350 build for 83 c10 help ☹️

[MarcosSG]

Hey guys I'm new here and I need a lot of help!!! I have a 1983 c10 with a 305 and 700r4 transmission, I'm tired of the 305 and bought a 350 with the
10054742 casting on it and it has the 193 heads on it with a edelbrock performer intake and edelbrock 600cfm I want to rebuild it and upgrade it a bit I'm going for a daily driver that won't be to bad on mpg but still have power i would like to shoot for like 250-300hp. I don't really have a good budget which is only about 1000$ so it'll be a budget build , but so far I've heard the these heads aren't to good and vortec heads would be a bit better but I don't know which to get or any of that stuff and also what cam or rebuild kit hopefully you guys can enlighten me!

[Jstock85]

Go salvage any junkyard in your area. you'll be suprised by what you can find. a lot of guys on here will be better than me for cams and such but internet searches will get you going in the right direction. Rebuild kits for 350 are fairly inexpensive. you should be able to locate a quality one for around $250

[Dead Parrot]

Be careful of starting down the road of a 'budget' rebuild of a motor. Unless you have access to a machine shop, the costs of machine work can rapidly approach the cost of a new crate motor.

Now if the bottom end of your 350 is in good shape, you might be able to swap on a used set of vortec heads but there are several threads on this forum about cracked OEM vortec heads so do your homework before opening the wallet.

There are also many threads on building 350's for everything from daily drivers to towing monsters to track trucks.

Your Step 1 is to decide which 350 you want to wind up with.

Research your 700r4. Some of the early ones had durability issues.

One thing you didn't mention was the rear end gear set. If you got the 'fuel economy' gear set to match your 305, you might get a performance boost with a gear swap.

[BamaDave]

Don't want to be a negative Nancy, but in my experience, buy a crate short block. Spring for the post 1987 vortec motor. Three year, 100k mile warranty. It does cost more than your 1k budget, but unless you know that the 350 you have is tight and only needs a hone and new bearings....your rolling the dice. BTW, if you do swap heads, you would be wise to get a valve job on the "new" heads. Decide what cam your going to run, and be sure to give whoever does your head work the specs of the cam.

[Jstock85]

I agree with Dave. Unless you want to save your money to increase your budget and do most the work yourself the nickel and dime costs of everything eat that 1k up quickly!

[MarcosSG]

Originally Posted by Dead Parrot

Be careful of starting down the road of a 'budget' rebuild of a motor. Unless you have access to a machine shop, the costs of machine work can rapidly approach the cost of a new crate motor.

Now if the bottom end of your 350 is in good shape, you might be able to swap on a used set of vortec heads but there are several threads on this forum about cracked OEM vortec heads so do your homework before opening the wallet.

There are also many threads on building 350's for everything from daily drivers to towing monsters to track trucks.

Your Step 1 is to decide which 350 you want to wind up with.

Research your 700r4. Some of the early ones had durability issues.

One thing you didn't mention was the rear end gear set. If you got the 'fuel economy' gear set to match your 305, you might get a performance boost with a gear swap.

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[MarcosSG]

Originally Posted by Dead Parrot

Be careful of starting down the road of a 'budget' rebuild of a motor. Unless you have access to a machine shop, the costs of machine work can rapidly approach the cost of a new crate motor.

Now if the bottom end of your 350 is in good shape, you might be able to swap on a used set of vortec heads but there are several threads on this forum about cracked OEM vortec heads so do your homework before opening the wallet.

There are also many threads on building 350's for everything from daily drivers to towing monsters to track trucks.

Your Step 1 is to decide which 350 you want to wind up with.

Research your 700r4. Some of the early ones had durability issues.

One thing you didn't mention was the rear end gear set. If you got the 'fuel economy' gear set to match your 305, you might get a performance boost with a gear swap.

What vortec head will fit my 350 I have a good machine shop that hooks me up with work
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[Jstock85]

If you can get a hook up on machine work then you may get it in for 1k

[MarcosSG]

Originally Posted by Jstock85

If you can get a hook up on machine work then you may get it in for 1k

I can get a set of 993 heads will these heads be better than my 183 heads?
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[Jstock85]

Im not 100%. With the LS platform becoming so popular and given the fact I've went that route myself I couldn't tell you much about the SBC heads. other than the fact vortec heads are supposed to flow much better but are more likely to crack.

[81k]

Running vortec heads will require you to run a vortec-specific intake manifold, as well. I just want you to be aware of that since, as others have mentioned in this thread, your budget can balloon very quickly on a swap like this.

If you are still set on the swap, look for 1996+ GM trucks with 350ci (L31) engines at the salvage yard. Make sure the salvage yard you buy from has a return policy if you wind up with a bad head(s). I mention this, because vortecs are pretty notorious for cracking like a nut between the valves when they are exposed to overheating. You'll do yourself a huge dis-service if you don't have the machine shop magnaflux the heads first thing to ensure you have a good set before performing any other machine or assembly work.

