383 Rebuild 2.0

[Larrry B.]

After a very long process I've finally been able to complete my motor re-build and will bringing it home this week.

Block bored .040" over.
Stock forged crank and rods all reconditioned, rebuilt, balanced.
Forged domed JE pistons re-worked and "flattened" to bring compression down to 10:1
Trick Flow 240 heads.
Howards 720555-12 Cam.
Hughes rockers, 15103C
"Summit" lifters, made my Morel. The Trick Flow pushrods are to large for these, had to order a custom set by the builder.
Edelbrock RPM performer DP intake, smoothed out by Wilson with 1" tapered spacer.
Edelbrock 800 AVS-2, I had it so I used it.
440 Source Fabricated AI valve covers.
MSD pro-billet distributor, had to grind out some of the valve cover to fit with almost no space for the boot.
TTI headers (once re-installed).
Pro Race damper.

After 4 pulls on the Dyno, top 2:

458 hp @ 5800 rpm
453 ft-lb @ 4800 rpm

457 hp @ 5800 rpm
447 ft-lb @ 5000 rpm

Speaking with the builder, with a more aggressive cam and larger carb I'd get more power but I'm happy with the results.

With the re-built TKX to wide ratio, the car should drive great.

Now to get it all back in the car....

 

[RemCharger]

Very nice! So did it require valve to cylinder clearancing ?

 

[Larrry B.]

Builder did a good job on machining the pistons removing the dome, thankfully they were solid and I was able to re-use them.
That brought the compression down from just a hair over 11 to something much more friendly on the street.

Had to use a much thicker head gasket than before and used these: Cometic MLS C5462-080
With these everything had room to operate without issue.

 

[RemCharger]

So it wasn't really checked?

 

[Larrry B.]

Everything was checked, from my discussions with the builder the valve to cylinder clearance wasn't an issue. More the piston height variance after machining, hence the thicker gasket.

 

[PRHeads]

How high was it taken?
What was the power at the end of the pull?

Any dyno sheet?

 

[r4sedan]

Sounds like a nice engine.

 

[Larrry B.]

How high was it taken?
What was the power at the end of the pull?

5780 RPM: 416.2 (ft-lb) / 458 hp
6010 RPM: 399.3 (ft-lb) / 456.9 hp
6460 RPM: 339.2 (ft-lb) / 417.3 hp
5906 RPM: 404.2 (ft-lb) / 454.5 hp

Any dyno sheet?

Yes, 4 pages for each pull, figures listed above.
Peak numbers in post #1.

Builder mentioned the torque curve was really good, which I saw on the screen but don't have a hard copy of.
I'm picking it up tomorrow and will ask if I can get a printout.

Heads, cam, lifters and pushrods are the only new parts, everything else was carried over from the previous build or had already.

 

[Larrry B.]

Turn up your speakers....

 

[Larrry B.]

For what's it worth, before I bought the parts I contacted Trick Flow to confrm this before I bought the cylinder heads and was told:

"There is a minimum bore spec listed at 4.320", which is due to concern for intake valve to cylinder wall clearance. However, the TFS heads can be used on the smaller bores IF the camshaft is less than .600" lift."

I see there was another 383 possible rebuild thread going last year and this was commented on.

In my case I had no issues.

 

[TorRed]

Very nice and very interesting. I'm considering leaving my 383 standard stroke after being sure I wanted a 489 stroker at one point. I already have a Lunati roller cam with specs that are a little more lift and a little more duration but on a 110 degree centerline so the rpm range is identical to what Howards specifies for yours. I already have CNC'd Stealth heads, but don't know how they directly compare to your TF 240's. So, trying to decide if I can use what I have or if I'm going to have to go milder with a 30 over 383?

Cam specs:

SPECIFICATIONS
Vehicle Make BB Chrysler, Chrysler
Camshaft Type Hydraulic Roller
RPM Range 2200 to 6200
Intake Lift 0.535
Exhaust Lift 0.550
Intake Duration at 50 231
Exhaust Duration at 50 239
Advertised Intake Duration 282
Advertised Exhaust Duration 290
Camshaft Series Voodoo
Valve Setting Hydraulic
Lobe Separation Angle 110

 

[Larrry B.]

Early on I also considered a stroker kit and stealth heads from 440 source and spoke to one of their reps, asked a lot of questions... ultimately I decided to keep to the stock stroke as before.
I already have the rotating assembly and I was also trying to be as cost effective as I can, this **** is expensive.
I'm also not chasing high hp like I was 15-20 years ago.

Previous build(s) was with a mechanical roller, originally Crane at over .600 lift, then to Comp at .565 / .571.
I wanted something milder and decided on the Howards for the street.
The Eddy / Wilson intake and spacer combo helps a bit, something that I did some years back and had already which adds to the torque #'s.

I considered The Edelbrock RPM heads, did a lot of reading here and on any forum or review that I could find.
I even spoke to Indy but they were waaay more than everything else, so looking beyond that was pointless, and I'm not racing.
Not to mention the potential headaches that comes with higher hp engines, with added costs where needed....
So I went with the TF 240's, even the builder commented on how well they were done compared to what he's used on previous and current builds.

The shop I took the motor to is run by a 70 year old drag racer (Dave) who's working on multiple projects simultaneously (while actively racing 2 drag cars), mostly by himself hence the long(er) time frame.
(I spoke to a handful of shops when this started in summer 2024, was told 10 month minimum from all of them that would be willing to take the work on, some would not - Chevy / Ford only or my name needed to be Jerry Seinfeld or Jay Leno..)
He did another 383 right before mine, Edelbrock RPM heads, same RPM DP intake (stock form), no spacer, 850 brawler carb.
I think he mentioned it was around 425 hp, cant speak for the rotating assembly but I'm assuming it was stock.

Again, with a larger cam / carb I would probably have a bit more power...so your numbers might be similar to mine but it really comes down to how well the Stealth heads flow.

 

[Larrry B.]

 

[JARRETT LYNCH]

Very nice. Thats very similar to what I want to do with my 383. I was contemplating on Edelbrock vs trick flow 240's and was worried about the valve to cylinder wall clearance as you mentioned. Looks like its ok if cam lift is less than .600". Anything close to 500hp is just fine for a street engine.