I've been looking for some time for a sbc replacement since I blew the engine on my 37 Nash. I really need some more low end torque so I've narrowed my search down to a 383 Stroker. I would keep my Chevrolet script valve covers to make this thing look traditional. Got a line on a rebuilt engine that was going into a Corvette project that has turned a different direction. Only time on the engine is in the break in. They say it's turning 410hp. They want $1500 for the Long (edited from short) block. I'm thinking this is a screaming deal but for some reason it seems too good to be true. I'm ***uming since the work has been done in house (Corvette shop) they are not near what a retail price would be. Specs - .030 over - trw ft forged low friction rings - 4 bolt mains - ARP rod bolts - 400 crank, fully balanced - 0 Decker - Roller Rockers - Double Hump heads - 165 IN - 150 EX Am I thinking too much into this or should I jump on it?
I just sold (Friday) a brand new, aluminum headed, full roller 383 from carb (carb was used) to pan (pan new too) for $3000.00. First of all, talk is cheap............. But what I want to know is how can they tell you it has 400+ horse with NO HEADS?
Sorry, I thought short block meant no intake, carb, alt, starter... It does have double hump heads. I have corrected the info...
Get a written money-back gaurantee, or best of all, hear it run before you buy it. It's not a difficult thing for them to put a starter, intake and carb on it and let you see it run. This can easily be done with the engine sitting on the floor...nothin' fancy. At the very least, they can throw a starter on it and do a compression test. If they give you excuses why they can't do this for you, I'd p***. If they know the engine is good, and they really wanna sell it, they just might change their minds as you head toward the door. If not...walk faster, and don't ever do business with them in the future.
1.65 intake double hump? Sounds like truck heads like I had on my 327. You should be looking for 461 or 462 castings 1.94 or 2.02 intake valves. Personally I would doubt the 410 hp claim and I would treat anything the builder says as hearsay - you need dyno sheets and actual proof. Do some more research and caveat emptor - buyer beware....
you want the 2.02 valve heads. And the hp claim? I'd say show me a print out from a dyno. Nobody can say with any accuracy how much hp they have without some sort of test. They can make educated guesses based on experience...otherwise they are baseless claims.
It is not that difficult to make 410 HP from a 383 if the parts are a tested combo. Find out who built it. I would want to know clearances, cam specs, compression ratio, etc.
Chevy never made a head with 1.65 intake valves. Normally, it's either 1.72, 1.94, or 2.02, either 1.50 or 1.60 exhaust valves. Another question: Why is it that whenever somebody refers to a 383 small block, they ALWAYS have to put the word STROKER on the end of it? We've been building them since the mid 70s, and think that everybody should know by now that a 383 is a stroked 350. So, is a 350 Stroker a 327 with a longer stroke? Sorry for the rant, but everytime I hear the word stroker and 383 in the same sentence, I want to gouge my eyes out.
You're right - my so called 365 Horse L76 Corvette 327 (aren't they all Corvette?) when I pulled the heads, had truck heads - 1.60 intake. If the engine builder or seller says 1.65 then there's your first big red flag....
Ha Ha! Ain't that the ****in' truth! That's right up there with "I've got a Corvette engine in my car".
I've seen too many "rebuilt but not completed motors" and all of them scared me away. My question is always, "if it is so good, then "WHY ISN'T IT FINISHED?" Or better yet, why did you take it out if it only has 3000 miles on it? Yeah right... IMO you should just get out your wallet and build a 396 Small Block "stroker (sorry I could not resist)". (grin)
They used a computer program, you plug in your components and then it spits out your HP. They have another one that you plug in vehicle weight and Hp and it gives you an ET.
Steve, The motor you have in the car now already has the 461 or 462 double hump heads and they were ported. You should just stick with them. Paul
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