WhiteLightnin83

i have a close to stock, carburated, 350 small block and i want to make a +400 hp 383 stroker motor so i need someone to explain to me exactly everything i'd have to do. is boring necessary? and could i just buy a kit with everything i'd need to do it? any help welcomed, thanks
Dustin

glen63

jegs has a 383 stroker kit

MerF

Instead of making another thread, I'll go ahead and jack this one since the question has been answered:

What's the reliability of using FI on a 383? I like high-revving motors, and I'm wondering if the long stroke of the 383 is really ideal for my application, or if just boring .030 over and building the valvetrain well will be a better approach?

Dyosis

Good heads are a must to make good HP. I personally bought some AFR 195 heads for my 383 project. Although Vortec heads would probably be a good deal for alot cheaper even though they are cast iron.

As far as a 383 as a high rpm motor, it can be done, but the extra stroke/cubes is mainly for making more torque/hp in the lower rpms. A 350/355 will have to spin more rpms to make the same amount of power a 383 can make a lower rpms. If you want a real high rpm motor, look into a 377 (400 block w/ a 350 crankshaft).

A good setup a buddy is running on a carbed motor (420hp +/-) is a 355 (350 bored 0.030 over) w/ some vortec heads, extreme energy 274 H cam and 9.5:1 compression. I don't remember the rest of the setup, but when I rode in his car, it pulled pretty hard.

ws6transam

Dustin, the easiest, fastest, and probably most economical way to guarantee a performance 383 is to buy a crate motor. There's plenty out there, from www.strokermotor.com to stropes, to nearly every sponsor of CZ28.com, and even Scoggin-Dickey Motors.

To roll your own means replacing nearly every part of your 350 except the bare block itself, which will require machining eight reliefs into the inner surface of the block's oil pan mating surface, plus up to eight spots at the upper side near the cam journals so that your connecting rod bolts will clear.

You can make a 383 rev, but anything past 5800 will require some more costly parts such as better connecting rods, and the best rod bolts you can afford. The 383 will run to 6500 on hydraulic roller cam when accompanied with a Hydrarev kit, but after that you need a decent solid roller cam with matching valvetrain.

Cylinder heads for the 383 that'll make your power START OUT at the AFR195, though many of the hi-cube, hi-po street motors are using the AFR210 heads these days, it seems.
Figure realistically $3000 to get started in the stroker engine game. Twice that if you want big power AND fuel injection.

MerF

Great info to all...I like the 377 idea, myself.

AutoRoc

If you are looking for solid power in a short amount of time possibly even with a warranty, buy something pre-built from any of the reputable companies advertizing from this site, Edelbrock offers warrantied 400-435hp engines. Some of the more race-oriented companies can make you smile also depending on what your budget is looking like. GM Performance Parts even has a HUGE lineup of engines from stock to mild to "holy wallet, Batman!"

If you are looking to interact with an engine build and have specific parts/procedures done, ask around and see who can help you in the area. This way can be better if you have to have things your way but overall it can cost more money and more time.

Budget X 2 to save headaches. Oh! And remember to smile.

ws6transam

You ain't only kidding! I've been there!! I started with a hundred-dollar 4-bolt main bare block and began building it up. On the engine stand, unfired, untested, there sits $1200 in machine work (excluding my assembly time), $1800 in rotating assembly, $2000 in cylinder heads, and $1000 in valve train. Add it up and you soon end up in territory where a warranty would be an EXTRA nice feature! My big nightmare is that I put it on the dyno just to discover I overlooked something and blow up $6K and four years worth of work.

http://www.ws6transam.org/miniram385.jpg

MerF

^^EEk....above post made me shudder...lol

WhiteLightnin83

thanks for all the input guys and as much as i'd love to just have an easy bolt in horsepower motor, my budget doesn't approve. these motors look like some great power with little work but i can't dish out $6k for my motor in a car i originally paid $3k for, not to mention i'm a student that only works part time. i'm looking more for 400 hp with a lot lower price that i can build up myself. any other ideas for gettin that kinda hp without spending so much on a stroker motor? what would it take for my carburated 350 to put that out?

WS Sick

If youre planning any RPM or anything over a 100 shot of nitrous, go with a forged piston not hyper like what comes with most of the kits.

