Ok, so this is going to be my first V8 build.. I have been a motorcycle mechanic for 7 years and been building race engines for 5. I am looking at building a 383 to replace the V6 that is in my prerunner truck.

I am trying to get all the specs and parts organized so I have a plan before the build, so far I have found a few blocks and will purchase one in the next week or so. Looking to get around 400-450 hp, planning on using a 383 crank, I-beam rods, JE pistons, Aluminum heasds, hyd roller cam, roller lifters, still unsure about which intake and carb...

Ok, so if anyone has info on a local southern california machine shop that can clearance the block and do the machine work, I need to find one.

Debating on what tranny to use trubo400 or 700r4?

Also I need to find a good intake/ carb combo.

And what gear ratios would work for a ford 9" and 35" tires... This isnt going to be a drag racer, more like a cruiser/ fun truck.

any and all info will help, im kind of new to all this SBC stuff. THANKS

 

Because you need a whole engine/trans combo, what about finding a LSx drivetrain? 6.0 or 6.2 complete with trans. Headers and a cam swap will get you near your 450hp level.

 

i would say the turbo 400 over the 700r4 theyjust were not made to handed that amount of sustained power. As far as the intake& carb combo where are you wanting to make your power at?
As for the gears high way or low end stuff ?

 

ya, I could do that... I was just looking to spend not alot of $$$ and it seems like the SBC 350 engines are cheaper. unless im mistaken

 

also the less wiring the better because this is going to be my desert/play truck and I will be trying to do most of the work myself over the next 6 months

 

Are you serious? The ls and tranny would build two 383's .i would go with edelbrocks rpm air gap intake and at least a 750cfm carb

 

looking at making good torque and around 450 hp around 5-6k... Im not going to be racing this truck but i want it to rip, prob a good mid to top engine.
going to be driven all off road, so not highway...

 

Well last I checked, machine shop prices have not gone down but the price of "parts" is very much down. You try comparing a PROPERLY machined short block + parts + assembly and finding a complete 5.3/5.7/6.0 doesn't seem like such a bad idea. If a 4L60 is bolted to it, all the better. Add a shift kit and good fluid and 400+ hp should not destroy it. If you're dead set on a TH400, it can be done also. He said he wanted to drive it... overdrive is NICE to have. I agree with an airgap and also have Pro System build a custom carb so he doesn't have to deal with tuning it.

To compare... around here.. the cost of machining a block costs a LOT more than a 5.3 LS engine out of a truck. A guy at Weller truck parts posted that they were just scrapping 5.3's because they had so many of them. That's a 327 cube/300hp stock engine.. Install it, see how it is, then when ready, its not hard to make 400hp with it..

If this seems like a lame swap, sorry.. I just like to see projects move smoothly.. Building an engine from the block up can be such a hassle at times.

Oh and if this is a dirt/sand truck, I would be VERY tempted to put a powerglide in it. With such loose media(sand), first gear is useless with a th400 3 speed style trans unless you have A LOT of tire(paddles).

 

Well, for a intake/carb combo, I'd suggest going with an Edelbrock Air Gap dual plane intake with a Holley Street Avenger or Truck Avenger carb 770 cfm model with an electric choke. If you truly want big power, go with the AFR street eliminator heads, for a budget go with the iron Vortec head by GM.

If you want a 700R4 to survive big power and torque, you'll have to spend some money on that. A TH400 can survive that much power with no problems, Powerglide is not a bad option also.

What gears do you plan on running, a low ratio such as 2.73-3.23 or bigger?

 

I was thinking about going a big bigger on the gears.. but not sure. currently I have 4:56s in the stock 8.8 with the V6 motor.

the new 9" will be full spool and have strong axles...

