Hi. I am building a CSB Engine from 1990. From start it was a TBI, now it will be with a four barrel Carburetor. I wonder what Camshaft are right for this setup. TBI vs Carburetor. Thanks Goran
What is it going in, what is the compression ratio, what trans will be bolted behind it, what size carburetor, what size engine a 305 or a 350???? Since its a roller block you should consider using a roller cam, for that block would be less than $400 for cam, lifters, the dog bones(is what ties the 2 lifters together) the spider(what holds down the dog bones)hardware and the front cam retaining plate with hardware. I seen factory style roller lifters for around $92 on ebay, I have seen used roller cams from $50 to $250 range depending what you want. I have seen new factory style roller cams as low as $160 and the installation and hardware kits for $75. A roller cam is the best way to go with the new oils now a days, you wouldn't have to worry about wiping out the cam and you don't have to break in a roller cam. Depending on your goals with your engine I have a couple cams I could sell you for a decent price. I have a slightly used Comp cams hyd. flat tappet that is a .501 in. .501 ex. 244*in. 244*ex. @ .050" 292* advertised.(cam and lifters for $80, lifters are in order of where they came out). I have a brand new never used factory style roller cam that is .480 in. .480 ex. 230*in. 230*ex. @ .050" for $155, either cam is plus shipping if you're interested. Derek
As Derek stated, the "end result" usage of the engine will be the determining factor for everything. Compression ratio, cylinder heads, cam, etc., that you will be using, all must work together to get you the optimum combination. Let us know your end goal, what vehicle, weight of vehicle and how it will be used and we can give you the best advice. BTW, Derek, that first cam would have worked great in my wife's Z, had I not already purchased one.
Yeah that's a decent cam, ran a 12.96 with it in a sbc(cheap engine with cast pistons, stock 305 heads, 12:1 compression, and the crank keyway was repaired to start with plus I didn't have the rotating assembly balanced) 400/700R4/3.73:1 12 bolt posi in a '64 Skylark. The crankshaft keyway wiped out on it and it kept throwing belts so I pulled it and disassembled it. The cam and lifters have been on the self for about 8 years lifters in order. The block will soon be a sbc 434.(a 434 is what your wife really needs!)LOL But seriously I can make that happen, I have 2 more 400 blocks that want to be 434s and 1 that wants to be a 410. Have a soon to be 434 on the engine stand right now that is spoken for and not counted in the above blocks.(block filled to the bottom of the water pump ports, 3 center cap are converted to splayed, halo girdle, fully CNC ported Dart 230 al. heads, high rise single plane intake solid roller cam 10.5:1 compression pump gas bruiser.) Should be around 590-675 HP with torque in the around 600 ft lbs area plus or minus? Spin to win you can't win if you don't play, rev limiter set at 7,500 RPM. If TA had their sbb 350 heads out the above guy would be getting a sbb 350 platform engine instead of a sbc 434, he would of loved the weight savings. He's building a 4x4 tube chassis caged S-10 pickup with a lot of suspension travel for jumping at the dunes and he wants to run it in the mud drags as well as some off road 4 wheeling all while being street legal! LOL Yeah he wants to do it all with this one, all with pump gas! As long as the parts behind it stay together it should be a fun driver. Derek
My wife's Z has a 355 with a Lazer cam: 240I/245E @ .050. Adv.: 292I.295E Lift: 519I/502E. 4 bolt, cast crank, ported iron heads with stainless valves. Pete Jackson silent gear drive, Hedman coated headers, 2.5" FlowMaster exhaust, TH400, Cheetah shifter, 12 bolt with Auburn 4:10, long stud Moser axles. We broke it in on a run stand because I don't care what HP it makes. Car is just a cruiser. The 701/2 RS I'm building has a 410SBC. Either boss (Dave Visner) or our cylinder head wizard, Darin Morrison (Good friend of Mike (Short-Crank) is doing the heads. That one we will dyno, even though we have a very "stingy" dyno.
Cool, sounds like a sweet cruiser! Should be plenty for most anyone's wife unless they're married to a Danica Patrick type of woman! What heads are you having ported for the 410? I love the way the big cube small blocks run, the sbc 410 should be a fun ride! Just make sure you go with a solid roller, night and day performance difference in a sbc vs. an hyd. roller. If you're planning on running pump gas, with 10.8:1 and a Howards Cam part # 111153-06 is an AWESOME cam choice! But make sure that what is bolted behind it can handle the power! That cam is in an engine I built for a friend of mine, its a 383 with 10.8:1 static compression has 1.6:1 roller rockers(so instead of the advertised .585 lift it has .624 lift) with the cam retarded 2*. To date he has burned up 3 power glide transmissions, now it has a built TH350 and with the new TH350 he has killed 2 Ford 9" rear ends, blew the bearing caps right off of the center section shifting into 2nd gear when he hit it hard on pavement with traction!! If you go with that cam it will still have decent bottom end, but it will still pull if setup the way I did to 8,000 + RPM(that's with unported Dart 215 heads! The internet says those heads only flow 260 CFM out of the box) so make sure your bottom end can handle the RPM, especially running ported heads! GL and have fun! Derek
I am running Edelbrock Victor heads. (Ours Visner)require block mods=$$$) The block is a "509" 400, so I am a bit limited as to what I can throw at it. Camaro has an "8.50" cage, but I'll not be there with this engine N/A. I'll get the car sorted and whatever it runs, I'll live with. Dave told me, "Just tell me how fast you want to go. I'll get you there." We'll see. I'm an old guy and I'm not scared, but I am smart enough to stay in my comfort zone and stay where it's still fun. And, as slow as my body man is, I'll have to update everything before I get to race.................
