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    Results 1 to 17 of 17
    1. #1
      Join Date
      Jan 2014
      Posts
      12
      Country Flag: United States

      Looking for more power out of Chevy 350 SBC

      I have a basically stock Chevy 350 SBC that am looking to upgrade down the road. I am just unsure as to which route I should go. Currently, its running around 9.5:1 comp, cast heads, non-forged parts, RPM Performer intake, Edelbrock 650 with biggest jets possible (reason was last motor was running fairly lean, wanted to make sure that issue was addressed), Mallory distributor, have flex fan and electric fan with a "BeCool" dual core aluminum radiator.

      For the transmission, I have a Turbo350 with a shift kit, and I believe my rear end gears are in the high 2's...Not positive yet as I haven't had a chance to check. At 80mph, I am running 3200rpm or so. All of the motor and trans information is just what I had been told by my father so it might correct or it might not. I believe I got it all correct as to what I was told though.

      I am very new to building an engine...I haven't done it yet. My father was the go to guy for me on that and he passed away November after battling stage 4 lung cancer for a year. But, I am very mechanically inclined and learn quickly so bear with me please, and any input would be greatly appreciated. I can not afford any parts as of yet but I would just like to at least know which route I should prepare for while I am saving. If there is anything else you would need to know please just ask and I will reply as soon as possible.

    2. #2
      Join Date
      Apr 2001
      Location
      The City of Fountains
      Posts
      15,971
      Country Flag: United States
      Welcome to the forum and sorry about the loss of your father.

      Sounds like you got a solid combination right now. What kind of car is this in?

      Andrew
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    3. #3
      Join Date
      Jan 2014
      Posts
      12
      Country Flag: United States
      Quote Originally Posted by andrewb70 View Post
      Welcome to the forum and sorry about the loss of your father.

      Sounds like you got a solid combination right now. What kind of car is this in?

      Andrew
      Thank you sir.

      It is decent, I also forgot to mention that I have a Comp 280 cam in it as well.

      And this is in a 73 Nova SS. I feel the rear end gears are absolutely killing power but I also do a lot of highway driving so jumping up to the low 4's would probably not be the best idea. I'm looking for a 4 or 5 speed auto transmission as well.

    4. #4
      Join Date
      Jul 2008
      Location
      Ft. Worth, TX
      Posts
      419
      Gears would make you car feel like it has another 50 hp. What converter are you running. I used many comp 280h cams in motors back in the day. Two things that cam needs is atleast 3000 stall and 3.73 or up gears. If you go with a 5 speed overdrive you dont have to worry about stall speed or deep gears on the highway

    5. #5
      Join Date
      Jan 2014
      Posts
      12
      Country Flag: United States
      Quote Originally Posted by Chevelle598bb View Post
      Gears would make you car feel like it has another 50 hp. What converter are you running. I used many comp 280h cams in motors back in the day. Two things that cam needs is atleast 3000 stall and 3.73 or up gears. If you go with a 5 speed overdrive you dont have to worry about stall speed or deep gears on the highway
      Ahh...I have a 2300 stall speed. Is there a 5 speed overdrive auto tranny that I could make fit with some modification?

    6. #6
      Join Date
      Jun 2013
      Posts
      127
      Country Flag: United States
      Biggest hp gain would be in a new set of heads like AFRs or Edlebrock Performers. Then a cam to match your application along with a properly sized and tuned carb. Companies like AED bench flow carbs and build them to match your car and application. If you're looking into a more in depth rebuild(more money also) I would do the previous recommendations on top of making the engine a 383 with forged bottom end. Just my 2cents
      67 Camaro CAM/C-prepared autocross Project
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    7. #7
      Join Date
      Jan 2014
      Posts
      12
      Country Flag: United States
      Quote Originally Posted by bergers59 View Post
      Biggest hp gain would be in a new set of heads like AFRs or Edlebrock Performers. Then a cam to match your application along with a properly sized and tuned carb. Companies like AED bench flow carbs and build them to match your car and application. If you're looking into a more in depth rebuild(more money also) I would do the previous recommendations on top of making the engine a 383 with forged bottom end. Just my 2cents
      I was looking at making it a 383 down the road for sure. But I didn't know if that would be cost effective in the long run with boosting it eventually, if I feel that need after it was a 383 that is...

    8. #8
      Join Date
      Jul 2008
      Location
      Ft. Worth, TX
      Posts
      419
      There are no 5 speed autos for that application. When you mentioned 5 speed I assumed you were refering to a five speed manual such as a tko tremec. 2300 is pretty tight for a 280h in a 350. If it was a 383 or 400 then you could get away with it. Again a deeper set of gears would make it feel like a different car.

    9. #9
      Join Date
      Jan 2014
      Posts
      12
      Country Flag: United States
      Quote Originally Posted by Chevelle598bb View Post
      There are no 5 speed autos for that application. When you mentioned 5 speed I assumed you were refering to a five speed manual such as a tko tremec. 2300 is pretty tight for a 280h in a 350. If it was a 383 or 400 then you could get away with it. Again a deeper set of gears would make it feel like a different car.
      Ok, that's what I thought about the transmissions. Sucks.

