I'm going to be going 383 and just had a few q's

I'm going to be piecing together my own kit since I got a great deal on some rods forged i-beams for practically free, just wondering:

-how much I should expect to pay for balancing
-how much I should expect to pay for .030" over, honing, etc?
-on 400 crank, should I go internally or externally balanced?
-what if any benefits there are to either and what parts I would need to purchase to make either work
-I'm looking at 500whp MAX on the bottle (probably not that oftenly used) and wondering if I should invest in forged pistons or hyper pistons will work fine?

 

they dont use 400 cranks for strokers, 1 piece rear main crank with a 3.75 stroke internal balance is what you need. you will need to neutral balance your flywheel/flexplate at the min. the damper at the front is already neutral but id upgrade that as well. and if you plan on spray id definitely go forged pistons, they arent too bad, a good mahle powerpack piston comes with rings and pins etc. its a kit.

 

Costed me $225 for balance, I think normal is $175
Not to much for .030 and honeing, $80 is a guess
You need a 3.75 stroke 1 peice rear main seal, internally.

Parts you need, 4.030 piston + what iv already listed. On top of that, you will need the typical new things, gaskets, seals, hidden costs (add up super fast)

Id go with a set of forged pistons at the minimum if you plan on spraying.

 

I know about the 85-up sbc's have 1 piece, just saying 400 crank out of habbit for some reason

thanks for the info, i'll have to start pricing forged pistons to see

 

Everyone I talk to does the same thing.

 

Blue was implying to go internally balanced and suggest you do also.

 

for 500whp i would go with a forged piston, its going to take 600+ flywheel. Hypers will work but for an extra few hundred bucks why wouldnt you go forged? They will last and allow you some growing room.

Very few people stay happy with their current hp, it is only a matter of time before you start pushing things. Build it stronger than for 500rwhp, you will be glad you did later.

 

I guess we'll see what I can find for cheap when the time comes

I'd rather enjoy a slower car without breaking the bank/my motor than have a high hp that makes me poor and breaks all the time

I really will be hitting a wall with many parts outside of a rotating assembly at that point and I can't see myself investing more to support anything in excess of 500whp(ie - drivetrain, fuel, etc)

this is just my fun car not a race car, hell I'll probably even be too much of a ***** to bottle it often if at all so who knows

 

I think I paid $500 for all the block prep except for boring the cylinders. Those were charged per cylinder.

I went with a Mahle power pack and it comes with forged and coated pistons, pins and rings.

 

It's important to buy the correct 4.030 pistons. Not just any piston will do. A piston that has the correct pin height for the stroke and rod length is critical. There are many .030 over pistons that are made for the stock stroke. If you were to buy a set of these pistons they would basically be useless to you. Good Luck! I bet you'll have no problem making those kind of numbers....

 

boreing/honeing will cost ALOT more then $80. I think I paid either $180 or 220 cant remember. but I got torque plate honeing which is extra. basically they bore it out to close the final size, then bolt a torque plate to teh block, to simulate the cyl. head and how it will distort the round cyl. walls when torqued down. makes for a much more round cyl..

also recomend goin full internal balance. will make a little more power, esp. at higher rpms due to less vibrations and the bearings will last longer as well.

I hear what your saying about trying to keep it budget. you could keep stock crank, forged rods, and hyper pistons and spray 100 shot and no worries to make your goal. easy. the stock pistons are hyper. and can handle 100 shot. some people push 150 but you never know IF it'll last doin that. but is "has" worked for some people.

 

Well if you dont plan to push things you should be fine with forged pistons and rods, cast crank. Keep the rpms under 6500rpms and you should be in the clear.

what heads and cam are you gonig with?

 

cc503 with ported heads/intake

 

that cam will be extremely tame in a 383. But it should drive dam well. Have you thought about building a 355?

 

still kinda on the fence but a 383 isn't much more expensive for more power and cubes