2278 pistons which appear to be a 9/16ths stroker as they called it. 3.562 stroke. Weird thing is that it has a 2680 steel crank..can those be offset ground that far? Has plenty of balance weights added to it. Oil pan rail area has been clearanced...and a main girdle added. Anyway...has a Howard roller cam...might be pretty old build..60s? Does anyone have specs on it?
The 365/360 is most likely a hp/tq estimate I don’t see that on any Howard’s cams that come up so I’m going to say it is a similar grind to a performance Chevy cam aka the same as a 365 hp 327 factory motor and that’s how it got marked
Well it’s not a part number and it’s not lift numbers so it’s just a guess at what the number could mean
Is that crank cut and welded? If so that is scary. The 360/365 is probably lobe lift. A 327 normally had 300 or less lobe lift. You can put it in the block and measure the lift to verify. Put a degree wheel on it and identify the separation and overlap as well.
Tim...it could be lift numbers...multiply those numbers by 1.5 and you have something pretty rowdy. Just wondering if anyone has seen a similar cam..or markings
Hadn’t considered the 1.5 let me see if I can find the page of cams I found when I was first looking and I’ll link it.
It's possible. I just got it and it needs a lot of cleanup before I try to pull it apart..or something will break. It for sure has the TRW 2278 pistons..which are for the 3.562 stroke. Also they are 12.5-1 ! The guy was a sprint/oval track kind of guy and I read online the 9/16ths stroker was a hot thing to do back then. I assume that this was done before you could just buy a 350 crank. So pre 1967? I just don't know yet how they got that much stroke out of a 327 crank. I agree about the numbers on the cam..they must be lift. Multiplied by 1.5 it's 547 540. Pretty wild..but it is a solid roller.
Using your numbers there are some options that are close on page 3 of the link. From what I gather they handle all the Howard stuff now maybe give them a call? Might be something out of production.
Crankshaft Company, later Hank the Crank manufactured and sold thousands of welded strokers in the 50's through the 70's with no breakage problems. Properly done they are just fine.
I Didn't look up the piston part # but what's the bore? According to my old Jake's speed equipment chart if it's a "4 bore it's a 358 ci, if it's a "4/16 bore (.060 over) it's 369, if it's only .030 it's a 363 inch.
It looks like standard bore if you can believe it. I'm guessing this engine was built in the 60s..the block is 1966 dated..so it was a near new engine at that point. I think the 9/16ths stroker is commonly .030 over at least...ive seen references to 364 cubic inches. At standard bore its a 358 like you mentioned.. which makes me think this engine must have been built by 1967 or 1968 at the latest...because the 350 came out then. Why go through the trouble and expense to stroke a 327 crank when you can just use a 350 crank?
Those were very popular combination used in Dirt Sprint cars in the early 70’s did it have a rev kit in it too, that was about as stout as you could make a stock block back then. What block casting is it?
Its a 3853174 block...1966 dated. That type of racing is exactly what the guy was doing who built it. Just had the roller lifters in their bores...heads weren't bolted on..
Having worked on small block checks for fifty years thirty three of it full time in my own machine shop I have never seen that main girdle / cap arrangement. I think your first concern should be making an oil pan fit and seal! All the rest is straight forward engine work. Unless your planning on racing it you'll want to lose some compression and likely the cam.
That girdle was only for the three center mains, Ron Hammell operated 10,000 RPM Speed Equipment and IIRC an early Champion Speed Shop fuel dragster had one of those on their SBC.
My current Howard cam was ground in 1976 and its numbers were the lift at the cam. It was one that had been used from the late 60’s. My guess is those are intake and exhaust lifts at the cam. EZ to check.
Thanks for the great info. The 10,000 RPM lettering on the girdle looks hand stamped and primitive..so probably early. I guess they thought they had to restore some rigidity to the bottom end after scooping out the oil pan rail for crank and rod clearance.
The girdle was patterned after the units for 392 Chryslers. As has been stated, the 9/16's was very common, not just circle but drag racing also. The quickest way to get an idea of what the cam is: get a pair of v blocks to allow spinning the cam freely. Put a degree wheel on the front of it. Set up a dial indicator in a vertical plain on an intake and an exhaust lobe. rotate the cam and measure the cam lift and multiply by the rocker arm ratio. You can measure duration also but remember that a clearance ramp can affect readings.
Nice score! Too bad it sat around without much protection. Just a guess, but engine was probably set up to just slide under a 360 cubic inch class and most likely on alcohol. Hope you are able to save it.
The Jalopy Journal
