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Been reading alot about 454 conversions for my '72 350ci. I am really looking forward to the coming weeks as my engine work progresses. I certainly will provide lots of pix. My new centerforce clutch arrived yesterday . I have 2 questions I am hoping I can have answered.
#1 - is 550-600hp reasonable for stock drivetrain components? (For normal driving with the occasional need for speed)
#2 - can someone please* tell me where I can find these valve covers in the pic below ? I really love the clean look of them!
Thank you!
Last edited by Userj8670; Apr 5, 2019 at 04:30 PM.
#1 - is 550-600hp reasonable for stock drivetrain components? (For normal driving with the occasional need for speed)
:
Traction is your worst enemy. Driven with a reasonable right foot maybe it will survive. I've blown stuff up with 400 HP. It will find the weak link with that kind of HP.
I could be wrong but pretty sure you can buy those decals, looks like an aftermarket "tall" chrome valve cover.
If your car was originally a 350 (if it were me) Id definitely get some spicer solid ujoints, perhaps upgrade your driveshafts .
Couple expert driveline guys on board that could really point you in the right direction. Thats a fair amount of hp..and torque which breaks stuff
As said, long as you arent really hammering things hard youmay be ok....street tires will more than likely spin before breaking but who wants to nail it at 50 and lose control? May look cool on youtube but not so fun in reality.
Drag radials at some point almost become a safety item imo. Drive it for a bit on regular tires see how it acts
If you have power brakes or A/C on your car those valve covers will not fit on a big block.
On my 454 I have only about 1/4" clearance between the OEM valve cover, the brake booster and A/C.
You may even run into clearance issues with the wiper door actuator.
with those tall valve covers on , the engine wont fit in there if you have a vacuum brake booster . take the booster away and you can drop the engine in OK ,but you wont be able to remove the drivers side valve cover without lifting the whole motor.
I could be wrong but pretty sure you can buy those decals, looks like an aftermarket "tall" chrome valve cover.
If your car was originally a 350 (if it were me) Id definitely get some spicer solid ujoints, perhaps upgrade your driveshafts .
Couple expert driveline guys on board that could really point you in the right direction. Thats a fair amount of hp..and torque which breaks stuff
As said, long as you arent really hammering things hard youmay be ok....street tires will more than likely spin before breaking but who wants to nail it at 50 and lose control? May look cool on youtube but not so fun in reality.
Drag radials at some point almost become a safety item imo. Drive it for a bit on regular tires see how it acts
I thought they looked like a sticker but I assume a sticker wouldn't last long to long ??
I'm not familiar with Spicer joints - would you elaborate?
with those tall valve covers on , the engine wont fit in there if you have a vacuum brake booster . take the booster away and you can drop the engine in OK ,but you wont be able to remove the drivers side valve cover without lifting the whole motor.
unless you modify the firewall a bit
I never knew of this problem - then again I never had a BBC before. So how does someone run roller rockers?
I ran roller rockers on that motor in its previous build, I had lower profile covers that fit ok in the 69 vette. This new version has a girdle in there , that's why I HAD to go so tall covers.
You will find the big block is wider and will have close quarters near the steering g
ear, pitman arm and brake master cylinder. I have roller rockers and taller aftermarket valve covers. You can see how close it is without a power vacuum booster. If you use long tube headers you may need to dimple one of the tubes on each side to clear the steering gear and pitman arm mounting bolt.
I never knew of this problem - then again I never had a BBC before. So how does someone run roller rockers?
I ran Crane Gold full roller rockers with poly-locks on my stock 454 in my '73. I used a thicker valve cover gasket and everything cleared fine. The tall aftermarket aluminum valve covers I tried only cleared the A/C box by about 3/16" I didn't use them because I think the engine would torque over to the passenger side and smack the A/C box. So now the tall covers are for sale.
I ran Crane Gold full roller rockers with poly-locks on my stock 454 in my '73. I used a thicker valve cover gasket and everything cleared fine. The tall aftermarket aluminum valve covers I tried only cleared the A/C box by about 3/16" I didn't use them because I think the engine would torque over to the passenger side and smack the A/C box. So now the tall covers are for sale.
John
Well this will def be trial and error. Certainly will keep everyone updated with pics as this progresses in the coming week(s).
Was talking to my mechanic today and discovered I have an M21 4 speed tranny. With the big block swap would I need to do anything different to the tranny? I do plan on doing a rebuild in the coming weeks.
[QUOTE=Userj8670;1599180844]I thought they looked like a sticker but I assume a sticker wouldn't last long to long ??
I'm not familiar with Spicer joints - would you elaborate?[/QUOTE]
it's a top brand Name in u-joints ... spicer aka Dana-Spicer. Solid versus greasable. Solid are strongest. Regardless if sbc or BBC, replace all 6 u-joints with solid spicers.
I thought they looked like a sticker but I assume a sticker wouldn't last long to long ??
I'm not familiar with Spicer joints - would you elaborate?
In the picture that does look like a sticker but if you want to go a different way you can easily take a set of aftermarket chrome covers and have that logo laser engraved with permanent, similar results and end up with a better quality product at the same time. Just something to think on...
Adding a 454