Running the vortec heads will also limit your camshaft selection severely. The vortecs come stock with pressed-in rocker studs which will only safely handle a maximum valve lift around 0.420 inch. You can open up your options by asking the machine shop to:

• Machine the heads to accept screw-in rocker studs. ($$ new studs)
• Enlarge the pushrod holes to 1/2" diameter to allow for 1.6:1 rocker arms. ($$ new rockers)
• Open the spring seat and machine down the valve guides and bosses to allow for use of larger valve springs. ($$ new springs)

If you do all of that you'll pretty much be able to run most camshafts, but your wallet may be crying for mercy.

[MarcosSG]

Originally Posted by 81k

Running vortec heads will require you to run a vortec-specific intake manifold, as well. I just want you to be aware of that since, as others have mentioned in this thread, your budget can balloon very quickly on a swap like this.

If you are still set on the swap, look for 1996+ GM trucks with 350ci (L31) engines at the salvage yard. Make sure the salvage yard you buy from has a return policy if you wind up with a bad head(s). I mention this, because vortecs are pretty notorious for cracking like a nut between the valves when they are exposed to overheating. You'll do yourself a huge dis-service if you don't have the machine shop magnaflux the heads first thing to ensure you have a good set before performing any other machine or assembly work.

Running the vortec heads will also limit your camshaft selection severely. The vortecs come stock with pressed-in rocker studs which will only safely handle a maximum valve lift around 0.420 inch. You can open up your options by asking the machine shop to:

• Machine the heads to accept screw-in rocker studs. ($$ new studs)
• Enlarge the pushrod holes to 1/2" diameter to allow for 1.6:1 rocker arms. ($$ new rockers)
• Open the spring seat and machine down the valve guides and bosses to allow for use of larger valve springs. ($$ new springs)

If you do all of that you'll pretty much be able to run most camshafts, but your wallet may be crying for mercy.

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[MarcosSG]

Originally Posted by 81k

Running vortec heads will require you to run a vortec-specific intake manifold, as well. I just want you to be aware of that since, as others have mentioned in this thread, your budget can balloon very quickly on a swap like this.

If you are still set on the swap, look for 1996+ GM trucks with 350ci (L31) engines at the salvage yard. Make sure the salvage yard you buy from has a return policy if you wind up with a bad head(s). I mention this, because vortecs are pretty notorious for cracking like a nut between the valves when they are exposed to overheating. You'll do yourself a huge dis-service if you don't have the machine shop magnaflux the heads first thing to ensure you have a good set before performing any other machine or assembly work.

Running the vortec heads will also limit your camshaft selection severely. The vortecs come stock with pressed-in rocker studs which will only safely handle a maximum valve lift around 0.420 inch. You can open up your options by asking the machine shop to:

• Machine the heads to accept screw-in rocker studs. ($$ new studs)
• Enlarge the pushrod holes to 1/2" diameter to allow for 1.6:1 rocker arms. ($$ new rockers)
• Open the spring seat and machine down the valve guides and bosses to allow for use of larger valve springs. ($$ new springs)

If you do all of that you'll pretty much be able to run most camshafts, but your wallet may be crying for mercy.

I can get the entire block machines for 350$
A set of vortec heads for 100 $ and the machine shop would check them for free
A cam for 120 which he said would work but now that you tell me the mods I would have to do I'm not sure! (Can you tell me what size cam would fit the stock vortec heads?!!!!)
And rebuild kit for 260$
Headers for like 150
And the intake for 260$
And I have a edelbrock 600cfm carb ( would that work?)
Thank you!!!!
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[81k]

The machine work I listed above is just things you can do to make the heads work with more camshaft and valvetrain options. The vortecs can work just fine in a stock configuration as long as the camshaft you run with them isn't excessive.

The camshaft spec you need to pay real attention to is the lift. The clearance from the bottom of the retainer to the top of the valve seal on vortec heads is only 0.470 inch. Subtract a mere 0.050 inch for clearance purposes, and that leaves only enough room to run a cam with 0.420 inch lift.

Try the Edelbrock carb out and tune it up. You might like it, or at the very least it will allow you to drive the truck around town while you look for a replacement.

[MarcosSG]

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[MarcosSG]

Originally Posted by 81k

The machine work I listed above is just things you can do to make the heads work with more camshaft and valvetrain options. The vortecs can work just fine in a stock configuration as long as the camshaft you run with them isn't excessive.

The camshaft spec you need to pay real attention to is the lift. The clearance from the bottom of the retainer to the top of the valve seal on vortec heads is only 0.470 inch. Subtract a mere 0.050 inch for clearance purposes, and that leaves only enough room to run a cam with 0.420 inch lift.

Try the Edelbrock carb out and tune it up. You might like it, or at the very least it will allow you to drive the truck around town while you look for a replacement.

What horsepower do you think I should be getting?
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[BamaDave]

Originally Posted by MarcosSG

What horsepower do you think I should be getting?
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260 on the motor maybe. Depending if you bore the engine.

[Warrens69GMC]

160 for intake-
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Summit-Racin...ZXUkSh&vxp=mtr


can you post a picture of the lifter valley?