BBC VS. SBC...... Whats the call?

[1bad chevy]

first of all there is no way or reason to hammer the fire wall for a big block. i installed a 500 bb caddy motor and was told to do this and i didn't need to.second there's no replacement for cubic displacement go big or go home lol if your wallet can handle the pump shock

[Gray Ghost]

I just landed a deal for a 454 for mine...I was thinkin' 396 before the deal came along.

[ChevyDude]

I have a 71' that has a SBC, so when it came to doing my 68' I went BBC 454 + bored and stroked to a nice rounded number of 496 and 700+ HP. My call would be build what you can afford.

[Joe67]

Originally Posted by CrashPro993

I recently purchased a 71 GMC LWB, My first major purchase for this thing is going to be and engine. I know there is plenty of options out there. I want to stick with carburated, mainly because i don't want to deal with all the wiring and I want to keep the cost somewhat down.

I'm looking at either doing a SBC 350 or 427 but I'm not sure on the durability of the SBC 427.

Or I'm looking at doing a BBC 396 or 454, just not sure on the power to weight ratio. And the fact that my truck is going to be almost on the ground when I'm done with it.

What's your guys thoughts on a BBC VS. a SBC?

Thanks for your help

I think it comes down to personal preference for a daily driver/street truck.

I'm going with a BBC for the simple fact that I never had one before and my chassis came with the '72 BBC mounts already

[70~BigBlock~Project]

Originally Posted by CrashPro993

Thanks Willys47, what kind of BBC would you go with?

Start cruising ebay and craigslist and see what you can find. 427's roll of the tongue easy but are harder to come by at a reasonable price to rebuild. I would look for a 454 as they are the most readily available. Of course if you really want to make a monster go find a 427 Truck block with the 10.2" deck and we'll get you up to 540ci to show the mouse motor crowd what displacement can really do for ya, haha!

Best bet, 454 and a 5 speed. Its almost too easy to get 500 ft-pnds of torque out of this combo yet you still get to cruise down the highway at 2k RPM. Set it up for about 9.6:1 compression and you'll get better fuel economy in overdrive than any small block that can keep up with you. Let us know what you end up with and we can cook you up a hot combo!

[Willys47]

454 was made longer than the other size engines and would be easy to find I like the idea of a new fuel injected motor but you don't need to go that way.I have gone 454 in my toy truck

[chevy72blu]

Get a 454 bare block- I wouldnt look for complete motors as you mey end up with a nasty crack when you tear it down and have just spent money on a boat anchor (I've done it).

Go around to your local machine shops and get some prices. A 2 bolt will do the trick.

Get a 4.025 crank (I used an Eagle steel, but many complain that they require a lot of machining. Mine didnt, and you need to machine any crank, anyway) which will give you 496 cubic inches (cheap horsepower/TQ). A set of aluminum Pro topline heads wont break the bank and will flow better than some re-worked stockers. Go with a hyper piston in the compression you want (forged if you plan on using a lot of nitrous) and the appropriate ring. Cam, intake, and carb is a matter of preference.

Let us know what you are looking for and we'll give you some recommendations.

Do you have a transmission? Its gonna need to be pretty stout to the the abuse. Your whole driveline does, in fact.

And no problem man. You're gonna have one nasty ride


Btw, concerning power/weight - a BBC only weighs >200 pounds more than an SBC. No biggie when we are talking about what a torque monster even a mild 496 is.

[streetstar]

cast my vote for a stroked 454 (496)

with good heads, should do 550hp with a very streetable build (can be built to do a lot more too, but 550 is at the upper limit of streetability for "normal" people and non-turbo or S/C motors.

[70~BigBlock~Project]

Originally Posted by chevy72blu

Get a 4.025 crank

He meant a 4.250 crank, but not to step on anyone's toes.

I have to disagree on the heads though. Aluminum costs too much to be practical for a street engine. Get a set of '049' or '781' (?) stock heads and slap some 2.19/1.88 valves in it with a mild port matching. You will get similar performance for half the cost. The casting number doesn't even really matter if you plan on having larger valve seats cut in as long as you make sure you're getting large oval port heads.

My experience has been even the low output large oval port truck heads have the same port sizes as the better castings, they just have smaller valves (but stay away from the peanut ports). Even the '049' heads have to have oversized seats ground in, so that should be of small significance. The extra $600-800 you would spend on aluminum heads would yeild more HP gain if applied to converting to a roller cam and getting a set of roller rockers.

