big block in a 1972 questions

[BCOWANWHEELS]

hey, i want to put a 427 tall deck in my 1972 1 ton truck. will the taller deck engine fit in this ? anybody out there done this ? also i,am thinking about installing aluminum heads and i,ve been told i can go higher compression with aluminum heads anybody with experience on this point ? lastly i,am going to make a 496 cu.in. out of this engine. this is for a tow rig, on highway use and will see loaded weights of 20,000 lbs at times, its not intended to be a hot rod but a good pulling when loaded truck. any thoughts ? i was going 6bt cummins but with gas versus diesel prices its just about as cost effective to go gas engine and a whole lot quieter and not as stinky. any help-thought would be appreciated alot.
bob in tn.

[1968SWBBigBlock]

A tall deck will drop in without issue - stick with manifolds to ease your exhaust - no need to go with AL heads - I would use a good set of open chamber iron oval port heads - if you are towing you want torque - no need to have lots of compression - lots of compression when one tows can lead to detenation
Buy good .080 wall push rods - go with a 502 roller cam, use a good dual plane intake and a holley 770 or 870 street avenger

[Prostreet 72]

Originally Posted by BCOWANWHEELS

hey, i want to put a 427 tall deck in my 1972 1 ton truck. will the taller deck engine fit in this ? anybody out there done this ? also i,am thinking about installing aluminum heads and i,ve been told i can go higher compression with aluminum heads anybody with experience on this point ? lastly i,am going to make a 496 cu.in. out of this engine. this is for a tow rig, on highway use and will see loaded weights of 20,000 lbs at times, its not intended to be a hot rod but a good pulling when loaded truck. any thoughts ? i was going 6bt cummins but with gas versus diesel prices its just about as cost effective to go gas engine and a whole lot quieter and not as stinky. any help-thought would be appreciated alot.
bob in tn.

Yes it is true that aluminum heads allow you to cheat a bit in the compression arena. The aluminum heads disapate the heat better, which prevents pre-detonation, which will allow you to still run pump gas on an engine with as high as 10:5-1 comp.

Will the tall deck fit in your truck under the hood. Yes. Mine fits with a tunnel ram. Plenty of room in there.

As for the torque, you will need to talk to a cam manufacture with regards to what grind will work the best for what you are doing. They can suggest a few cams for you. You should try to stay away from a solid tappet, or mechanical roller cam with a high lift for the street. These will create a maintenance issue for you on a regular basis. As well, the valve springs will wear out faster while you are trying to tow. The high lift on the street will polverize them. Go toward a Hyd. cam if possible. Mechanical or roller. The engine can be tuned to have low end torque by cam advance or retard settings as well. Simply placing the cam in the engine straight up, at zero, may not yield the best results.

Everyone may not agree with logic. For instance, my engine is run on the street with a 680 lift mechanical roller cam with a 272-282 durration at 50. It runs fine. However, I would not take a road trip in it.


Good Luck!

[BCOWANWHEELS]

that 502 roller cam ? will it work in a gen 4 block? i have some good oval port heads to choose from along with the stock 1978 tall deck 427 heads. any casting number you prefer on the oval ports ?

[WIDESIDE72]

You will need intake spacers if you want to run a low deck intake. Also a unique distributor for a tall deck, or dist with an djustable collar.

[BCOWANWHEELS]

yes i knew about the intake spacers and the distributor, thanks

[1968SWBBigBlock]

781 & 049 are the best flowing stock heads - RHS in Memphis has some nice choices if you want to go aftermarket
Good question on the 502 roller cam - I do no know that answer - at the very least you cam use the same profile when pricing an aftermarket cam - the have really good torque characteristics are are not hard on the valve train

[primered_junk]

I have probably 50-60 pics of one I did if you want them.