I guess it's going to depend on my timeline and if I am able to find a donor car. The SBC is so practicle but I don't want something so common in such an uncommon car. A SB Ford isn't as common but I don't need the droopy pants Mustang boys loitering around my ride. If the big block Olds is as light as some of you guys are telling me I'd go that way if I could find one at a reasonable price.
Just keep yours eyes peeled for big Olds 88's and 98's, or Toronados.... A 425/455 would be so sweet.. A 400 would be too if you could find one.. And if you want to go early olds a 394 would be ***s... I've got one sitting on the shelf that I'd love to use in a Falcon or a Chevy II, or an altered A Pick Up...
If you think the SBC dethroned the flathead ford you sir need to go take a second look at your history books... The last year for the Flatty was '53 the Y came out in '54.... And I'm going to go out on another limb here and say that if it wasn't for the early Rockets that SBC wouldn't be here, reason being the Olds and Cad mills were the first OHV V8's.....
Clik, 455's do weigh about the same as sbc, I read an article in car craft mag (I think) about an Olds 455 they had built and with aluminum intake and heads it weighed significantly less than a stock sbc, also made more power than their dyno was capable of measuring... more than 600 lbs-ft... It may not be traditional, but still carries the name "Rocket" at least...
I was really intrigued by the 455 and its reported light weight, even though it's a little past the era I was aiming for. I haven't exactly been tripping over them either. Donor cars seem rare as well. Now I have another dilema: My die hard bow-tie buddies are giving me the plague as well by donating freebies to the cause. One of 'em just dumped a four-bolt-main SBC on me just to keep me in the family. It's hard to argue with free. Maybe I can put a different intake on it or somethin' to make it not so common.
I notice the Ford small block is not the obvious choice that I thought it would be after the chev.I,m going Ford S.B.,mostly on the belly ****on syndrome but whats not been mentioned,they just got a better growl; a must for street poseurs
after reading this whole thread sbc is the only way to go most of the motors that are mention in here were all pulled out and replaced with sbc,s in the time frame you want but if you want the new fake old school look then any of these choices would be good it all comes to what you like it,s your car the only boreing thing is the those who try to tell you what you must have in YOUR CAR just my 2 cents just have fun with what ever your choice you make
66-67 400 olds motors work great.Maybe a 60'2 425 olds.They had a **** load of torque.I have a 70 455 from a toronado and it is rated at 370 hp with 500 ft lbs of torque from the factory?
I've got a 324 in the garage. Unfortunately it's in the ol'lady's 56 Olds and she ain't givin' it up. The SBC is getting magna this week. If it checks out I'll stroke it with a new crank.
I suppose it's too late to persuade you to go with a hot rodded Henry J engine (Continental flathead)? That would really screw with some people's heads. -Dave
Ive got the HJ's Supersonic Six but even if I doubled the horsepower I'd still be well below two hundred.
Mura bros seemed to think a big block Mopar was the hot setup for a Willys g***er in 1964, so did a lot of other people that saw theirs. Big block Mopar wedge came out in 1958 and thanks to all the high performance bits offered by the factory (multi carb intakes, ram tuning, etc.) leading up to the Max wedge motors, within the first five years, unless factored out by cl*** restrictions, became the motor to beat until the advent of the second generation Hemi. Fuel injected Sting Rays or not, if you were herding a built big block Mopar on the street in the early sixties, small block Chevrolets didn't give you much worry. Find a 400 block, stuff in a 440 crank to gain more than a little cubic inches in the low deck rigid block, pop on a cl***ic 2X4 cross ram, build a righteous set of fenderwell headers, back it up with a push****on 727 and Dana 60, and stir into the mix the Willys body style of your choice. What's not to like?
What's not to like you say? Weight. I am a Mopar fan though. Keeping my eye open for a barn find 69 Dart GTS that some ol' farmer will let go for a hundred bucks and a sack of corn.
I would probably qualify as a SBC hater, (big Olds guy) But a revvy little 327 seems natural to me, someone earlier mentioned thats what he usually saw in the 60s, thats good enough for me. Crusty tunnel ram?... finned valve covers with big racy breathers?... Old school cam! And its a natural for the 4.10s 383s are good for lugging, not revving.
I just ordered a set of Firestone pie crust cheaters in 16" which I'm guessing would bring the 4:10 gears down to about 3:90? The tunnel ram and finned valve covers will be a must. Fenderwell headers to bottom things off. I'm not sure what I'll put on the end of them.
Want an Unusual motor? 455 Olds 287 Rambler 421 Pontiac 500 Caddy 572 Chevrolet (Pricy but big) Or if you are too into chevy's just get a 327.
Exactly what I was thinking. Just about any 50s V8 will weigh more than a SBC. I like Olds engines, always had good luck with them. Rebuild parts are expensive though. This is way outside the box but something like a 289 Stude or a 327 Rambler would be cool as hell. But then I like unique stuff and ain't out to win races. I always figure a unique rod shouldn't have a boring belly ****on engine, even if it is the cheapest thing around.
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