I do agree though that a 2 bolt block would be sufficient. If it worries you that much throw in a set of ARP main studs and call it a day. Also to keep price down you can use a forged crank and rods along with the hyper' pistons to make the build more economical. In my opinion, unless you plan to push 600+ HP, a 4 bolt with all forged internals is just about bragging rights.

[chevy72blu]

Originally Posted by 70~BigBlock~Project

He meant a 4.250 crank, but not to step on anyone's toes.

I have to disagree on the heads though. Aluminum costs too much to be practical for a street engine. Get a set of '049' or '781' (?) stock heads and slap some 2.19/1.88 valves in it with a mild port matching. You will get similar performance for half the cost. The casting number doesn't even really matter if you plan on having larger valve seats cut in as long as you make sure you're getting large oval port heads.

My experience has been even the low output large oval port truck heads have the same port sizes as the better castings, they just have smaller valves (but stay away from the peanut ports). Even the '049' heads have to have oversized seats ground in, so that should be of small significance. The extra $600-800 you would spend on aluminum heads would yeild more HP gain if applied to converting to a roller cam and getting a set of roller rockers.

I do agree though that a 2 bolt block would be sufficient. If it worries you that much throw in a set of ARP main studs and call it a day. Also to keep price down you can use a forged crank and rods along with the hyper' pistons to make the build more economical. In my opinion, unless you plan to push 600+ HP, a 4 bolt with all forged internals is just about bragging rights.

I did mean 4.250, it was early. I still stand to the Aluminum Pro topline's, however. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/BIG-B...QQcmdZViewItem

781's and 049's are great stock heads, but after buying them and having them worked, you are going to have at least 600-800 in them depending on the quality of work and how you deep you want to go. For just a little bit more (and it sounds like he is willing to put some money in this motor), you have a set of heads which will allow you to run high compression on pump gas, weigh less, and outflow the worked stockers. In the case of the big money aftermarket heads (Brodix, Dart, Edel ect), I agree with your statement, but I know many racers who use the affordable Pro Toplines, and like them a lot. If you have the hookup on machining, then by all means go for stock heads. But for the average joe, bang for the buck is essential when building a moderate motor.

Forged rods are not necessary for his build (nice, but not necessary), and will add to the costs. A forged crank($$$) is only required in very wild builds IMO. Who breaks a steel crank on a street motor? I've worked in machine shops and never seen one.

[smoknbarrels]

I am 100% with 72blu on this one too.. you don't have to spend tons of cash on a 496 to get 550+ hp..
I went forged for everything I couldn't get aluminum so my stump puller is a little on the high $ide. but you don't have to go that drastic (unless its gonna be on the spray like mine-850hp).

I even have a ton of parts I won't use if you wanna go the direction of a 496. I didn't use them since that set-up is only rated for about 550 hp. (cast everything).

I'd keep things on the cheap side though, because all the little things will add up to big $$ in the end. don't forget when you are pushing 550+ hp, you'll need more then 28 spline axels and a stock clutch to hold it togehter..

[69trk]

Go big block, if anything it looks better under the hood. No issues with radiator, i run a 4-core with march serpentine pulleys, electric water pump and electric fan and no clearance issues. Also no mods to firewall.

[CrashPro993]

Wow! Thanks for all your help guys!! I just found a deal on a 500cubic Cadillac motor and a TH400 for $500 bucks.

I don't know anything about these engines? Is it even worth it to start building one of these up?

Thanks agian guys!

[chevy72blu]

Originally Posted by 69trk

Go big block, if anything it looks better under the hood. No issues with radiator, i run a 4-core with march serpentine pulleys, electric water pump and electric fan and no clearance issues. Also no mods to firewall.

Sorry for the hijack, but what kind of fans are you running?

[stllookn]

Trucks are cheap...get one of each. Drive one while fixing the other one up.

[smoknbarrels]

Originally Posted by CrashPro993

I just found a deal on a 500cubic Cadillac motor and a TH400 for $500 bucks.

I don't know anything about these engines? Is it even worth it to start building one of these up?

i personally wouldn't wast time with that motor.

no hi-perf parts for it, nothing swaps, not sure about mounting, and no one else knows a ton about putting them in out trucks.. they are just big thats all.. i don't think you can even put a decent sized cam in that thing..
there is a reason that thing is $500. just because of the tranny it's tied to.

my 00 cents.

