WHich year 400 block for stroker?

[68 HEMI GTS]

Sounds like a good combo, a set of TF240’s would really benefit it though over e streets.

 

[Steve009]

Sounds like a good combo, a set of TF240’s would really benefit it though over e streets.

ya I know and its been eating away at me. a lot more money but would totally be worth it. I may just take the plunge once the bottom end is complete

 

[Cranky]

How fast do ya want to go and how much to you want to spend?? I know several people that have gone mid 10's using the Eddy RPM heads and with stock stroke engines. Heck, my old rr went mid 10's using max ported 906 heads on a 440 but the RPM head is a better head out of the box than any 68 up stock head max ported or not. Another 440 that had an offset ground crank (470 cube) went high 9's using cast iron Stage VI heads with more cam in a lighter car. The rr would have been more streetable though imo since the cam was a good deal smaller. I remember in the 60's and 70's the thing everybody was doing was screaming short stroke engines and they did do ok. Back then I was into long stroke engines but now, it's somewhat opposite for me. So many are spooling stroker engines 7000+ rpm these days but a stock stroke 400 will turn 8k and has about the same piston speed as an engine with a 440 crank turning 7k. These days it's not hard to build a valve train to handle 7k at all and an 8k valve train isn't hard either. Rings packages are much better these days too than they were back in the cave man days lol.

 

[Darter6]

Back in '02 we built a 451 using a 73 block.Long hauled on 3 Hot Rod power tours.Ran with a 5 speed Tremec,then automatic, then a 4 speed (still is). Have about 40K+ miles on it.Has the Edelbrock RPM 88cc heads,Crane Gold rockers,Comp Cam .490 lift, M1 dual plane, Schumacher shorty Tri-Y headers and 3.73 gears.Full street trim car,ran 11.90 @ 110 mph.Drove it,raced it, ran it hard,all in a 65 Belvedere.Pulled it and installed it in a 73 Cuda for a 17 year old.He learned to drive with it and burned up it's first clutch.This thing is not babied. Best combo I ever had.

 

[Steve009]

How fast do ya want to go and how much to you want to spend?? I know several people that have gone mid 10's using the Eddy RPM heads and with stock stroke engines. Heck, my old rr went mid 10's using max ported 906 heads on a 440 but the RPM head is a better head out of the box than any 68 up stock head max ported or not. Another 440 that had an offset ground crank (470 cube) went high 9's using cast iron Stage VI heads with more cam in a lighter car. The rr would have been more streetable though imo since the cam was a good deal smaller. I remember in the 60's and 70's the thing everybody was doing was screaming short stroke engines and they did do ok. Back then I was into long stroke engines but now, it's somewhat opposite for me. So many are spooling stroker engines 7000+ rpm these days but a stock stroke 400 will turn 8k and has about the same piston speed as an engine with a 440 crank turning 7k. These days it's not hard to build a valve train to handle 7k at all and an 8k valve train isn't hard either. Rings packages are much better these days too than they were back in the cave man days lol.

ya it always comes down to the money I know. I hate making budgets because I always blow through them eventually. I hoping around 7k will handle it. In terms of speed, im not a racer but I do love stomping it around town!

 

[5.7 hemi]

That 470 will stomp that chebby while its in park!

 

[Xp29h]

To chime in.. Lots of good info! I was thinking all the same questions. Found a later 400 block ans was thinking 470 stroker. Guys at 440 source asked why leave hp on the table if you're going to pay the same price for a stroker kit. 470 vs 512.. It made sense to me. However, I was concerned it wouldn't be streetable and tough to drive. I went 512 and kept CR lower 9.7 = pump gas! Also went with the CNC stealth heads and 571 roller cam. Been great! I can give more specifics if you need but it's just been great! No issues. Plenty of low and haven't had space to find top end yet! Good luck on your decision and build.. One thing is it will be good either way when you're done!