 

If I were you, and I'm not.....
I would go the 6.0 route with the 4l60E, take your time and look around until you find a running set up for around 1.5-2k, put it in and learn your EFI and electrical connections (It's not that bad) Get all the wiring and pcm for the engine and all the sensors etc, get a good set of headers and a tune. You should have about 380+hp on a stock cam that gets decent mpg (as decent as big **** tires will allow) and is dead reliable. Don't forget a good trans cooler and proper fluid as mentioned above.
When your tired of the above combo just put in a cam suited to your driving needs and get a re-tune, than enjoy the new power.
I think a used/good running 6.0 will be a heck of a lot cheaper and easier (even with the wiring) than building up an old tech 383 that will prob keep you wrenching when you want to go play in the sand.
Also, don't discount the 5.3 engines, they only dyno 10-20 hp less the the ls1 350's.
Go into ls1 truck for some amazing (to me at least) hp figures that people pull on the dyno with the 6.0 (and remember the whp is from a truck with truck tires....)
Good luck and keep us posted on your decision.

 

Just curious as to whether a TH400 is necessary? With 450hp you could probably do with a TCI streetfighter TH350 or just a decently rebuilt TH350 and it would gain you some rwhp. TH400 is obviously the safter bet though.

Intake, what someone said above, edelbrock RPM air gap and 750cfm carb would be more than enough with a decent cam.

 

if torque is what you're after then a high hp high revving sb isnt really what you want.. keep that 383 around 400 hp and you'll have a nice smooth powerband pump gas engine.

a th400 is stronger than a stock th700. but it only takes a few hundred extra dollars to make the 700 quite stout and over drive is a glorious thing on the highway. plus they have a lower 1st gear which is nice

 

I like the idea of the 400 because it is strong and can handle quite a bit... This truck is going to be mainly offroad only and might not even see pavement (legally) so the overdrive and all that isnt a big deal to me.

 

i would hit amazon.com and pick up a couple chevy engine-build related books for $10-20, and peruse the tech articles at chevy high performance and gm high-tech magazine, they have done many build ups of 383's and will list out what parts were used and what the dyno rating was.
And edelbrock has a 460-hp package for a 383 build, I think if you have nothing to start with then a power package from a major reputable vendor would be the way to go.

being a truck and heavy, you're going to want significant torque in the lower rpm range and I don't think your gonna want to have to spin the motor at high rpms to have get up and go, so a dual-plane intake is what you'll want. For carbs, a 650 cfm minimum is what the 383 would need, and that would most likely choke out over 5500 and not yield maximum hp at top rpm but would give the best performance and response at low/mid-range rpm. A 750 cfm is the norm and what's almost always used, i'd say get either a holley 4150 or an edelbrock carb... you can probably get some good info about carbs in the tech articles too if you search on it. For ignition it depends on what you're looking for, if you want simple and reliable then get a simple billet electronic distributor setup with vacuum advance. If you're looking for more functionality- rev limiters and want to play with timing curves then look into the MSD and Mallory ignition boxes, still pretty simple but will obviously cost more.

i would also figure out what transmission, rear end ratio, and tire size, you plan on running because that may influence what camshaft you should get. and remember because it's a truck, you don't want to simply select a power package that gives you maximum horsepower because that will be a narrow power band up at high rpms, you need a package that'll produce decent torque at low rpms which basically means you cannot select 500+ hp packages.

http://www.chevyhiperformance.com/index.html
http://www.gmhightechperformance.com/index.html

and if you google "383 build" you'll get a lot of good hits
http://www.carcraft.com/techarticles...ild/index.html
http://www.chevymania.com/tech/383.htm

and one last thing, read up on the 5.7" vs. 6" rod length,
I think being a truck engine you're not gonna want a high revving motor so a 6" rod would be better because it's said to allow the piston to have more duration at TDC which yields more torque.

 

A good set of hyper pistons, GM vortec iron heads, edelbrock performer rpm intake for vortec heads, neighborhood of 9:1 compression, Compcam 274 hydraulic flat tappet cam, Holley 670 truck avenger carb and your good to go. That carb will practically work upside down... Gears and trans will come down to what size tires you want to run and how often will the truck see the street.