Harmonic damper questions (need help!!!)

Ok so there is a lot of voodoo surrounding this topic. People say never run this, never run that, etc, etc.

What I will say is that I ran a cheapie OEM 6 3/4" balancer on the 350HO and the bearings looked flawless after 2 years of drag racing, shifting at 6000 rpm.

So the next motor is a 383, externally balanced. I would like to get an SFI balancer, but I can't afford what a lot of places want for one.

I noticed www.flatlanderracing.com carries a brand of SFI balancer called proline, which run $89.99 + shipping. It says its an OEM style SFI 400 balancer. I called and they said they are nice balancers (why wouldnt they say that ;)) and that they can get them 6 3/4" external balance.

Bottom line me guys. No way in hell I can afford a $200-300 SFI balancer, any money I can save at this point will really, really help me get it on the track in a month and a half. Right now I have my heads, valves, springs, locks, lash caps, retainers, studs, rocker arms, pistons, rings, rods, bearings, crankshaft, block, valve covers, roller camshaft, SFI flexplate and misc hardware. It's down to the nitty gritty. Basically, it is balancer and I am done with the shortblock, lifters and pushrods and I am done with the long block. Help me out guys!!!

Thanks

Generally as RPM goes higher, so does the need for a larger balancer. I recently had this discussion with ATI. They essentially said you can use the bigger one for more protection, but obviously the smaller/lighter one will give better performance at the expense of bearing/crank life. The bearings may still look fine if the engine was in balance, but the crank could be fatigued due to excessive harmonics. Timing chain life can be affected as well. You essentially get what you pay for.

I've even seen some run just an aluminum hub to bolt a pulley to instead of a balancer to save some rotating weight, but it was understood that long life was not part of the equation.

The economy balancers are not all that bad, but if I just spent big money on a good crank etc., I would not skimp on a balancer.

Regardless get your actual balancer balanced with the rotating assembly (especially since you are externally balanced) as the lesser priced ones may not have the accuracy to rely on a weighted hub that some engine balancers use.

Thanks for the reply! I did plan on balancing with the rotating assembly, I am trying to get a balancer now so it can go to the machine shop as soon as the tax $$$ comes back.

So you wouldnt have any worries about running an OEM style SFI balancer on an street/strip (mostly strip) motor? This motor will be limited to 7200 rpm, shifted at 7000 rpm. I have talked to a few "gurus" trying to sway me from a cheap balancer (which is what has me worried in the first place :(), but hell if these balancers are certified to 12,500 rpm and I am spinning a little more than half of that, maybe I will be ok?

Any other input would be greatly appreciated!