Visit Auto-Guild.com to get your free pre-order of the LS Swap Survival Guide eBook. As well as other cool eBooks and cool car related posters too. Please note that I entered the 454 bore and stroke incorrectly. The 454 has a bore of 4.25 and a stroke of 4.
The stock bore sizes used mean you will experience valve shrouding the BBC. On factory rec port head blocks you can see the bore notches to accommodate the 2.19 valves. That's the main reason going past the 2.19 1.88 isn't too popular, it just wont deliver the expected improvements without was huge over bore because of the valve shrouding.
I installed an LS6 crate engine in my 1970 RS Camaro. Backed it up with a TH400 Trans with 3500 stall converter with manual valve body and a 3:73 read end. If you breathed on the accelerator the tires would go up in smoke and lay rubber for as long as you stood on the gas pedal. At 60mph on the highway you could punch it and the tires would break loose and car would start to drift sideways ! I overrevved the engine several times to 7500rpm and never broke anything. Sold the car to a friend of mine 25 years ago and he still has it.
@@godofrockNot that simple. I had a buddy with an old Chevy Luv he made an 1/8th mile runner out of. Built 327 (low compression because of plans to put a blower on it that never materialized) with a 2-speed Powerglide and a Ford 9-inch with 3.90 gears. Tried for years and he could never get it to get proper traction. Wider and wider tires, ladder bars, etc. Had it for almost two decades and nothing seemed to work whenever he tried to get it to work right. Came to the conclusion that it was too light in the rear and it’d never really change. My ‘89 Sierra C1500 with a bone stock stock 350 TBI will light up the tires with 3.42 gears because it’s a single cab long bed, there’s virtually no weight over the rear axle if I’m not towing anything. Suspension setup and front-to-rear weight distribution are very important when trying to gain and maintain traction.
That counts double on a motorcycle. Had a g friend I taught to ride. Old gs 750..she weighed 135...I gave her a ride when I got my first blackbird running.165 hp..she was plenty impressed. Finally let her ride it..short ride she was back in 10 min...ran to the bathroom. Guess she pinned in it 3rd, front end came up and didnt come down until she ran out into the rev limiter and then she peed her pants
Not when it comes to toque. I have a 8.1 L (496ci) built with torque to pull. No GM small block can compare. The 8.1 is built to last . The military use it in the AT98.
My older brother Paul, by 4 years, always told me just to put a big block in and forget about it...and he was right..after putting a 454 in my 66 chevelle replacing the 350 in it, was dam near night and day...the torque was out of sight! Just coming off a light, sometimes i would put 2 ft of rubber down by mistake...Never went back...
I quit a long time ago trying to keep up with all the new high horse power engines being produced today. I own a 1967 Chevelle 396 SS and will keep it the way it is. LS engines are everywhere now days. I like old school and it's simple operation. By the way, I enjoyed your presentation.
I couldn't agree more., Keep her old school. I have a 69 Mach 1 351w 4 speed, 650 Holley, she runs great. I would not change her for nothing. I also have a 68 SS Camaro I'm actually swapping out my 350 and I'm dropping in a 427 SBC from Blueprint Engines in a few weeks. I prefer to have less weight on the front end, you have less wear and tear on your brakes, your suspension, springs, and you can maintain and negotiate corners better. Generally speaking, a small block stroker is going to be an overall better street car because in the real world, roads are not straight, they come with curves ,dips, and corners. Unless your dragging 1/4 miles every weekend, I truly believe the 400, 427, 434 small blocks are simply the best bets. You get ridiculous HP and Torque in a lighter weight package, that's huge when your barreling into an unknown corner at 60 mph. Todays 427 SBC, and 434 SBC actually produce big block power easily. I also compared the Chevrolet ZZ427 big block, and also the 1969 427 big blocks of yesteryear. Today's 427 sbcs and 434 sbcs are more potent then many of those big block options. Yes if you bore out the big blocks you can surpass the small blocks. But I'm talking about a straight up comparison, if you truly analyze everything, I think you'd have to come to the conclusion that the 427sbcs and 434sbs are the best choice. Most people just think about raw HP and TQ numbers and forget about handeling, cornering, and keeping extra weight off the front end. Another really practical advantage about small blocks is the fact that they take up less room in your engine bay, it does make things much easier to work on, that's a huge win. I think there are simply way more pros then cons running a small block car vs. a big block.
40 years ago when I was in high school; the other revheads would laugh at me when I would say "There is no substitute for cubes" or "no replacement for displacement". I began to modify my 1967 Oldsmobile Delta 88 which came standard with a big block. I dropped in a 455 with Edelbrock intake and blackjack headers which like in this video had to be bent around the steering box. Because this motor achieved high torque at low rpm I'm still driving it decades later.
I had a Chevelle with a 454 with iron heads. Didn’t think about weight till after it was in. The car originally had a small block and you could feel the weight difference on freeway clover leaf entrances (turns) - had heavier duty springs. But the torque! Wow ... I could stand on it from a stop, the car would get sideways easy, once you hooked it was a rocket all in by 5500 rpms. Midrange torque was impressive put you in your seat musclecar power.
That's why I believe that corvettes really shouldn't be big block cars, unless for pure drag racing. The advance suspension from the factory was set up for lemas style racing not drag racing. A big block will be heavy around the corners, while the small block is more balanced. My thing is a 350 small block is similar to a big block in rpm characteristics at 2 thousand rpm to 5 grand, not in torque and horse power but in stroke characteristics. Not scientific measurements, but natural engine functionality. The 454 has better power/torque under 2 grand and up to 5 grand. But the small block 350 can rev out more.
409 was a wicked bb but are so hard to find an original now days. The first one I ever seen was in a 64 and a half impala. The heads are what really caught my attention. They were built in a W shape, which i thought was really cool. Wasn't until I got older that I realized how cool and rare they really are.
@@theylive2749 ls i just going to feel like another small block Start with the 454 youre leagues ahead. Kids talk about the ls like its magic or something Know of a few head/cam 6.0s barely running 13s and hot under the collar about it.
@@funkmaster2258 It's only 110lbs. All iron BBC 685 vs SBC 575 an iron LS with aluminum heads around 500lbs, LSX aluminum heads 570lbs all aluminum LS around 400lbs. As to how much the weight matters it's about about power to weight so you need values to determine that.
@@Dayandcounting yea see i cant use sarcasm. Look if you double the weight you need 4x as much power to accelerate at the same rate but no 200 lbs isnt sht. I dont for the life of me understand what makes people think this is any kind of real question. Are people really that dumb ? There is no question more power is better. You can build to whatever hp you want , that is easy. Whats hard is traction. The extra weight may actually help you if you have a 4 link set up properly . Conversely if its not drag , if its a road course , the weight can kill you if it exceeds what suspension and braking can handle. There are alot of courses where acceleration pays off more than top end. Because its fkn hard to turn 110 degrees at 200 mph. There is no 1 answer. Its dependant on the track. As bad as formula 1 cars are they dont pull 6s just like a chevy 2 isnt going to handle like indy.
I have owned equal chevy 2500hd trucks. One with a 6.0/4l80e and one with an 8.1/allison. The 8.1 absolutely pulls trailers better and does it at half the rpms of the 6.0 small block. I like the feel of the big block better
Never saw the need for any muscle car with more than 450 HP if it’s never going to see a race track. Small block is definitely the way to go for the weekend driver.
Meh, I had a 509 casting 400 small block. I bored it .030 over and stuffed astroker crank in her and made a 434 stroker with as much aluminum on top as possible. The only thing that was iron was the block. That small block spanked 427's and 454 equipped cars all day. It was in a 68 z/28 Camaro with a M21 close ratio muncie and 12 bolt 373 posi. The 302 was put away for safe keeping but the muncie and 12 bolt was used. Gobs of torque and I will never go 383 not when one has already had 434.
