Stroker worth it?
Thread Starter
Staging Lane
Joined: Nov 2014
Posts: 62
Likes: 6
From: Ridgefield,Washington
Stroker worth it? I bought a 2004 GMC 2500HD with a 6.0 and 4l80 that I plan on using in my 72 K5 Blazer daily driver build(similar to what https://hogieshines.com/ builds). Originally I was going to throw some LS3 heads on it, upgrade the cam etc and run it. When I removed the heads I saw that the pistons are already .030 over. Since someone had already been in this engine I figured I better double check the bearings of the rods, crank and cam. All of them were new .010 on the rods and crank and you can tell the engine assembly was either done in a dirty environment or they never changed the oil. All of the bearings were pretty scarred up including the cam bearings.
At this point I'm thinking since I'm .030 over and into a full build, is this the time to starting thinking of upgrades to the bottom end . I've been looking at the Texas Speed and Summit Stoker assemblies for the 408 & 410 CI. Or should I just try and reuse the .030 pistons and look for a new replacement crank? I'm looking for good bottom end to upper mid range power and torque. The Blazer is on 33's and I will do a gear swap if necessary. I'm looking for advice on a combo that will have some longevity, budget is of course a concern but only to a point of not buying products that don't improve the combo.
Thanks for any feedback
At this point I'm thinking since I'm .030 over and into a full build, is this the time to starting thinking of upgrades to the bottom end . I've been looking at the Texas Speed and Summit Stoker assemblies for the 408 & 410 CI. Or should I just try and reuse the .030 pistons and look for a new replacement crank? I'm looking for good bottom end to upper mid range power and torque. The Blazer is on 33's and I will do a gear swap if necessary. I'm looking for advice on a combo that will have some longevity, budget is of course a concern but only to a point of not buying products that don't improve the combo.
Thanks for any feedback
I would definitely go with the stroker option for something like that. The bottom end torque will be very nice in that K5. I would also skip the LS3 heads and do a set of big valve TEA 243s or some 220/225/235 Trickflows. I assume you won't be shooting for some crazy power in this thing, but that bottom end combo, plus those heads will make the thing get out of its way very easily.
If you have square port heads already, run 'em. Especially with bigger cubes. With an appropriate cam, they can help make a lot of low end grunt. Their mid and high range capabilities aren't in question. GM probably produced more than a few truck engines with those heads. If they were inherently torque-less, why would GM use those vs the proven torque monster 243/317 catty port heads?
My idea of a killer K5 engine would start with 408 cubes, add mildly ported LS3 heads and maybe a ported high rise truck intake mani, shoot for 10:1 static CR and 8.1:1 DCR, cam it with something like a 224/232 114+whatever it took to get to a 8.1:1 DCR. Low .600's lift. That would pull hard bottom to top. Add more cam if you're the more adventurous type.
My idea of a killer K5 engine would start with 408 cubes, add mildly ported LS3 heads and maybe a ported high rise truck intake mani, shoot for 10:1 static CR and 8.1:1 DCR, cam it with something like a 224/232 114+whatever it took to get to a 8.1:1 DCR. Low .600's lift. That would pull hard bottom to top. Add more cam if you're the more adventurous type.