Nothing wrong with the 509 casting, guys that don't know better say they're not as good because they read what HP they were rated at as a complete engine from the factory. LOL As long as its not a thin casting or core shift isn't excessive with the block filled to the bottom of the water pump passages with the center 3 main caps converted to splayed caps with studs and a halo girdle your block should be able to handle anything under 800 HP. The 2 bolt blocks actually have more potential to be stronger than the factory 4 bolt main blocks when converted to 4 bolt splayed caps. With a factory 4 bolt main sbc 400 the main caps are as wide as the 2 bolt caps with the drilled and tapped extra holes in the main webbing making the block weaker in that area. Its a good idea to block fill a 400 block if you're going to run excessive cylinder pressure to keep the cylinders from cracking. If you add nitrous later you may be able to get into the 9s reliably if the block is properly prepped. I knew an old school guy that would insist on only running the factory 4 bolt main sbc 400 block for his 671 blown 71 Nova. He had to have it line bored every year because the block would twist from all the instant torque. I tried to tell him to run a 2 bolt block converted to splayed 4 bolt caps, it was like talking to the wall to try and convince him that setup would be stronger he wasn't buying it. He had to replace the block every 4th year because it couldn't be line bored anymore. Splayed caps, a halo girdle and block fill would of saved him a lot of hassle! Anyway it sounds like a fun little race car you're building, with about 13:1 compression and a bigger cam than the one mentioned before you should be able to get into the 10s no problem with your sbc 410. GL And for the OP the cam to run with a basic rebuilt sbc 350 factory roller block engine with a carb would be a factory Vortec roller cam. I ran a 305 Vortec in my '64 Skylark with a RPM Airgap intake carbureted with about 9:1 compression a 700R4 and a 3.73:1 rear gear, it ran low 14s in the quarter mile runs on 87 pump gas and gets over 20 miles to the gallon. If the engine was a 350 the '64 Skylark would of been in the mid 13s with the same setup. I see those cams on ebay used for as low as $50 some times. Here's one; http://www.ebay.com/itm/Chevy-GM-OE...tec-/161546567523?hash=item259cecff63&vxp=mtr Derek
Ok. Is there a cam that will fit that is not a Roller cam? Any experience with the Scat Crankshaft? Thanks Goran
You would be leaving a whole lot of efficiency on the table by not going with a roller cam in the factory roller block. But if you insist on using antique technology and going with a flat tappet cam just to save $20 then you would be able to use any flat tappet cam that is advertised as a sbc cam. With a roller cam you get less power loss due to friction better performance and economy because of more aggressive ramp rates that are far superior than a flat tappet cam can achieve. The difference between a factory roller cam and an older sbc cam is that the bolt pattern is smaller for the timing chain gear so it fits in the hole of the thrust plate that holds the cam in. So if you decide to go with a factory style roller cam to remember to get the corresponding timing set. Other than that the older style sbc cam can be ran in the new style block, you just have to make sure you get the old style timing set.(the cam and lifters I have for sale mentioned in an earlier post would work in your block.) Scat crankshafts are ok, one of the better import cranks you can run. If the 350 crank needs to be reground an upgrade to a 383 crank is a good idea because they don't cost much more than a regrind does. Especially if the block needs to be bored and honed you would need to buy new pistons anyway. If your rods need to be reconditioned there are stronger than factory rods out there that are close to the cost of having the old rods re-conditioned. A sbc is probably the least expensive engine to build because of all the aftermarket parts made for it. With all the competition to make sbc parts the import quality isn't bad nowadays either. GL Derek
In your block, I would run a roller cam with the correct corresponding parts, as Derek stated. If the stock crank, rods, etc. are checked out and good, I'd reuse them for what you are trying to attain. If you were building a race engine, my advice would differ.
Yes, if the stock parts don't need to be reconditioned re-use them. Like if the crank can get by with just having it polished and the rods don't need to be reconditioned and if the bores are a still in tolerance good enough to hone and re-use the stock pistons cleaned with new rings installed, for a "cruiser" that's all you need. You could have the deck milled .025" and the heads .010" to get compression up a bit and throw in a Vortec roller cam for a great running "cruiser" that the tiny bit extra cost going with a roller cam would pay for itself with better fuel economy and performance vs a flat tappet cam. If the heads will need a lot of work to do a valve job because of bad valves, guides needing to be replaced and so on you would be better off just out right buying a set of Vortec heads than sinking $$ in the boat anchor swirl port truck heads that came with that TBI 350. That's how a machine shop can get you is by telling you the valve job will be say $150 and here's the kicker, plus parts and installation. The plus parts and installation can pile up fast, if the guides are all worn then there is a $6 per bronze wall guide liner plus the labor to install then which just the liners alone is 6 x 16 = $96 then labor charge lets say $50 for that now you're up to $296 into sub par performing heads. Now if you have to upgrade or replace springs or if any valves need replaced the bill just keeps adding up to make the heads right. Make sure you have them tell you how much $$ the heads will need before they take you down that rabbit hole. If they need more than $200 of work you would be much better off to put that $$ towards a new set or already done set of heads. Not trying to take $$ out of your machine shop's hands but the heads that are on that year TBI engine aren't worth spending much $$ on, better off to go with a new or rebuilt set of Vortec heads, best bang for low bucks. GL Derek
That is very good information, vill remember that to an engine in the future. Thank you very much. Goran