I always appreciated the abundance of aftermarket goodies available for the small block back in the day. But you can get pretty much anything now and I gotta say....I'm always impressed when I see those big ass heads.
Concerned about BB nose weight? Moving the battery from in front of the front wheels to the trunk it the same weight transfer as moving the engine back 10"
@@trashbandit2449its easy to check, measure the height of the front and rear of the car at the bumper, pull the battery out and put it in the trunk. Had s couple esrly 70"s Camaro back in the day. I got one down to 3050 lbs with a 50/50 weight split. Lowered with g 50 15s on rally sport wheels. I was 2 mph faster on the skid pad and 2 10ths quicker on a slalom course than my buds 84 vett
I was always a small block guy. Loved 327s and 350s. Wanted a 327/M21 4 speed ‘68 Chevelle.............until I bought a hopped up big block Chevelle. Yeah, it’s only a 396. But, the smile factor and the respect from the folks that lived during that time are priceless. I’ll probably ditch the TH400 in favor of a 5 speed someday. Right now, it’s just too much fun driving that time machine.
My 396 in a 69 chevelle was built by a known company and it would take 7,000 rpms all day , 4,500 stall , nitrous , 456 gear , latter bars , Hurst slap shift , everything balanced all the way the the rear end . I was smart enough to sell it because I liked the Buds back then. I have a brain now and would love to have it back.
These days, for anything streetable/daily driver, SBC all the way, save for something extreme like a tow rig. What with widely available stroker kits, roller cams and AL heads and intakes, it's easy to get big streetable power in a shocking small and light package.
Yes but you still need more RPM to make that power. Don't get me wrong, Small Blocks are powerful but its Big Blocks where the true power lies because you can make more with less RPM.
@@extremedrivr yes to both, big block is best for towing n pushing weight, small block for daily driving n saving money on gas..lol But i prefer big blocks no matter what..
Back in around 1970, a friend and I put a 426 HEMI in his 1967 bright apple green Dodge Van. We rode it to school in North Miami, Florida and afterword for crusin, drag raceing and just fun. He later bought a 1966 yellow HEMI Charger. Joy I always had 440 magnums in my multiple MOPARS. Love big blocks. However. My 2004 Z06 Commemorative Corvette has a small block, LS6 that is the best of them all. Over 130,000 miles on it and still runs like new and no leaks. I love V8s
I have a 2000 GMC C3500HD with a 454 Vortec. I bought it 3 years ago. It was a retired government truck sold at auction and it had only 43,000 original miles on it. Sadly, 2000 was the last year for the 454 but it was the first year for 4 wheel disc brakes. I love that truck.
For a bunch of Chevy guys, a $5,000 aftermarket engine block sounds expensive. But a couple of years ago Matt Farrah (Smoking Tire) bought an air-cooled 911 from the '80s, and the engine was puffing a bit of smoke. Soooo, he takes it down to the local Porsche guru _who charges him $18,000 for a basic ring and valve job_ . That did include engine R&R, which takes a Porsche mechanic maybe two hours total for combined removal and replacement. Of course, there was engine teardown and re-assembly. But again, that's easy; it doesn't even have a cooling system to deal with and he can just plop it down on a bench. It wasn't bored, the pistons _were_ re-used, and the cam wasn't replaced -- just new rings, valves, and guides, and they must also have done the crank bearings and surely they honed the cylinders. No machining work at all. Astonishing. There is _nothing_ special about an air-cooled Porsche engine. But the same job on a SBC (with two more cylinders) would be something like $400 for good parts, including a fresh timing chain and gears, and let's say labor is $2,500, so $2,900 total. That hardly even makes sense, because for around $4,000 you could have the thing fully rebuilt with fresh bores and new pistons -- the works. Even if I'm low by $1,000, there is still no comparison. Just saying...
Yeah it definitely has a few errors. The 454 lived on way past 1975. The small block wasn't replaced by the ls family of engines. The opti spark Lt style engine came before the Ls. I'm only 2 minutes into the video and found these errors.
A Ford guy knows a small block will make way more than 360hp. It looked like he had block integrity power listed for the big block and the 70 Z28 motor advertised output for the small block. However I give em a pass. It's great to see young guns keeping the old stuff alive. The more he studies the more he'll learn.
They have thin cast walls on the Pistons so they end up distorting at high horsepower and destroy the engines and they constantly have overheating issues-FACT
@@jamescaban7710 Because of their large, 4 1/8" standard bore, 400s have siamesed center cylinders, not thin wall casings. I've built many of them over the years and never had any overheating problems. I have 406s in 3 of my vehicles right now-my 74 Camaro, 70 Malibu and 78 K25. Overheating is no more common with a 400 than any other small block. As with any old block, it they should be sonic checked before any machine work takes place. On the other hand, I don't know why anyone would want to de-stroke an engine like the op says. Running a 350 crank in a 400 block not only reduces engine displacement to around 372", it's also not just a drop in swap. These days, you can buy 383 "stroker" kits to drop a 3 3/4" crank into a 350 block without turning the mains but, I've yet to see a 3.48" crank that has the 2.65" 400 journal size. Bearing spacers are available to do it but, as I said, I don't know why anyone would.
@@MikeBrown-ii3pt Mike you are obviously quite intelligent and can make it happen the general public f**** that all up and this isn't the norm good work my friend...
@@jamescaban7710How many 400's have you owned that destroyed themselves or overheated? Before the LS motor came out I used 400 small blocks in a lot of my street hot rods, my stock car, and my pickup that I towed my race car with. I still have the pickup and that 400 has over 200 thousand on it and still runs great. The 400's I used in my stock cars had incredible torque for pulling the car up off the corner and I never had to turn them over 5500 RPM. And the street 400's when I put them in a Chevelle or Nova body was good for 12-second quarter-mile times. I never broke any of my 400's, and I never had any overheating problems. The old wife's tale about overheating problems comes from people trying to run a 400 with too small of a radiator and or a bad clutch fan, or they used different heads without drilling out the steam holes. Chevrolet used the 400 in everything from Monte Carlos and Impalas, to trucks and Blazers with no overheating problems when using the factory cooling system. I have built many 400's for myself and others and they have been a great motor for everything I have used them for.
I’ve built a few of both. Big block all the way. My favourite was an LS5 I built in a 69 chev pick up. Smoke rear tires at any speed below 45kph with an automatic. Fun
I blew up my 350 on my nova so I ended up finding a big block...yes it cost way more ..I'm still in progress due funds..but hope one day she would be running good..and then ill go to aluminum heads....great video by the way
Most people I have ever known that owned a big block it was on a stand in their garage. Their story of it usually included the short time it was in their car where they quickly broke something ( something expensive ) and they were running a small block in their car since then. Then there was the guy in car club I was in that had 57 Chevy and he put his big block in whereupon my friend blew it off the road three times in a row with his 350 so he took it home and pulled it out.
yes, engine weight is definitely a consideration, especially if you are looking for a pro touring setup, wanting to track (curcuit/round course) the car. every pounds less makes a noticeable difference in handling and cornering, especialy if you are approaching and exploring limits in spirited or competitive driving/racing. (either the limits of the driver and his skills or the physical ones of the vehicle ) anyways, the amount of sheer unlimited choices that are offered in America, by the big manufacturers oem, through their crates, or the countless custom shops and independent engine builders is unparalleled in the world. truly exceptional and make every builder and car and performance enthusiast happy, whatever you are looking for, whatever your want and whatever the project, you will be served and will find the perfect fit and solution. greetings from germany.