I was able to get my rotating assembly used so I saved about 1000$ there, the heads and valvetrain and machining are still out of pocket completely.

Heads are where you want to concentrate the majority of your money after you get the shortblock finished. The cast steel cranks will hold up to alot so do not discount them. You can build a nice bottom end for 500 hp with the following.
Eagle or scat cast steel crank
4340 rods I or H (went with I beams myself)
SRP forged pistons with a nice 12 cc dish, will make your compression onthe high side with 53-58cc chambers, but still manageable.

The machineshop is next, make sure you get the block clearanced and cleaned good, if youre planning on alot of power add some 4 bolt caps if not already equiped. Have your rotating assembly balanced , will cost more for internal balance , but worth it big time. I always like to have the block decked or at least squared. Freeze plugs and cam bearings will need to be added by them as well.

Allways use a good servicable balancer. no cracks in the rubber or funky stuff, seal grooves etc.

Buy the best heads you can afford even if it means saving for six months. For a 383 with 400 rwhp I would recomend 210 cc AFRs ,Brodix track 1s, or the Pro Action peices. have them all ported to the level you want, then get your cam for what your car needs and flow require.Dont build around the cam, build around the cars needs, if you have a heavy pig car and build a top end monster you'll be suffering around town.

ws6transam

Well, if you want 400 HP on a budget, start with preserving your original shortblock, crank and connecting rods and dont mess with stroking it. Get a decent set of forged pistons once you determine what kind of overbore the engine will need (if any) and what kind of target compression ratio you'll want. Choose a compression ratio based on whether or not you can afford to buy aluminum heads or stick with iron heads. I'd suggest you spend the extra dollars for a good performance aluminum head and target a 10:1 compression ratio. Generally, aluminum will tolerate a half-point of compression ratio more than cast iron.

Now, knowing your target compression ratio, you can go shopping for cylinder heads. You'll want to put in a .050" piston to head clearance, which means you need to find out how far down the bore your piston will be sitting. Most un-decked shortblocks will have the piston face 0.025"to 0.035" down in the cylinder at top-dead-center. That means an undecked motor will use a thin .025 to .031" head gasket to preserve the .050"of cylinder to piston clearance.

If you know the clearance necessary, and you shopped for your favorite cylinder head, you will know the combustion chamber volume. With that information in hand, you can properly choose the piston and whether or not it needs to be a flat top or dished.

As you can see, building the engine requires you to balance a lot of factors when choosing your parts. Certainly it's too much for me to type here. However, if you want to go on a budget, this is the way for you to do it: Educate yourself, & buy yourself by choosing carefully.

In terms of parts for a 400 HP street motor, think cheap: Carburated, non-computer controlled. If I was to make a cheap 400 HP streep-strip friday-night special, I guess I would probably start out with an Edelbrock Victor manifold, a Holley 750 carb, an EBAY special Proform distributor with MSD6AL ignition, some SpeedPro forged pistons, and a set of 64cc aluminum heads from Dart/Pro1, Brodix, or Air Flow Research. The intake volume should probably be in the 210 to 220 cc range.

I'd inspect the old bearings and if they show any copper, have the block line bored. I'd replace the rod bolts with some ARP WaveLoc Pros, then have the rod ends resized. Then I'd spend the $200 necessary to have the rotating assembly balanced, after weight matching my own pistons and rods.

Throw in a Comp Cams solid tappet cam in the 248 degree duration range, and a 3200 RPM stall lockup-type converter with 3.73 gearing.

I'd guess that this would be a lumpy cam, gnarly ride of an engine that would holler to 6500+ RPM and make some really great power for $2500 to $3000.

kandied91z

why not go forced induction....a strong 350 with a cheap used supercharger will make that and save you alot of money/headaches.

WS Sick

I dont think the words cheap and forced induction belong in the same sentence...lol

kandied91z

they should, this misconception that it's easier to swap a cam, do head work and change an intake to get the same results for more is rediculous. maybe for a backwoods mechanic who will probably end up screwing up the motor and slowing the car down anyhow. pick yourself up something used and in good condition, then call it a day.

by the time you do all that work to tear your motor apart you'll have had to spend at least that amount to really get any speed out of it. even for another 100 horse it's going to cost you some money. very slim chance you'll get it lucky on the nose and make the kind of power you want for less then a power adder.