 

[GITEX]

500ci 74 400 block, trick flow240's 11.28@120 in a3900 lb 65.

 

[1967coronet440]

View attachment 545179
500ci 74 400 block, trick flow240's 11.28@120 in a3900 lb 65.

Think i seen this car on your YouTube channel.

 

[m79ded]

im thinking now the 470 kit from 440 source with eddy e-street heads, eddy perf. rpm intake, 850 holly DP, with mid-range cam and headers would be pretty awesome street combo. I was worried the heads may be a little small but if you guys think well ported stock heads can work, im sure it will be ok. the car isn't driven a tone (maybe once a week and just during summer months) so its not like there will be a huge amount of miles put on it. to be really honest I just want to smoke my buddy's 68 Camaro 396 when we are out terrorizing the town

A 470 would be an awesome way to go. I should have went that route as well, but because I do alot of driving I opted for the tried and true 451. Let me tell you that thing revs so quickly and produces tons of torque I was amazed. After speaking to several people at the track they kind of pointed out that the 451 is a great choice for the street. The biggest advantage on the 470 would be about 25 TQ that's it. If you do decide to go with 470 go with a kit like muscle motors has using 1.32 CH pistons(Same as 451 and 512) with 6.70BBC rods and a Molnar 3.91 crank. It provides the lightest assembly and a great rod ratio which will be more durable. I will post Dyno #'s of my 451 next week when I dyno it with TFS240 heads this time. Good luck on your build either way you go both will work fine.

 

[Steve009]

A 470 would be an awesome way to go. I should have went that route as well, but because I do alot of driving I opted for the tried and true 451. Let me tell you that thing revs so quickly and produces tons of torque I was amazed. After speaking to several people at the track they kind of pointed out that the 451 is a great choice for the street. The biggest advantage on the 470 would be about 25 TQ that's it. If you do decide to go with 470 go with a kit like muscle motors has using 1.32 CH pistons(Same as 451 and 512) with 6.70BBC rods and a Molnar 3.91 crank. It provides the lightest assembly and a great rod ratio which will be more durable. I will post Dyno #'s of my 451 next week when I dyno it with TFS240 heads this time. Good luck on your build either way you go both will work fine.

Can’t wait to see those dyno numbers! I’ve never heard of muscle motors so I’ll check them out. My pops and I, who will be building this, are new to strokers so it’s a big learning curve.

 

[Bb70charger500]

So the 1975+ motors are the good ones for building stroker motors 99% of them were reinforced thicker walls ect. The 72 block ,I learned a bit about it from a friend I didn't know but there like gods of the 400 blocks for some reason he pulled one out of his roadrunner and put it up forsale had two guys show up for it they bidded it out he got a $1000 for that block! I wish I knew that because I had one out of a 72 rallye charger I sold the thing carb down for $450 I thought I did good ! (I did only pay $300 for the whole car)

But I used to toss 400's now I see the value in them grab it why you can they go quickly!

 

[Steve009]

So the 1975+ motors are the good ones for building stroker motors 99% of them were reinforced thicker walls ect. The 72 block ,I learned a bit about it from a friend I didn't know but there like gods of the 400 blocks for some reason he pulled one out of his roadrunner and put it up forsale had two guys show up for it they bidded it out he got a $1000 for that block! I wish I knew that because I had one out of a 72 rallye charger I sold the thing carb down for $450 I thought I did good ! (I did only pay $300 for the whole car)

But I used to toss 400's now I see the value in them grab it why you can they go quickly!

The guy is only asking $250 CAD so I figure I can’t lose no matter what the year. I just hope it comes back after being checked with no cracks!

 

[Bb70charger500]

Grab it . Unless it's been built as a stroker already I beat it had a nice easy life probably never saw anything over 3000 rpm s remember 1975 was a gas pinch people were trying to conserve there fuel so again I'd grab it up you can't go wrong .and if there is a problem ,get some glass and make a bad *** coffee table out of it!