Stroke a 454 to 496ci 10.5:1 comp and run AFR aluminum oval port heads. stick a comp cam 280-290 hyd roller cam in it. 600 hp and 650 torque all day long. Have a good trans though cause that rat engine is gonna pull hard
Dad had a 76 GMC Suburban when I was 16. I loved it! You could use your big toe and just poke the bottom of the pedal towards the carpet and would squall the tires and take off! I only used the whole pedal if the stoplight to stoplight runs got too close! 😉
I was thinking 68-70 472, or 500 with 472 or 425 heads, but yeah. They all came with forged cranks too. A simple intake manifold change to aluminum and weld on flanges for bbc headers, recurve the distributor, there ya go. They are about bomb proof as long as there's a couple quarts of some kinda oil in them. Cheaper than most builds too
@@assymcgee2835 the 500 is a stroked 472. Not a good idea to put the 425 heads on a 472 or 500. The bore is way too small. Picture 305 heads on a 350. The only thing the 425 shares with the 472 is the stroke of 4.06 inches. The 425 vote is 4.08 inches. The 472 and 500 both have a 4.3 inch bore.
@@markdubois4882 its been done, and alot of guys, me included, run 305 ho heads on mild 350s. I think a few if the cadillac engine builder sites recommend the 425 heads also, but you gotta run 100+ octane
I had a 1970 Chevelle in High School with a small block 400. As I got older I built a 454 with iron heads and block and replaced the 400. Even with the heavier front springs the car never drove and handled as well. That is why I went LS. After I upgraded to the driveline I decided to swap in an LS2 instead of the big block. I actually sold the car about 8 years ago and am looking to build another car. It just depends on how you plan on using the car. My choice at this point would be a big block with aluminum heads and a sniper EFI. The LS option is great but the big block is really cool. The small block 400 was no slouch either. If you plan to do the power tour or drive long distances I think the LS would be the best bet.
For me and with today's tech Small Blocks rule the world. We work with Honda "Small Block" in the Honda V6 J-Series engines. Today's motors can handle so much power but big block still has that nostalgia. If you want power, weight savings and overall speed, strap some Turbs to the small block and you probably are right at the big block size with space in mind but also making more power and that TQ. Our little 3.2 V6 motor made 560/464 on 8psi of boost..that's 175WHP (NOT CRANK..so 198-200hp per liter crank?) per liter on a stock block....and 8psi is nothing in boost amount With that said, aint nothing like a Big Block with a 108 Cam chop 🤗
I scored a 69 Chevelle 375 HP in 1978..rebuilt it with stock cam .30 overbore...in a 74 Camaro ran 12.20 ETs..sold the car and installed it in a lightweight 57 chevy and ran 10:90s..its in my 56 150 utility sedan today with a six speed and 69 Chevelle 12 bolt..bought the car in 1981 with a 283" that an auto shop installed after buying it at auction from Pacific Bell..they serviced it since new..tried to buy it in 66 but they wouldn't sell..LOL That's my story and I'm sticking to it! Been idle for 13 years and being gone over to live in Las Vegas heat...
My old bosses explanation is the best. Two guys and two 44 gallon drum oils. Small block guy hugs it to lift it while big block guy simply lifts it up by one hand. Plain simple goodbye
My daddy (35 you marine mechanic), told me to buy a stock L78 396 for my '55 instead of my buddies built 331 small block (claiming 400hp in 1975). He was correct-w/headers,and a double pumper, more torque- it was a way more reliable driver
Thanks I needed that ! I remember contrasting 400 big block Chevy pick up. 1971 And Chevy 400 small block Chevy caprice No comparison. Had 366 big blocks in trucks Had 427 in trucks Had 350 small block in one truck My dad had 454 in his pick up And 455 in his Buick limited Still own a 455 Buick. 1974 Electra Two uncles had 350 small blocks in their pick ups. And everyone then had a 350 small block somewhere in their family Your video goes to show how little I actually knew about all those engines I knew the big block had different performance characteristics but I didn’t know about why they put both in corvettes at different times Your point about steering and handling I get from Motorcycles. 650 vstrom vs 1000 v storm ( Suzukis ). 2 out of 3 go for smaller displacement in that bike because of weight …. My opinion Love peoples comments Especially about straight line power No one cares about handling going straight down the road Raw oomph only I have also owned a couple Lexus LS cars. A 400 and a 430. They own that aluminum block and because of this video now I know why
I think the block strength for the small blocks is a little off. If you’re just referring to the block, not the crank or other factory components. I had a 408 that used a 1971 400 block that made a little over 600 hp. Still had factory caps and main bolts and frequently saw 7,000+ rpm. Good video though, liked the weight comparisons for sure.
@@DRG00DandS3XY it had dart pro 1 227 cnc heads with minor port/chamber work and 2.08 valves, dart single plane 4150 intake, quick fuel 950 carb, mahle power pack pistons with a 4cc dome that put the compression at 12.5:1, and a .670/.630 264°/272° @ .050 cam.
I was pouring over these specs when I was a teenager in the early 80s. I won't nitpick any of your errors because nobody's perfect. I've grown to appreciate the LS engine, but I almost think it's too perfect. I still like some of the quirks of the old engines.
The ls engine is far from perfect, n i beat a 5.3 swapped single cab Silverado in my stock P71 with my 4.6L 2v..lol But i do like the LS7, dayum, time sure does fly..
I started out with a 383 Chevy and the oil pump broke in two in hi gear at the track. Now I use BBC oil pumps in my SBC engines. Then 400 SBC At 13.1 compression and I burned up a few of those 4 bolt blocks with NOS at the drag strip. A 250 shot. They ran great for A little while. Next I got a 427 or 435 .040 over truck tall deck and I put Pop up pistons and H beam rods and 68 Corvette 3x2 cast oval port head's and a team G with a 750 DP Holley and 1 7/8 inch headers and a 3800 ATI stall turbo 350 and 4.10 gear .550 solid Cam at 108 and A gear drive. Ran it for 15 years and won a championship with it. Then I pulled it out and stroked it to 525 and changed it to a 4.56 gear. Ran great for a few years 11.0 1/4 Mile out of the boxes. Then I decided to go back to the street and I broke roller rockers in short order and I went to shaft rockers for about 500 dollars after machine work and bushings to remove the roller bearings that fail on BBC after a few miles with a solid roller cam. That and the 1050 Holley put me at about 10 K into the 525 motor. Everything was forged steel and Diamond Pistons 12 to 1 cr. 121 CC head's. Open Square Port aluminum. 320 runner's Big intake. I felt pretty good but I wanted it to run cooler on the street so I got a rollerized 2800 torque converter and the builder put a heli coil in one of the bolt holes and painted it black so I didn't see it. It was running great for about a month and I was going home and I stopped and I took off and I shifted it at 5000 RPM and when I hit 3rd. Gear or high I Heard a Pop and it started shaking like crazy and I let out and I was two blocks from home and I pulled the engine out and then I saw the Heli coil still on the bolt with locktite and I said what in the hell is that Heli coil doing there ? . They refunded me for the torque converter but I lost my block and transmission in the process. So I decided to replace the transmission and build a 355 four bolt main with Pop up pistons and A solid Cam. I put it in the car and my old ATI stall converter and it ran okay but it was nothing compared to the 525 that I took out. And I am serious about it ran great ! . Well I drove it to a few car shows and around town last summer and it was a good little 355 SBC but it was not a 400 SBC or 427 BBC. And I had a 454 once for a few months before I stroked The 427/435 to 525 but it was not consistent enough for me and I sold it. Well everything said and done I decided that a 355 SBC is not working for me and I just put another 454 in the car. I have a 89 formula 350 Firebird as a daily driver and I like the 350 in that car but in my race car I have to have at least a 454 engine. I trashed a nice 427/435 and A 525 using that same block, building a street BBC stroker is expensive if you want a 11 second engine that is going to stay together. I Did it and I was fooled by a hidden Heli coil in a New torque converter. Big blocks Are not very forgiving if something goes wrong. The crankshaft was so hard that when the torque converter bolt came out it flexed the front main bearing in the block and stacked the two bearings and cut out the block about a 1/8 of a inch. It was a 13 inch Turbo 400 torque converter and a little 6 inch racing front Harmonic dampener. The Torque converter was twice the size of the harmonic balancer so it lost the battle. Everything in the transmission was bent. The engine was internally balanced with Mallory welded in place. I was only at 5000 RPM when it happened. I used to race as A 427 at 6200 shifts. 427 BBC is a friendly engine if you can keep the pushrods and rocker arms together. I used 7/16 inch molley pushrods and Roller rockers but not on the street. It was a track only car back then. On the street I kept having roller rockers arm's failing on my solid Cam BBC. I'd break them in half and I'd knock out the bearings. I ended up with stainless steel adjustable with shafts and steel bushings. I made a set for 500 dollars but they cost 1500 to 2500 dollars for a set of them normally. A 400 SBC is the cheapest HP in my opinion. But real power is A Big block . My 350 formula eats a lot of gas for the engine size but it handles great so I don't mind. I don't think that My 454 with the 4.56 is going to be any harder on gas than the 350 with the 3.31 gear to be honest under normal cruise driving. My 525 was getting around 10 or more mpg on the street with a 1050 dominator on it. Probably around 12 MPG. A 10 gallon fuel cell went around 100 miles before I stopped for gas. Of course I added a little bit of toluene for octane purposes. And A little mystery oil in that. I was over 11 to 1 actual compression on the street. Everything was a little bit cheaper back then but the principle is still the same.
