OK my SBC in review and why I get irritated when it is knocked

I guess what's really funny about some (not all) SBC guys is they have NEVER worked on anything else...couldn't tell you the firing order of a Briggs and Stratton....they put 350's in $60,000 GTO's and instantly drop the value in half (or more)....During my car hauling days I transported a near-100 point '69 Mercury Cyclone Spoiler (rare Dan Gurney model) to California...some dumb*** dropped a 350 into it...." 'cuz it was easy to get parts for"....that $30,000 car was now worth about $12,000...

I used to race dirt cars (Ford) and my Chevy buddies would tell me they would build a FoMoCo but it costs too much all the while BUYING $18,000-a-pop 406's while I had $3,500 in my homebuilt motor. Now I was a REAL low bucker...but if I had a Chevy, it would STILL only be a $3,500.00 motor...that's all I had to spend!

As far as horsepower, if you want big #'s...build a HEMI...not too many SBC's in Top Fuel today.

Now I don't HATE SBC's...I love the look of an 283 or 327 in a period correct car...but PLEASE dump those ugly late model heads with the bolt holes in front...if you want your '57 to look like a '84 Camaro thats fine but why not complete the look with a Mullet haircut and a stack of Winger and Poison c***ette tapes laying on the dash?

I guess a mix of cool powerplants is more representative of ANY era...and that's my point...be creative in your engine compartment...not every Ford/Mercury/Hudson/Es***/Pontiac/Buick/Oldsmobile/Studebaker/DeSoto 50 years ago had a 283 (or a GM subframe..but that another subject)...and if you run a SBC in an early-style car, Taiwan chrome and a 2X4 high rise intake ain't gonna cut it...

 

Guess I'll keep the ******* match going by stating that "building" an engine has always been in reference to ***embling the components not casting your own block and heads designing your own heads and camshaft, etc. If your going to use that argument then you had better explain to every contractor out there that he didn't " build" the house he just finished. How many things that are labled "built by" would have to be changed just because someone collected the components and did the ***embly work. If you just redo it stock it's refered to as "rebuilt". If you selected specific components to enhance the performance (refered to in some circles as hot rodding) when you ***embled you engine then you can still claim you "built" the motor. Splitting hairs is fun but totally unnecessary in this situation.

Frank

 

BINGO!!! the key phrase being "all you chevy guys"

-Hey, its all good. Even I like cookie-cutter belly ****on cars. Nothing wrong with chevy power...just be sure to keep your AAA membership current. Personally, I like sbc's especially in marine applications...when attached to the end of a big chain and dumped in the drink, the boat will NOT move. And yes, they are plentiful; the local junkyard is full of 'em. J/K, guys...dont go gettin' yer tampons all twisted.

Greg

 

The SBC is a great engine to learn with. There are few things as satisfying as building(***embling) your own engine. Even though the SBC is common it is for good reason. You can't match the bang for the buck or the reliability. That said,there are a lot of other engines with a much higher cool factor. More cool usually translates into more expensive. I know that many guys here are working on tight budgets and driving your car with a SBC is better than sitting at home trying to save enough to run that early hemi. If you don't understand that you're hanging with the wrong crowd here.

 

Didn't mean to start a semantics war....(Is a house "kit" ***embled or built???).....My point is this.....whichever engine you choose, it is just cast iron with some aluminum or steel thrown in to the mess......another outdated internal combustion contraption. It's all about the looks you prefer....any engine can be infused with cash to make horsepower.

And what IS the firing order of a Briggs and Stratton??????....I think it's the same as a Te***seh.

 

I like all motors... i run a 283 in my impala.. if its rare and weird.. i will want it... but i keep a ford in a ford and a chevy in a chevy..

 

Well, while I am NOT generally a fan of the SBC, I think yours looks cool. As far as I am concerned all three of the major smallblocks can be built for about the same money per HP if you shop carefully. Whether they are my thing or not, the sbc IS a traditional choice. If that is what you want/can afford do it up.

That said, I hate stud mounted rockers, no matter what they are on. Probably no rational reason, just hate'em.
I get tired of hearing people make it sound like the sbc costs half as much to make 500hp, I don't see many of those builds done with many stock parts, nor do I think they are any more or less reliable than anything else.

I think your 2x2bbl setup looks trick. Using what you have is cool, no matter what. Should be a cool ride. Best of all, It's YOUR ride for YOU to enjoy. Screw anyone that tells you otherwise.

Randy

hahaha Dead Horse Week...

 

1..1..1..1..1..1
repeat if applied power still needed

 

I want to kick the dead horse too.

We have a circle track in my home town. It is nearly impossible to find a sbc of anything other then the new small cube motors. Any sbc you can find within 50-75 miles of here sure ain't cheap. Everyone has already blown them up. SBF are getting just about as bad. Few of the yards here ever kept the sbm very long because they didn't sell well (Yard said they lasted too long.) Finding any kind of V8 is an expensive proceedure here. $350 min for any "rebuildable" V8, if its popular, it costs more, condition unimportant. You don't buy motors from yards here in town.

Now the race track is running a 4 cylinder cl***, guess what, junk 4 cylinder cars are expensive now too.

Point is, a guy can buy a car for the motor cheaper then he can buy the motor itself. The general opinoin of most people here is that Chevy v8s are all 350s and Chevy 350s are worth a lot of money. Reality has little to do with it. Small block Chevys are a lot more expensive then any other brand of motor from the start, at least around here. I'm not sold on the concept of them being cheaper to build either. I suspect that to reach a given power level with any of the big 3, they will cost about the same money. Yea, I said "build" as in rebuild, or more accurately, recondition, not "manufacture" or reinvent a motor.

You Chevy boys, Ford boys, Mopar boys, and (insert brand name here) boys build whatever you like, I will enjoy looking at your cool motors. Just refrain from telling my how great thou art, and how every car built should have one just like yours, and I won't give you any ****. My motors take me from point a to point b and sometimes the tires can spin so I can show off too.

UM, well except for " Oh, just another small block Chevy." sorry couldn't resist. Gene