i have an 83 z28 with a rebuilt 350 and 350 turbo. my 350 is about 320 hp(estimating) it was just a basic rebuild with a few upgrades. i'm thinking about supercharging it, what all would i have to buy and replace to put a supercharger on it. i want it to be streetable so if i decide to take it to work or out i can and still get decent gas mileage but still have hellacious power if i romp on the car. i was figuring buying a new carb(s), obviously new intake setup and belt set up since it uses v-belt, the supercharger itself.... can someone just tell me everything i would have to buy, maybe a rough price estimate, the best supercharger for my car, and how much work i'm lookin at doing... thanks
Dustin

 

You could go with a Vortech blow through set up for a carburated small block chevy. Go to thier website to check out these kits. www.vortechengineering.com.

I recommend you rebuild your entire engine for a supercharger. You will need to beef up the bottom end to hang with this kind of cylinder temperatue and pressure. I recommend at least a cast steel crank shaft. Some good quality forged steel connecting rods with ARP wave loc bolts. Some sort of forged piston with good rings is a must.

SPEED PRO makes a good supercharger piston for the 350. Its part# L2441F. Around $320. SPEED PRO makes a good plasma/moly ring also. around $100. You could go with some rods and a crank from Eagle. They make a good cast steel crank for around $240 if you shop around online. You could get some Eagle SIR rods. These are forged steel I-beams that look similar to stock rods, but they are stronger, and light, and come with ARP wave locs. You can purchase a set of these for around $300-$320. Look around online. I recommend you get the ones that are bushed for floating pins. The SPEED PRO supercharger pistons have floating pins. You should also invest in some ARP head and main studs.

Makes sure you don't go cheap on the machine work. You should at least align bore, cylinder bore, and deck the block. If you can afford them, buy some aftermarket 4 bolt main caps for a little extra insurance. The machine shop will need to install these. Tap all the bolt holes in the block. You can do this yourself with a tap set. Balance everything. (crank, rods, pistons, etc.) Have the machine shop install new cam bearings.

If you can afford it, invest in a high quality harmonic balancer like an ATI.

Look into getting a blower cam. Lots of cam companies have off the shelf grinds that will work good with a street setup. If you get one now, you wont have to worry about replacing the cam when the motor is back in the car.

This is just an idea of what you will need to do to the bottom end. These are low power components I have recommended. This bottom end would be good to around just under 600 crank HP. If you plan to make more power than this, you should get a forged crank, some H-beam rods, and higher quality pistons like JE.

Top end components (heads, intake manifold, carb, etc.) will need to be replaced or modified based on the power level you're going after. You could use you current top end stuff for now, and upgrade as you budget allows. With a supercharger, you can always just up the boost when you want some more power. Remember that you need to have your compression low enough, depending on the amount of boost you make. Make sure you get a blower kit that can make the amount of power your after. If you don't plan on more than 600HP than an S-trim Vortech would work fine. More, and you'll want a T-trim.

These are just very general guide lines. Feel free to ask more specific questions. GOOD LUCK!

 

well, thanks alot for all that imput, it helped alot... i didn't realize how much had to be redone for this kind of power. all in all how much money am i looking at investing in just this motor and supercharger, i'd really like to get between 500 and 600 hp. i rode in my friends freshly built 4.6 mustang that he threw a bit of money into and when that supercharger kicked in hard around 4500 rpms and it slammed me in the seat i fell in love and he was puttin out around 560 hp so i want it. but thanks for the imput on everything now i'm just curious as to how much money its gonna cost me to get this, thanks again.
Dustin

 

Just a rough estimate,

a grand for crank, rods, pistons, rings. ($1000)

This stuff will need to be balanced. This depends on the machine shop you go to. Around $200.

Machine work alltogether might be close to a grand also. You'll need to check with a machine shop. ($1000)

Gaskets set for small block chevy, around $50.

Head studs, $115.

Main studs, $75.

blower cam, lifters, pushrods, springs $500.

All engine bearings, around $100.

Oil and filter, $25?

Vortech polished S-trim kit for carburated small block chevy $2,600

this list could go on and on, its ultimately up to you

BALL PARK figure $5,000-$6,000 easy

the sky is the limit