The etymology of calling them rat motors according to either a Hot Rod or Car Craft magazine I read many years ago: Chrysler's hemi was known as the elephant, and when people began doing well with small block Chevrolets it was "The mouse that scared the elephant", so they got the nickname of the mouse motor. Then the big block came along, so the mouse motor's big brother was nicknamed the rat.
Z11 was a 409. The aluminum Mk IV big block was the ZL1. You may want to check the weight savings between the iron exhaust manifolds and mid length headers. It should be closer to 30 lb.
@@SnoopysVet Haha! Sadly no! Clevo Windsor flathead🤔 oh yeah 🧐FE! When you look at al the incarnations of the Chev small and big block there’s just no boundaries! 😐 I’m still a Ford guy though 😀
Yeah !!! The Ford guys say !!! Hey Chevy BOYS what happened in the 1963 Daytona 500??? The mystery Motor Died!!! The Ford FE 427 took the top 5 positions at the end. Then Ford went on to take on the world!!! And kicked ass there too!
i had an older rv with one of those. i wanted to put that motor in my 87 cutlass. not sure if they have 4 bolt mains or not, which could be a major weakpoint. It would definitely sound good though.
@@AutoGuild Big Blocks make more power with less RPM though so I prefer BB over SB for that reason alone. Small block V8s are cool sure. I have one in my modern 99 Jeep GC Limited but Big Blocks are where all the raw power is found.
Big blocks make off idle torque. Right off idle you could have stock 350-400 ft-lbs of torque sometimes double what small small blocks offer. The issue with big block cars that always matters is traction.
But I have a modded L82 1976 4 speed with a small over driven blower reworked 2.02 heads 9.1 compression 800cfm vac carb blowers cam roller rockers hi volume oil pump clevite 77 bearings big tube hooker headers and dual 3 inch exhaust, variable lift and duration valve system ,which gives much less lift at below 3000 rpm = car act like big block on steroids super flat torque curve from 1000 to 5500 rpm
This video has been done before. Maybe not on UA-cam but in every car magazine since the beginning of time! Don't get me wrong, this was a great refresher! Have a like and a sub, sir 👍
But I like my 454 in my 69 chevelle lol. I care a bit about the weight, but when I bought it, it came with the 454, and it had already been upgraded with brakes, wheels, headers, etc. I like the way it feels and handles right now so I'm keeping the big block.
Why are the RPM specs on these chevy engines so low? The biggest selling point over All other engines were the high rev capabilities. 64 biscayne 409 4spd shifted at 7400 rpm all day long. The 327 didn't turn on til 4000 rpm and shifted at 8500. If you don't turn the rpm up you might as well have a 6cyl.
@@mr.e1220 the 400 small block was called the Turbo Fire 400, the 402 big block was marketed as the Turbo Jet 400. So yes the 400 was offered in both small block and big block.
@@matthewsherman1450 if that is what marketing called them, it sure is misleading. I guess u are correct in a marketing sense. But a 402 is a 402...big block. A 400 small block cannot ever be called a 402, so marketing made a huge error. That's probably why that knowledge is not remembered among many, it is bad marketing. Also, a 402 was not just in trucks, many full sized Chevies had a 402, including Monte Carlo.
I own a 96 Caprice with the LT1 which is a 5.7L 350 Small Block and I LOVE it. Planning on building it for 6-900 WHP though it's just a guess until I can put her on a dyno
The redline of the big and small blocks are way off! Very inaccurate information! The redlines and characteristic valve train speed are way off. You had to replace the valve springs more often, but the L88 would go to 7400 rpm easily.
I stand corrected!!!!! I recall my statement of calling this post BS. Forgive me for my ignorance of Chevy engines. I have researched the bore of several of these engines and I was wrong. I have always been a Ford guy and have built several ford engines but never a GM. This is not an excuse but has been my perception.
Would like to see if you have any thoughts on performance mods for the old Mustang 6 cylinder engines, when I was a kid and vintage Stang's were dirt cheap, my best friends dad bought him a 64 1/2 with a 6 cylinder for a project car. The word was milling the head to raise compression and some other mods to gain performance, they called it the "Ferrari" mod... We were going to strip every ounce of weight we could to turn it into a backroad burner. The only rules dad imposed were "respect my tools, keep the shop clean, and don't kill yourselves". He meant it to be a learning experience, and it was.
I have a 283 small block pre 64 engine that is bored .40 thousands over with 350 heads and it is a very good engine for my 1966 Chevrolet. What do you think about it?
So let me get this straight you claim to have a 68 Camaro but you don't even know what a zl1 is??? You literally called it a z11😂 and you want to LS swap it for braking
I have a 67 Cougar 390 GT. I love the fact that its a Big Block. You just cant beat that sound of the thump of a mild cam and good exhaust pumping out back. A small block is no comparison. I swapped out the intake for an aluminum version. Installed an aluminum water pump. Jba tri y stainless race headers. Installed a Mini starter. Moved the battery out back. Installed an aluminum radiator with electric fan. All this made the 390 only 50 pounds heavier than if a 302 was in the engine bay.
I have a 4.6 liter on my 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis so it would be good to see the same comparison on the Ford big block and small block. The 4.6 Liter is a 281 cubic inch.
Our Panther's 2v is a hell of a torquey engine for how small it is, there's a reason why cops n taxis used them for so long in 4k lbs cars.. i love the 2v, great lil engine..
only ford b/s blocks, are the 385 series, 302. 351. 460. this, is how chev, should of built engines. not 2 completly different types. a chev 454 needs more speed shop, than a 460, to have 7hp more..ill keep my ford truck engines. chev dont rev, cos of the press in studs, a 460 will do 7k std..my 351 did 6k. all day,every day..f100. 4x4. funny how chev had canted valves on some bbc, but not small blocks..sht design from '55..never improved it. just floged it to death..money maker..
I used to circle burn dirt tracks with my Buick 455 I ran that motor at 6000 to 6500 at the end of every straight. Won almost every race unless I got knocked out. Never turned a bolt on it for four years
Yeah right!! Everyone knows 455 Buick is the king. Those things even see 5k and the bearings are all over the bottom of the pan, cylinder heads like a pencil sharpener hole, Come on man 😂
Lol i risk my life enough at work, im perfectly fine taking turns at like 70, rather than like 150 or whatever speed these little awd cars can push. Just my opinion.
