scorp508

....

Should I even bother with an aftermarket for my application, or keep the stock one that I have? Will it honestly make any difference.

If so....

Is this an acceptable balancer for my application? I'm not looking to drop another $300 into one, and this appears to be a valid choice. Thanks.

Fluidampr Streetdampr
SB-Chevy Internal Balance, 6-3/4" : $149.99

Monty

I ran that same damper on my 383, now 88WHITEVETTE's, without a problem. My only complaint is that you have to paint the thing, or at least clearcoat it. If you don't it will rust. It's looks real nice out of the box though, like in the picture.

I use an ATI SuperDamper now though.

J Z06

Scorp.....

My original balancer was bad LPE mentioned. I asked the same questions as you regarding an "IMPROVED" balancer. They stated a factory unit is fine seeing it'll be a 6000 RPM motor. So far so good.

RU4L98

Not to bust anyone's Fluidamper bubble-BUT, when I was crankshaft shopping for my 383, several Machinist's didn't recommend them. Then I called Scat Ent., who's crank I'm using, and Callies Corp. both told be DO NOT USE A FLUID FILLED DAMPER WITH THEIR CRANKS! As a matter of fact Scat Tech support said they had a bunch of their customers complaining that the snout of they're cranks were breaking off with Fluidampners.

Something about if the car sat in the cold for awhile, the silicone fluid would settle and it's viscosity goes up. And if there's an air bubble in it, you end up with a counter balanced Damper- which the L98 uses a neutral one. Just food for thought, and as I have read too, many have used them with success.

bill mcdonald

I have that same balancer on my 90, 355.

13000 miles so far so good.

I painted mine clear, put about 5-6 coats on it, it still looks good!

Now if it is true they can possobly get counter balanced by the cold, any idea how cold it has to be?

Monty

Like I said in my earlier post, I ran that same balancer on my 383 for a little over 2 years. It gets pretty darned cold up here in Chicago, below zero frequently in Jan and Feb. And it stays cold for a long time, it's not unusual for it to not exceed 30F for weeks at a time.

I have never had a problem like what they're describing, and I would thank that the conditions up here are extreme enough tp present this problem. I'm not trying to defend it, like I said, I switched over to an ATI Superdamper, I just think the problem may be a little overexaggerated. I'm sure these car message boards would be filled with "I broke my crankshaft" posts every Winter if it was very common.

mikey

i'm making this post not as an expert, but just passing on what doug rippie told me in a conversation i had with him where i asked the same question about balancers.. i'm building a 383 and was considering an ati unit.. he said good choice for the LT1, there isn't any other aftermarket piece he'd use.. but then he followed that up saying that the OEM unit is a very very good unit and suggested i just buy a new OEM unit if i was concerned about the 120k miles on mine.. so that's what i did.

-mikey