 

[68 HEMI GTS]

To chime in.. Lots of good info! I was thinking all the same questions. Found a later 400 block ans was thinking 470 stroker. Guys at 440 source asked why leave hp on the table if you're going to pay the same price for a stroker kit. 470 vs 512.. It made sense to me. However, I was concerned it wouldn't be streetable and tough to drive. I went 512 and kept CR lower 9.7 = pump gas! Also went with the CNC stealth heads and 571 roller cam. Been great! I can give more specifics if you need but it's just been great! No issues. Plenty of low and haven't had space to find top end yet! Good luck on your decision and build.. One thing is it will be good either way when you're done!

That’s the thing, figure if you were just Making 1hp per cube how much you’ve given up right off the bat with the cubic inch difference. 40 hp for the same price. The 511 isn’t really any different than most big block chevys people build for street engines. The amount a normal muscle car gets used, they will run along time before needing freshend. And you get this kind of performance on pump gas through exhaust.

 

[Steve009]

That’s the thing, figure if you were just Making 1hp per cube how much you’ve given up right off the bat with the cubic inch difference. 40 hp for the same price. The 511 isn’t really any different than most big block chevys people build for street engines. The amount a normal muscle car gets used, they will run along time before needing freshend. And you get this kind of performance on pump gas through exhaust.

So I’ve read about the super short piston on a 512 beIng less stable. Not really the case?

 

[68 HEMI GTS]

Yea, you’re gonna have a bit more piston rock. It may need rings sooner than a longer piston. But, are you gonna drive it 100k miles? If it’s only gonna see a few thousand miles a year, the 511 is still gonna last a long time. Provided good machine work, proper clearances, and a good tune up. In my case, I hammer my stuff hard. I know in 5 years time I’ll be pulling it down for bearings and rings anyway. But that’s the case for any performance engine. You hammer the snot out of a 470 daily itlll still need maint items (bearings, rings) every so often. So will a 440. Kind of depends on what you wanna do, would I put a 511 in a car I want to drive 10-15k a year? No, I would put a stock stroke engine in it.

511 piston

 

[moper]

To dispel some rumors....
The '72 "230" blocks are called "cold weather" blocks. They are designed to be thicker in the web areas. However the issue with 400s is not in the webs. It's in the bores. And unless you're using s sonic tester, you have no clue if they are indeed "good". I've built both B and RB strokers, with blocks from the 60s and 70s. I own a commercial grade certified sonic tester and was trained to use it. I tested for several shops over the years and all my customers. The year or casting box number, or casting number means NOTHING. Each block is unique, and the best way to make power is thick bores. So before you put down big coin on anything "special" I'd advise you to engage a sonic tester or demand the test results from the block you're looking at.
In a very general sense - earlier blocks are better iron, but poorer casting quality. A lower or higher core box number (the single digit after the casting number) does not indicate any better or worse quality. Later blocks (post '71) are good iron, and cast better, but are by design cast to be lighter. So the castings are usually less core-shifted, but thinner overall.

 

[Steve009]

Yea, you’re gonna have a bit more piston rock. It may need rings sooner than a longer piston. But, are you gonna drive it 100k miles? If it’s only gonna see a few thousand miles a year, the 511 is still gonna last a long time. Provided good machine work, proper clearances, and a good tune up. In my case, I hammer my stuff hard. I know in 5 years time I’ll be pulling it down for bearings and rings anyway. But that’s the case for any performance engine. You hammer the snot out of a 470 daily itlll still need maint items (bearings, rings) every so often. So will a 440. Kind of depends on what you wanna do, would I put a 511 in a car I want to drive 10-15k a year? No, I would put a stock stroke engine in it.

511 piston
View attachment 545464

That’s fair. I’ll maybe do 1000k in a summer.

 

[Steve009]

Purchased... took it home in my Yaris hatchback haha... let the fun begin. Thanks for all the advice guys.