I will never go electric you hippie. Combustion engine's will live forever . when Tesla sales a electric car do they tell the oner that it costs about 20,000 to put a new battery in it
@@bilbobaggins4710 it's because of a short stroke so therefore small blocks would wrap up faster than Big Blocks which gave them the advantage on quarter mile runs back then. Big Blocks had the advantage on half mile
@@bilbobaggins4710 I'll bet on a small block on 1/4 mile any day of the week. That's because I've seen it firsthand. I've seen small blocks spin 9000 RPM all day long and absolutely destroy Big Blocks quarter mile. Half mile I would bet on the big block.
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Please note that I entered the 454 bore and stroke incorrectly. The 454 has a bore of 4.25 and a stroke of 4.
And to, the 427 bbc has a bore of 4.25 and stroke of 3.76 (chilton's auto repair manual), not 4.125 and 4 !!
Next time, pay attention!
Make a video about the 383 Stroker
I caught that. Do i get a gold star?
Why you all worried about room. That motor fits about everything gm builds except to 1 gen nova. Even G van..yep. 402 in a van.
The stock bore sizes used mean you will experience valve shrouding the BBC. On factory rec port head blocks you can see the bore notches to accommodate the 2.19 valves. That's the main reason going past the 2.19 1.88 isn't too popular, it just wont deliver the expected improvements without was huge over bore because of the valve shrouding.
I installed an LS6 crate engine in my 1970 RS Camaro. Backed it up with a TH400 Trans with 3500 stall converter with manual valve body and a 3:73 read end. If you breathed on the accelerator the tires would go up in smoke and lay rubber for as long as you stood on the gas pedal. At 60mph on the highway you could punch it and the tires would break loose and car would start to drift sideways ! I overrevved the engine several times to 7500rpm and never broke anything. Sold the car to a friend of mine 25 years ago and he still has it.
You need better tires! Problem solved
@@godofrockNot that simple. I had a buddy with an old Chevy Luv he made an 1/8th mile runner out of. Built 327 (low compression because of plans to put a blower on it that never materialized) with a 2-speed Powerglide and a Ford 9-inch with 3.90 gears. Tried for years and he could never get it to get proper traction. Wider and wider tires, ladder bars, etc. Had it for almost two decades and nothing seemed to work whenever he tried to get it to work right. Came to the conclusion that it was too light in the rear and it’d never really change. My ‘89 Sierra C1500 with a bone stock stock 350 TBI will light up the tires with 3.42 gears because it’s a single cab long bed, there’s virtually no weight over the rear axle if I’m not towing anything. Suspension setup and front-to-rear weight distribution are very important when trying to gain and maintain traction.
I once shed close to seventy pounds off my muscle car by replacing my old girlfriend with a new one :)
Was she a model for FAT A GRAM?
She must have been a real porker!
👍👍😂😂
That counts double on a motorcycle. Had a g friend I taught to ride.
Old gs 750..she weighed 135...I gave her a ride when I got my first blackbird running.165 hp..she was plenty impressed. Finally let her ride it..short ride she was back in 10 min...ran to the bathroom. Guess she pinned in it 3rd, front end came up and didnt come down until she ran out into the rev limiter and then she peed her pants
Nice!!!!!!😁😁😁😂
Listen, when your behind a 454 you ain't gonna give a shit about weight. All that power will let the neighborhood know what you have!!!😎👍
Basically,
Chevy Small Block: does anything
Chevy Big Block: does anything *BUT BIGGER*
Not when it comes to toque. I have a 8.1 L (496ci) built with torque to pull. No GM small block can compare. The 8.1 is built to last . The military use it in the AT98.
@@donaldthomas5852 hence the “ *BUT BIGGER* “ part
Real talk
Can’t rev higher that’s one thing I guess
@@donaldthomas5852 wouldn't a cummims six be a much more efficient way to build torque?
My older brother Paul, by 4 years, always told me just to put a big block in and forget about it...and he was right..after putting a 454 in my 66 chevelle replacing the 350 in it, was dam near night and day...the torque was out of sight! Just coming off a light, sometimes i would put 2 ft of rubber down by mistake...Never went back...
Nice, I have a 69 big block
I quit a long time ago trying to keep up with all the new high horse power engines being produced today. I own a 1967 Chevelle 396 SS and will keep it the way it is. LS engines are everywhere now days. I like old school and it's simple operation. By the way, I enjoyed your presentation.
Chances are you're not fixing an ls on the side of the road. 4bbl and mechanical fuel pump is the way to go in my mind.
I couldn't agree more., Keep her old school.
I have a 69 Mach 1 351w 4 speed, 650 Holley, she runs great. I would not change her for nothing.
I also have a 68 SS Camaro I'm actually swapping out my 350 and I'm dropping in a 427 SBC from Blueprint Engines in a few weeks.
I prefer to have less weight on the front end, you have less wear and tear on your brakes, your suspension, springs, and you can maintain and negotiate corners better.
Generally speaking, a small block stroker is going to be an overall better street car because in the real world, roads are not straight, they come with curves ,dips, and corners.
Unless your dragging 1/4 miles every weekend, I truly believe the 400, 427, 434 small blocks are simply the best bets.
You get ridiculous HP and Torque in a lighter weight package, that's huge when your barreling into an unknown corner at 60 mph.
Todays 427 SBC, and 434 SBC actually produce big block power easily.
I also compared the Chevrolet ZZ427 big block, and also the 1969 427 big blocks of yesteryear. Today's 427 sbcs and 434 sbcs are more potent then many of those big block options.
Yes if you bore out the big blocks you can surpass the small blocks.
But I'm talking about a straight up comparison, if you truly analyze everything, I think you'd have to come to the conclusion that the 427sbcs and 434sbs are the best choice.
Most people just think about raw HP and TQ numbers and forget about handeling, cornering, and keeping extra weight off the front end.
Another really practical advantage about small blocks is the fact that they take up less room in your engine bay, it does make things much easier to work on, that's a huge win.
I think there are simply way more pros then cons running a small block car vs. a big block.
Ls engines are just as simple with a carbie on them
Big blok big
Smol blok smol
Done
Big brain moment
I have a 62 Nova and built a 327 425 hp small block. Tasty fast! Best small block Chevy ever built.
Love the 327. They rap up quick
Novas are a amazing
@@ryanpoloski4322
283 cui with twin turbo pushing 7500rpm
40 years ago when I was in high school; the other revheads would laugh at me when I would say "There is no substitute for cubes" or "no replacement for displacement". I began to modify my 1967 Oldsmobile Delta 88 which came standard with a big block. I dropped in a 455 with Edelbrock intake and blackjack headers which like in this video had to be bent around the steering box. Because this motor achieved high torque at low rpm I'm still driving it decades later.
Steer the front with the steering wheel, steer the rear tires with the throttle!!
No sb will beat the bb's torque off the line.. Gladd you still got your bb 67 Olds..
The weight of the 396 in my 1970 SS Nova never bothers me except during parking maneuvers as it has no power steering.
Armstrong Steering!
Felt that. 67 barracuda 440 no power steering
Bigblock=big mucel! 😁
I had a Chevelle with a 454 with iron heads. Didn’t think about weight till after it was in. The car originally had a small block and you could feel the weight difference on freeway clover leaf entrances (turns) - had heavier duty springs.
But the torque! Wow ... I could stand on it from a stop, the car would get sideways easy, once you hooked it was a rocket all in by 5500 rpms. Midrange torque was impressive put you in your seat musclecar power.
No replacement for displacement, no small block will ever beat the torque a big block gives you from idle..
Exactly it’s bigger bat further away the ball goes .
Small will keep up but the bigger will definitely travel away faster.