[Bishops Trucks]

I like them both. I have one of each, it just depends on your want's and needs. Only you can answer that question.

[streetstar]

Originally Posted by smoknbarrels

i personally wouldn't wast time with that motor.

no hi-perf parts for it, nothing swaps, not sure about mounting, and no one else knows a ton about putting them in out trucks.. they are just big thats all.. i don't think you can even put a decent sized cam in that thing..
there is a reason that thing is $500. just because of the tranny it's tied to.

my 00 cents.

This guy has been smokin' O'dweeds ! (obscure Chapelle's show reference)


Longhorn man has one in one of his trucks i believe. Its a sweet motor for a truck in fact. Mucho torque for a street truck -- maybe not the best top end performance for a pseudo dragster, but very few people build a full size truck to race seriously anyway (unless its class-specific racing)

I would go with one of these if i was on a budget, ($500 plus another $500 to freshen it up) but if cash were not an object, i'd still go big block Chevy

I don't think the caddy engine is one to avoid and it actually has a lot of good points--- but as has already been said -- just depends on what you want to do with your truck

[petey-pablo]

454 ALL the way Go BIG ! No Clearence Issues if done right!

[69trk]

Originally Posted by chevy72blu

Sorry for the hijack, but what kind of fans are you running?

a cheap 16 electric fan from napa

[1bad chevy]

Originally Posted by smoknbarrels

i personally wouldn't wast time with that motor.

no hi-perf parts for it, nothing swaps, not sure about mounting, and no one else knows a ton about putting them in out trucks.. they are just big thats all.. i don't think you can even put a decent sized cam in that thing..
there is a reason that thing is $500. just because of the tranny it's tied to.

my 00 cents.

i disagree i have one in my 72 and it is awesome all the way around and the conversion is easy to do,and you end up with a stock motor that produce's more torque than ANY OTHER PRODUCTION MOTOR OUT THERE IN STOCK FORM and hp is up there also and there are cam's ,head's,and intake's among other aftermarket piece's i have my convrsion documented and there are other board member's who have done this also and one more thonig do the motor then add a 150 shot from a little blue bottle and hold on to your cookie's i say DO IT

[1bad chevy]

HERE IS A LINK TO ALL YOU'LL NEED TO DO FOR THIS MOD FOR THE 500 CADDY http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=253716

[bigsnookmaster]

If money isn't a problem,I'd go with a Chevrolet572 .I mean if you want to go big,then this is it.

[caminokid]

Originally Posted by CrashPro993

Wow! Thanks for all your help guys!! I just found a deal on a 500cubic Cadillac motor and a TH400 for $500 bucks.

I don't know anything about these engines? Is it even worth it to start building one of these up?

Thanks again guys!

You can build up one of those. They do make parts for them. But a 454 is cheaper. Longhornman likes to run Caddy motors. You can ask him for advice.

[70~BigBlock~Project]

Originally Posted by chevy72blu

I did mean 4.250, it was early. I still stand to the Aluminum Pro topline's, however. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/BIG-B...QQcmdZViewItem

781's and 049's are great stock heads, but after buying them and having them worked, you are going to have at least 600-800 in them depending on the quality of work and how you deep you want to go. For just a little bit more (and it sounds like he is willing to put some money in this motor), you have a set of heads which will allow you to run high compression on pump gas, weigh less, and outflow the worked stockers. In the case of the big money aftermarket heads (Brodix, Dart, Edel ect), I agree with your statement, but I know many racers who use the affordable Pro Toplines, and like them a lot. If you have the hookup on machining, then by all means go for stock heads. But for the average joe, bang for the buck is essential when building a moderate motor.

Forged rods are not necessary for his build (nice, but not necessary), and will add to the costs. A forged crank($$$) is only required in very wild builds IMO. Who breaks a steel crank on a street motor? I've worked in machine shops and never seen one.

I have a total of $580 wrapped up in my '049' heads complete and assembled, including all parts and machine work. Those heads will end up being close to $1200 by the time you purchase valves, springs, retainers, locks, pushrod guides and get them assembled. The '049' heads will also produce more torque under 5k RPM than those heads.