Looking for a 235 to turn into a tire eater, bored out, cam...... I have a 235 out of a 53, but heard the 55' 235 is better due to higher compression. This will be a daily driver as well. let me know what you think. thanks
I would look for the latest year model I could find. Best chance for bigger valves, compression, etc. I have a '61 235 waiting it's turn. Good luck.
53 would be the old babbit rod engine. 54 is the first year of full pressure insert rod bearings, also the last year of the short water pump design block. But you still really need a 261, they came in big trucks (not pickups) and are a good starting point for a performance stovebolt.
a 54 235 will work with the same motor mounts as the 53, while later models are different, slightly. 60-62 blocks look like they are the same side engine mount, but are also slightly different. and 55-up use a differnet flywheel, starter, bellhousing than the previous 6 volt versions, but they are easily swapped as long as you use the right generation of parts.
I am not up on the mounting differences like 53sled posted, but thought I'd add that GMC had a 270 that looks just like a 235. Mine was a 59 1 ton.
If you find either a '53 Powerglide engine, or any '54 engine, it's a 100 percent bolt-in and will have full pressure oiling, insert rod bearings, and aluminum pistons. The only difference between the two engines is that the '53 block used the smaller journal '37-'53 cam, and the '54 uses the larger '54-'62 style cam.
There's a guy near me that has been doing machine work for a long time. The other day he was telling me about his friend who ran a car with a 261. he said they would always use 261s and put 283 pistons in them if I remember right.
I have a 54 half ton pickup with the stock 235 as well. Can you bore your 235 cylinders out and put 261 pistons in or is the center distance between cylinders different? I thought I heard that the 2 motors used the same crank but with different (beefier) connecting rods and maybe a different head? But I am not too sure.
I would: 1. Be polite and introduce yourself 2. Use the search function. A "How do I hop up a 235?" post comes up just about once a month 3. Check out inliners.org for lots of great info, too
58-62 engines are the better ones to get. Better bearings, oiling, mounting options, compression ratio. The larger journaled camshafts are cheaper and easier to get in a high perf. version. The 53-54 car and 54-55 1st series truck engines are going to be the easiest to install into a 52-54 car because of the motor mounts nad water pump, but when you factor in the differences between those engines and the later versions, especially when considering a performance build, the little extra work it takes to install the later engines is worth it, in my opinion. 261's have heavier rods and larger piston pins. If you bore out a 235 to a 261, you would need to find a set of 261 rods in order to use 261 pistons, or you could have custom pistons made. Personnally, I wouldn't go over 0.80" on a 235. If you do go more than that, be sure to get a 261 head gasket as well. Only the manual tranny car, and the trucks still had the poured babbit rods in '53. V8 pistons can be used on the later 230 or 250 engines, not the earlier stovebolts. GMC's are about 2" longer than a 235. Oil pan may need to be modified as well. Have to use the GMC flywheel also, but the Chevy bellhousing will bolt up to the block. It will cost about 4 times as much to build a GMC, but you will get much better performance results. The Chevy stovebolt bellhousing doesn't care about 6 or 12 volts. The starter and flywheel need to be the same because the tooth count is different between 6 and 12 volts. I run a '53 truck bellhousing with a '56 clutch, flywheel and starter, and a '60 261 engine in my '53 truck, for example.
If the gods find you in favor, you can sucessfully bore a 235 out to 3 11/16 for 252 cubes, but trying to take it out to 3 3/4 will give you an expensive piece of scrap iron. If you find a 261 block and set of rods, you can fake the rest with 235 parts, assuming that you'd be buying new pistons anyway.
I'm building a different 235 at the moment. i've just got a set of 292 rods (via a HAMB relay) and a set of N..O.S. 235 + 0.030" pop-ups. I need to have the small end of the rods bushed to suit the smaller 235 pin, but after stroking the crank to 4.125", i'll have 250 C.I. that should give me heaps of torque, some compression, and as much tire frying as I can handle. Sure I've got a couple of 261's but one is for Jimmy rods, buick pistons, and a Wade blower, the other for another set of pop-ups, and 292 rods - for a total of 302 C.I. i'm doing the 235 first to make sure the combo works before I use one of my 261's.
Been wanting to do the same thing. I'm still running a 216 ('51) that's been updated as much as possible. I'd like to hear your progress and any tips that might be helpful. I'm probably a year away at least.
Hey, I'm considering selling my Jahns pop-ups if you're interested 235 + 0.030" N.O.S pistons and pins. I've found something I want even more than these slugs
The Jalopy Journal