That's why I believe that corvettes really shouldn't be big block cars, unless for pure drag racing. The advance suspension from the factory was set up for lemas style racing not drag racing. A big block will be heavy around the corners, while the small block is more balanced. My thing is a 350 small block is similar to a big block in rpm characteristics at 2 thousand rpm to 5 grand, not in torque and horse power but in stroke characteristics. Not scientific measurements, but natural engine functionality. The 454 has better power/torque under 2 grand and up to 5 grand. But the small block 350 can rev out more.
@@JacksoNR26 The SB is going to have to rev out more...beauty of the BB is they can pull 3rd like a lot of sb pull 1-2
I am in the middle of a BB build right now and I have 2 concerns . ground pounding torque and 500hp both can be achieved pretty easily with a BB
Good cam, intake and headers and your at 500. I like nice pistons too. Rev my LS5 to 6500. Some valve spring issues occasionally with missed shifts.
Use a nice roller cam, you’ll never go back
409 was a wicked bb but are so hard to find an original now days. The first one I ever seen was in a 64 and a half impala. The heads are what really caught my attention. They were built in a W shape, which i thought was really cool. Wasn't until I got older that I realized how cool and rare they really are.
I put a Doug Herbert built 454 in my 57 Chevy I have had several small blocks and no complaints but the torque of a big block no COMPARISON
I’m looking at a 454 for my 55 Chevy but have been tempted to go LS. Any thoughts?
@@theylive2749 I'm old school love the carbs and valve covers just build it the way you like it you'll be satisfied
@@theylive2749 ls i just going to feel like another small block
Start with the 454 youre leagues ahead. Kids talk about the ls like its magic or something
Know of a few head/cam 6.0s barely running 13s and hot under the collar about it.
If I was concerned about weight I wouldn’t have gotten a big block lol
Like 200lbs makes a fkn difference. Thats like sayin you could run faster if they cut your balls off.
@@funkmaster2258 Yeah but that 200 lb difference is negated by the superior power difference a BB provides.
@@extremedrivr thats kinda my point. And if weight is such an issue lose ot someplace else.
@@funkmaster2258 It's only 110lbs. All iron BBC 685 vs SBC 575 an iron LS with aluminum heads around 500lbs, LSX aluminum heads 570lbs all aluminum LS around 400lbs. As to how much the weight matters it's about about power to weight so you need values to determine that.
@@Dayandcounting yea see i cant use sarcasm. Look if you double the weight you need 4x as much power to accelerate at the same rate but no 200 lbs isnt sht. I dont for the life of me understand what makes people think this is any kind of real question. Are people really that dumb ? There is no question more power is better. You can build to whatever hp you want , that is easy. Whats hard is traction. The extra weight may actually help you if you have a 4 link set up properly . Conversely if its not drag , if its a road course , the weight can kill you if it exceeds what suspension and braking can handle. There are alot of courses where acceleration pays off more than top end. Because its fkn hard to turn 110 degrees at 200 mph. There is no 1 answer. Its dependant on the track. As bad as formula 1 cars are they dont pull 6s just like a chevy 2 isnt going to handle like indy.
I absolutely love the in depth high quality break downs! Keep up the awesome content
You are also incorrect about the 427, it has the same stroke as the 396 (3.76), and the same bore as the 454 (4.25).
It is correct, for the 06-13 LS7 🤪
I have owned equal chevy 2500hd trucks. One with a 6.0/4l80e and one with an 8.1/allison. The 8.1 absolutely pulls trailers better and does it at half the rpms of the 6.0 small block. I like the feel of the big block better
Heck yeah, that TORQUE bro..
What is real world MPG numbers? I'm trying ti decide what to put in my 1st gen /colorado dd
@@jeepinspencemy dad had a silverado 8.1 that got 15 mpg on the highway under no load
Never saw the need for any muscle car with more than 450 HP if it’s never going to see a race track. Small block is definitely the way to go for the weekend driver.
My 55 Chevy has 452 hp with a 383 and its silly powerful, silly
Meh, I had a 509 casting 400 small block. I bored it .030 over and stuffed astroker crank in her and made a 434 stroker with as much aluminum on top as possible. The only thing that was iron was the block.
That small block spanked 427's and 454 equipped cars all day. It was in a 68 z/28 Camaro with a M21 close ratio muncie and 12 bolt 373 posi. The 302 was put away for safe keeping but the muncie and 12 bolt was used.
Gobs of torque and I will never go 383 not when one has already had 434.
I completely agree
I always appreciated the abundance of aftermarket goodies available for the small block back in the day. But you can get pretty much anything now and I gotta say....I'm always impressed when I see those big ass heads.
Concerned about BB nose weight? Moving the battery from in front of the front wheels to the trunk it the same weight transfer as moving the engine back 10"
No way, a 40 pound difference does that much? Do you know what that would be like if done to a car with a small block?
@@trashbandit2449 I guess moving the engine backwards does that little (concerning the center of gravity).
@@trashbandit2449its easy to check, measure the height of the front and rear of the car at the bumper, pull the battery out and put it in the trunk.
Had s couple esrly 70"s Camaro back in the day. I got one down to 3050 lbs with a 50/50 weight split. Lowered with g 50 15s on rally sport wheels. I was 2 mph faster on the skid pad and 2 10ths quicker on a slalom course than my buds 84 vett
@@blackbirdxx928 wow that's crazy, especially for such a front heavy car
Bbc>Sbc
I was always a small block guy. Loved 327s and 350s. Wanted a 327/M21 4 speed ‘68 Chevelle.............until I bought a hopped up big block Chevelle. Yeah, it’s only a 396. But, the smile factor and the respect from the folks that lived during that time are priceless. I’ll probably ditch the TH400 in favor of a 5 speed someday. Right now, it’s just too much fun driving that time machine.
Hell yeah man, that TORQUE off the line wins hearts all the time..
My 396 in a 69 chevelle was built by a known company and it would take 7,000 rpms all day , 4,500 stall , nitrous , 456 gear , latter bars , Hurst slap shift , everything balanced all the way the the rear end . I was smart enough to sell it because I liked the Buds back then. I have a brain now and would love to have it back.
These days, for anything streetable/daily driver, SBC all the way, save for something extreme like a tow rig. What with widely available stroker kits, roller cams and AL heads and intakes, it's easy to get big streetable power in a shocking small and light package.
Yes but you still need more RPM to make that power. Don't get me wrong, Small Blocks are powerful but its Big Blocks where the true power lies because you can make more with less RPM.
@@extremedrivr yes to both, big block is best for towing n pushing weight, small block for daily driving n saving money on gas..lol But i prefer big blocks no matter what..
Back in around 1970, a friend and I put a 426 HEMI in his 1967 bright apple green Dodge Van. We rode it to school in North Miami, Florida and afterword for crusin, drag raceing and just fun. He later bought a 1966 yellow HEMI Charger. Joy I always had 440 magnums in my multiple MOPARS. Love big blocks. However. My 2004 Z06 Commemorative Corvette has a small block, LS6 that is the best of them all. Over 130,000 miles on it and still runs like new and no leaks. I love V8s
I like the medium block, you get a good balance of the two
Oh yea? Lol
The petite block is good too :)
LMAO
Funny as hell!!!
Basically an LS
I have a 2000 GMC C3500HD with a 454 Vortec. I bought it 3 years ago. It was a retired government truck sold at auction and it had only 43,000 original miles on it. Sadly, 2000 was the last year for the 454 but it was the first year for 4 wheel disc brakes. I love that truck.
Great info, I did not realize that the big blocks came with such a large stroke. Superior torque is a huge plus.
For a bunch of Chevy guys, a $5,000 aftermarket engine block sounds expensive.
But a couple of years ago Matt Farrah (Smoking Tire) bought an air-cooled 911 from the '80s, and the engine was puffing a bit of smoke. Soooo, he takes it down to the local Porsche guru _who charges him $18,000 for a basic ring and valve job_ .