      And it really is...it's drops the rpm down to around 575-650 in gear when it's sitting right at 1100 in park.

      What gears could I go to and still maintain decent rpm at 80mph on the freeway? Tire diameter is 25". I'll find out what my current gears are when I get a chance when in back in town. So different gears should be my first purchase before pursuing anything else?

    10. #10
      Join Date
      Feb 2011
      Location
      Chico, CA
      Posts
      202
      3.73 would be a helpful gear for your cause it is a good gear to get out of the hole and does fairly well on the highway. Maybe not at 80 mph though with a TH350 or 400. I have gradually stepped down to a 3.50 gear in my car with the hope of better highway economy and overall drive-ability of the car. I run a manual trans though, but I just like the bang through the gears!
      Jeff

    11. #11
      Join Date
      Aug 2006
      Location
      Star,Idaho
      Posts
      115
      Country Flag: United States
      What exhaust? Do you have headers? Proper tuning is very important for peak performance. Here is a good link on how to read spark plugs.
      70 Cougar
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    12. #12
      Join Date
      Jan 2014
      Posts
      12
      Country Flag: United States
      Quote Originally Posted by Blown73 View Post
      3.73 would be a helpful gear for your cause it is a good gear to get out of the hole and does fairly well on the highway. Maybe not at 80 mph though with a TH350 or 400. I have gradually stepped down to a 3.50 gear in my car with the hope of better highway economy and overall drive-ability of the car. I run a manual trans though, but I just like the bang through the gears!
      Ok, I will look into that. My apologies if this is a stupid question, but is there like a 4 speed auto w/overdrive that I could get for my car? I can fab a mount for it, I'd just need it to mount up correctly with my floor shifter and console. Of course, straight bolt on would be amazing.

    13. #13
      Join Date
      Jan 2014
      Posts
      12
      Country Flag: United States
      Quote Originally Posted by 705.0Merc View Post
      What exhaust? Do you have headers? Proper tuning is very important for peak performance. Here is a good link on how to read spark plugs.
      Yes sir, I have headers and a complete flow master exhaust. And thank you for that link; I'm reading up on it now!

    14. #14
      Join Date
      Jul 2008
      Location
      Ft. Worth, TX
      Posts
      419
      Quote Originally Posted by d_rod4 View Post
      Quote Originally Posted by Chevelle598bb View Post
      There are no 5 speed autos for that application. When you mentioned 5 speed I assumed you were refering to a five speed manual such as a tko tremec. 2300 is pretty tight for a 280h in a 350. If it was a 383 or 400 then you could get away with it. Again a deeper set of gears would make it feel like a different car.
      Ok, that's what I thought about the transmissions. Sucks.

      And it really is...it's drops the rpm down to around 575-650 in gear when it's sitting right at 1100 in park.

      What gears could I go to and still maintain decent rpm at 80mph on the freeway? Tire diameter is 25". I'll find out what my current gears are when I get a chance when in back in town. So different gears should be my first purchase before pursuing anything else?


      If your idle is 1100 in park and 600 in drive then I would tune your engine first before chaning gears or transmissions. A comp 280h shouldnt have to idle more than 800 rpm or so. First look into your intial timing, overall timing and then vacuum advance. Then you can move to the carb and tune it.

    15. #15
      Join Date
      Jan 2014
      Posts
      12
      Country Flag: United States
      Quote Originally Posted by Chevelle598bb View Post
      If your idle is 1100 in park and 600 in drive then I would tune your engine first before chaning gears or transmissions. A comp 280h shouldnt have to idle more than 800 rpm or so. First look into your intial timing, overall timing and then vacuum advance. Then you can move to the carb and tune it.
      To be 100% honest, I do not know how to check my vacuum advance but I will look it up. By chance, could the idle mixture just be ver far off and be causing it to drop so much once its in gear? Also, what timing do you recommend for that cam?

    16. #16
      Join Date
      Apr 2010
      Location
      Pittsburgh, PA
      Posts
      717
      you can get a 4l80e in 5 gears or 6 gears over the typical 4gears if you truly wanted.

      http://www.transmissioncenter.net/4l80e.htm

      be advised they have like the worst website ever
      72 buick skylark
      twin-turbo fuel injected buick 350..perhaps stroked to 370 in the works!

    17. #17
      Join Date
      Jan 2014
      Posts
      12
      Country Flag: United States
      Quote Originally Posted by Nothingface5384 View Post
      you can get a 4l80e in 5 gears or 6 gears over the typical 4gears if you truly wanted.

      http://www.transmissioncenter.net/4l80e.htm



      be advised they have like the worst website ever
      Awesome, thanks for the link. I had been searching for something like that but wasn't able to find anything.
      But the $6k price is pretty daunting. Is there any other cheaper option available?






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