We've run everything from complete crate engines to short-block builds on the dyno; most of which have seen success. Ground up engine builds still garner most of the attention though. There's just something about doing things yourself. It's the mindful approach that allows the builder to maintain an overall sense of control and allows them to pay careful attention to details. Obviously, there are plenty of preassembled stroker short-blocks available, but this time around we're going back to our roots and starting from ground zero.
It all starts with a bare block, and to handle ours we headed to Quarter Mile Performance (QMP) in Chatsworth, California, for a more hands on approach for our machine work. There, we completely prepped our bare four-bolt main 350 small-block from Engine Quest for its new life as a 383ci street brawler.
With our core in hand, we sent it through the ringer and gave it an align-hone, bore, deck, and hone; we even did a bit of clearancing for the longer rods on the CNC mill. This is something you're going to have to source out, so follow along as we detail our block's journey from bland to bold. The next time you see our block, we'll be installing a complete stroker rotating assembly from Eagle Specialty Products and topping it off with Edelbrock heads and manifold.
Quick Notes
What We Did
Align-hone, bore, deck, clearance, chamfer, and hone
Bottom Line
Our block is ready for its new life as a stroker engine
Engine cores are becoming...
Engine cores are becoming more difficult to find. The good news is, Engine Quest can fill your order and have it shipped to any destination. Priced at $300 (CH350BB), Engine Quest located a solid four-bolt main core that was even magnaflux and bake-blasted prior to shipping.
Our bare block came complete...
Our bare block came complete with a full set of main caps and bolts with a two-piece rear main seal. All '55-85 small-block Chevys were built with the two-piece rear main seal design. Any '86-and-newer block will come with a one-piece rear main seal. Take this into consideration when ordering or sourcing a crank.
Super-Torque
Proper tools...
Super-Torque
Proper tools and supplies for a job of this magnitude are a must. We picked up a bottle of ARP Ultra-Torque (PN ARP-100-9910) fastener assembly lubricant. Typically, when a fastener is first tightened, friction is at its greatest amount and the preload value, or stretch, is at its lowest. For example, with head bolts this can cause bore distortion, hamper piston ring seal, and lead to poor head gasket sealing. When the fastener is cycled over and over, friction decreases and preload increases. The Ultra-Torque assembly lubricant allows the fastener to be torqued once to become within 5 percent of its ideal preload. Plus, that load remains consistent from race-prep machining to final assembly.
Right out of the crate, we...
Right out of the crate, we loaded our bare block into the align-hone machine at QMP. We numbered and removed all the main caps. Using a machining stone and some wet/dry sandpaper on the bottom side of where the caps install will smooth out any high spots. It also gives the newly cut caps a smooth surface to bolt to.
We set aside the factory main...
We set aside the factory main bolts and upgraded to a much stronger set of 12-point main bolts from ARP (PN 234-5201). Priced very reasonably at just $79, they offer peace of mind for any performance build. We applied a liberal amount of Ultra-Torque lube to the threads and shoulder of each bolt.
Michael Consolo cut each cap,...
Michael Consolo cut each cap, removing 0.010-inch of material right off the bat. This gave each cap a flat surface and a nice starting point once the caps were bolted back on for honing.
Paying close attention to...
Paying close attention to detail, Consolo used a hand file to chamfer the edge of each cap. Removing any sharp edges at this point prevents the stone from getting snagged on the cap during the honing process. From there, each cap was washed in solvent to remove any excess material or debris.
The main caps now had a perfectly...
The main caps now had a perfectly flat surface. Following our numbered caps, we installed each cap (tang to tang), threaded in our fasteners, and torqued each one down to 65 ft-lb, beginning from the center cap (No. 3) and moving outward.