That did include engine R&R, which takes a Porsche mechanic maybe two hours total for combined removal and replacement. Of course, there was engine teardown and re-assembly. But again, that's easy; it doesn't even have a cooling system to deal with and he can just plop it down on a bench. It wasn't bored, the pistons _were_ re-used, and the cam wasn't replaced -- just new rings, valves, and guides, and they must also have done the crank bearings and surely they honed the cylinders. No machining work at all. Astonishing.
There is _nothing_ special about an air-cooled Porsche engine. But the same job on a SBC (with two more cylinders) would be something like $400 for good parts, including a fresh timing chain and gears, and let's say labor is $2,500, so $2,900 total. That hardly even makes sense, because for around $4,000 you could have the thing fully rebuilt with fresh bores and new pistons -- the works. Even if I'm low by $1,000, there is still no comparison.
Just saying...
You do a fantastic job explaining all of this. You GOTTA do a full BIG BLOCK video!!!!!
This is about 70% accurate.
Yeah it definitely has a few errors. The 454 lived on way past 1975. The small block wasn't replaced by the ls family of engines. The opti spark Lt style engine came before the Ls. I'm only 2 minutes into the video and found these errors.
@Donalld Allhands yeah I have a 94 Silverado with a 454.
True, I own a suburban that has a 454 and it’s from 92 almost 20 years newer than 75.
A Ford guy knows a small block will make way more than 360hp. It looked like he had block integrity power listed for the big block and the 70 Z28 motor advertised output for the small block. However I give em a pass. It's great to see young guns keeping the old stuff alive. The more he studies the more he'll learn.
Yea my fleetwood bounder is a 98 and it has a 454
One of my favorite motors you don't hear much of, to me it's the best of both worlds, the small block 400 with a 350 crank, let the fun begin 👍
They have thin cast walls on the Pistons so they end up distorting at high horsepower and destroy the engines and they constantly have overheating issues-FACT
@@jamescaban7710 Because of their large, 4 1/8" standard bore, 400s have siamesed center cylinders, not thin wall casings. I've built many of them over the years and never had any overheating problems. I have 406s in 3 of my vehicles right now-my 74 Camaro, 70 Malibu and 78 K25. Overheating is no more common with a 400 than any other small block. As with any old block, it they should be sonic checked before any machine work takes place.
On the other hand, I don't know why anyone would want to de-stroke an engine like the op says. Running a 350 crank in a 400 block not only reduces engine displacement to around 372", it's also not just a drop in swap. These days, you can buy 383 "stroker" kits to drop a 3 3/4" crank into a 350 block without turning the mains but, I've yet to see a 3.48" crank that has the 2.65" 400 journal size. Bearing spacers are available to do it but, as I said, I don't know why anyone would.
@@MikeBrown-ii3pt Mike you are obviously quite intelligent and can make it happen the general public f**** that all up and this isn't the norm good work my friend...
@@jamescaban7710How many 400's have you owned that destroyed themselves or overheated? Before the LS motor came out I used 400 small blocks in a lot of my street hot rods, my stock car, and my pickup that I towed my race car with. I still have the pickup and that 400 has over 200 thousand on it and still runs great. The 400's I used in my stock cars had incredible torque for pulling the car up off the corner and I never had to turn them over 5500 RPM. And the street 400's when I put them in a Chevelle or Nova body was good for 12-second quarter-mile times. I never broke any of my 400's, and I never had any overheating problems. The old wife's tale about overheating problems comes from people trying to run a 400 with too small of a radiator and or a bad clutch fan, or they used different heads without drilling out the steam holes. Chevrolet used the 400 in everything from Monte Carlos and Impalas, to trucks and Blazers with no overheating problems when using the factory cooling system. I have built many 400's for myself and others and they have been a great motor for everything I have used them for.
small block heads are fkt design..chev floged the 350 to death.they should of made a 350 big block,better design,
Big Block All Day Torque is where it’s at 😎
Biggest problem I have ever concurred with a big block Chevy motor is their owner thought they were now GOD
That's right....TORQUE💪
BIG BLOCK HISTORY PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
348, 409, 427, 366, 427 TD, 454, Vortec, and then whatever the new LT and LS are
Hell yeah!!!
Nobody heard of the gm 351 v6 have they
This isn't Block history month.
I guess the biggest critical difference is that the Big Blocks were made for racing and the small blocks were made to fit in all their vehicles-FACT
I’ve built a few of both. Big block all the way. My favourite was an LS5 I built in a 69 chev pick up. Smoke rear tires at any speed below 45kph with an automatic. Fun
45 Kommunisms Per Hour? What is that in Freedom? ; )
@@jesseowens1492 28 mph
@@jesseowens1492 LOL!! I too prefer mph but most of the world uses kph, too funny comment tho, too funny..
Good job on the charts , great info for someone like me who can't remember every dimension of every block and head
I blew up my 350 on my nova so I ended up finding a big block...yes it cost way more ..I'm still in progress due funds..but hope one day she would be running good..and then ill go to aluminum heads....great video by the way
I honestly feel like this channel is going to blow up soon! Really informative and detailed
Most people I have ever known that owned a big block it was on a stand in their garage. Their story of it usually included the short time it was in their car where they quickly broke something ( something expensive ) and they were running a small block in their car since then.
Then there was the guy in car club I was in that had 57 Chevy and he put his big block in whereupon my friend blew it off the road three times in a row with his 350 so he took it home and pulled it out.
@@michaelszczys8316 Try comparing apples to apples.
yes, engine weight is definitely a consideration, especially if you are looking for a pro touring setup, wanting to track (curcuit/round course) the car. every pounds less makes a noticeable difference in handling and cornering, especialy if you are approaching and exploring limits in spirited or competitive driving/racing. (either the limits of the driver and his skills or the physical ones of the vehicle )
anyways, the amount of sheer unlimited choices that are offered in America, by the big manufacturers oem, through their crates, or the countless custom shops and independent engine builders is unparalleled in the world. truly exceptional and make every builder and car and performance enthusiast happy, whatever you are looking for, whatever your want and whatever the project, you will be served and will find the perfect fit and solution. greetings from germany.
Stroke a 454 to 496ci 10.5:1 comp and run AFR aluminum oval port heads. stick a comp cam 280-290 hyd roller cam in it. 600 hp and 650 torque all day long. Have a good trans though cause that rat engine is gonna pull hard
Dad had a 76 GMC Suburban when I was 16. I loved it! You could use your big toe and just poke the bottom of the pedal towards the carpet and would squall the tires and take off! I only used the whole pedal if the stoplight to stoplight runs got too close! 😉
How to make a big block as light as a small block? CADILLAC 500!
I was thinking 68-70 472, or 500 with 472 or 425 heads, but yeah. They all came with forged cranks too. A simple intake manifold change to aluminum and weld on flanges for bbc headers, recurve the distributor, there ya go. They are about bomb proof as long as there's a couple quarts of some kinda oil in them. Cheaper than most builds too
@@assymcgee2835 the 500 is a stroked 472. Not a good idea to put the 425 heads on a 472 or 500. The bore is way too small. Picture 305 heads on a 350. The only thing the 425 shares with the 472 is the stroke of 4.06 inches. The 425 vote is 4.08 inches. The 472 and 500 both have a 4.3 inch bore.
@@markdubois4882 its been done, and alot of guys, me included, run 305 ho heads on mild 350s. I think a few if the cadillac engine builder sites recommend the 425 heads also, but you gotta run 100+ octane
572
@@shadowopsairman1583 a 572 is just a punched out 454.
The caddy 500 is only 60# more than a 350 SBC.
I had a 1970 Chevelle in High School with a small block 400. As I got older I built a 454 with iron heads and block and replaced the 400. Even with the heavier front springs the car never drove and handled as well. That is why I went LS. After I upgraded to the driveline I decided to swap in an LS2 instead of the big block. I actually sold the car about 8 years ago and am looking to build another car. It just depends on how you plan on using the car. My choice at this point would be a big block with aluminum heads and a sniper EFI.
The LS option is great but the big block is really cool. The small block 400 was no slouch either. If you plan to do the power tour or drive long distances I think the LS would be the best bet.
Hard to beat a big block!!!! 💪💪💪💪
For me and with today's tech Small Blocks rule the world. We work with Honda "Small Block" in the Honda V6 J-Series engines. Today's motors can handle so much power but big block still has that nostalgia. If you want power, weight savings and overall speed, strap some Turbs to the small block and you probably are right at the big block size with space in mind but also making more power and that TQ. Our little 3.2 V6 motor made 560/464 on 8psi of boost..that's 175WHP (NOT CRANK..so 198-200hp per liter crank?) per liter on a stock block....and 8psi is nothing in boost amount
With that said, aint nothing like a Big Block with a 108 Cam chop 🤗
5500 had a new 68 chevelle 396 375 hp saw 7000 rpm all the time completely stock
Yeah the l88/zl1 472 loved 7200rpm all day long
I scored a 69 Chevelle 375 HP in 1978..rebuilt it with stock cam .30 overbore...in a 74 Camaro ran 12.20 ETs..sold the car and installed it in a lightweight 57 chevy and ran 10:90s..its in my 56 150 utility sedan today with a six speed and 69 Chevelle 12 bolt..bought the car in 1981 with a 283" that an auto shop installed after buying it at auction from Pacific Bell..they serviced it since new..tried to buy it in 66 but they wouldn't sell..LOL
That's my story and I'm sticking to it!
Been idle for 13 years and being gone over to live in Las Vegas heat...
Great info... Won a bunch of beers on this information. Thanks!
My old bosses explanation is the best. Two guys and two 44 gallon drum oils. Small block guy hugs it to lift it while big block guy simply lifts it up by one hand.
Plain simple goodbye
I
My daddy (35 you marine mechanic), told me to buy a stock L78 396 for my '55 instead of my buddies built 331 small block (claiming 400hp in 1975). He was correct-w/headers,and a double pumper, more torque- it was a way more reliable driver
There is no substitute for Cubic Inches……. In torque we trust 💪🏻💪🏻💪🏻
We'd better enjoy it while we can.
Thanks I needed that !
I remember contrasting 400 big block
Chevy pick up. 1971
And
Chevy 400 small block
Chevy caprice
No comparison.
Had 366 big blocks in trucks
Had 427 in trucks
Had 350 small block in one truck
My dad had 454 in his pick up
And
455 in his Buick limited
Still own a 455 Buick. 1974 Electra
Two uncles had 350 small blocks in their pick ups. And everyone then had a 350 small block somewhere in their family
Your video goes to show how little I actually knew about all those engines
I knew the big block had different performance characteristics but I didn’t know about why they put both in corvettes at different times
Your point about steering and handling I get from Motorcycles. 650 vstrom vs 1000 v storm ( Suzukis ). 2 out of 3 go for smaller displacement in that bike because of weight …. My opinion
Love peoples comments
Especially about straight line power
No one cares about handling going straight down the road
Raw oomph only
I have also owned a couple Lexus LS cars. A 400 and a 430. They own that aluminum block and because of this video now I know why
I think the block strength for the small blocks is a little off. If you’re just referring to the block, not the crank or other factory components. I had a 408 that used a 1971 400 block that made a little over 600 hp. Still had factory caps and main bolts and frequently saw 7,000+ rpm. Good video though, liked the weight comparisons for sure.
Would like to know more
@@DRG00DandS3XY what would you like to know?
@@brandon_419 heads, intake, carb, cam, valve diameter...
@@DRG00DandS3XY it had dart pro 1 227 cnc heads with minor port/chamber work and 2.08 valves, dart single plane 4150 intake, quick fuel 950 carb, mahle power pack pistons with a 4cc dome that put the compression at 12.5:1, and a .670/.630 264°/272° @ .050 cam.
One day I will have my square body with a crate 454, my favorite engine out there!
I was pouring over these specs when I was a teenager in the early 80s. I won't nitpick any of your errors because nobody's perfect. I've grown to appreciate the LS engine, but I almost think it's too perfect. I still like some of the quirks of the old engines.
The ls engine is far from perfect, n i beat a 5.3 swapped single cab Silverado in my stock P71 with my 4.6L 2v..lol But i do like the LS7, dayum, time sure does fly..
I started out with a 383 Chevy and the oil pump broke in two in hi gear at the track. Now I use BBC oil pumps in my SBC engines. Then 400 SBC At 13.1 compression and I burned up a few of those 4 bolt blocks with NOS at the drag strip. A 250 shot. They ran great for A little while. Next I got a 427 or 435 .040 over truck tall deck and I put Pop up pistons and H beam rods and 68 Corvette 3x2 cast oval port head's and a team G with a 750 DP Holley and 1 7/8 inch headers and a 3800 ATI stall turbo 350 and 4.10 gear .550 solid Cam at 108 and A gear drive. Ran it for 15 years and won a championship with it. Then I pulled it out and stroked it to 525 and changed it to a 4.56 gear. Ran great for a few years 11.0 1/4 Mile out of the boxes. Then I decided to go back to the street and I broke roller rockers in short order and I went to shaft rockers for about 500 dollars after machine work and bushings to remove the roller bearings that fail on BBC after a few miles with a solid roller cam. That and the 1050 Holley put me at about 10 K into the 525 motor. Everything was forged steel and Diamond Pistons 12 to 1 cr. 121 CC head's. Open Square Port aluminum. 320 runner's Big intake. I felt pretty good but I wanted it to run cooler on the street so I got a rollerized 2800 torque converter and the builder put a heli coil in one of the bolt holes and painted it black so I didn't see it. It was running great for about a month and I was going home and I stopped and I took off and I shifted it at 5000 RPM and when I hit 3rd. Gear or high I Heard a Pop and it started shaking like crazy and I let out and I was two blocks from home and I pulled the engine out and then I saw the Heli coil still on the bolt with locktite and I said what in the hell is that Heli coil doing there ? . They refunded me for the torque converter but I lost my block and transmission in the process. So I decided to replace the transmission and build a 355 four bolt main with Pop up pistons and A solid Cam. I put it in the car and my old ATI stall converter and it ran okay but it was nothing compared to the 525 that I took out. And I am serious about it ran great ! . Well I drove it to a few car shows and around town last summer and it was a good little 355 SBC but it was not a 400 SBC or 427 BBC. And I had a 454 once for a few months before I stroked The 427/435 to 525 but it was not consistent enough for me and I sold it. Well everything said and done I decided that a 355 SBC is not working for me and I just put another 454 in the car. I have a 89 formula 350 Firebird as a daily driver and I like the 350 in that car but in my race car I have to have at least a 454 engine. I trashed a nice 427/435 and A 525 using that same block, building a street BBC stroker is expensive if you want a 11 second engine that is going to stay together. I Did it and I was fooled by a hidden Heli coil in a New torque converter. Big blocks Are not very forgiving if something goes wrong. The crankshaft was so hard that when the torque converter bolt came out it flexed the front main bearing in the block and stacked the two bearings and cut out the block about a 1/8 of a inch. It was a 13 inch Turbo 400 torque converter and a little 6 inch racing front Harmonic dampener. The Torque converter was twice the size of the harmonic balancer so it lost the battle. Everything in the transmission was bent. The engine was internally balanced with Mallory welded in place. I was only at 5000 RPM when it happened. I used to race as A 427 at 6200 shifts. 427 BBC is a friendly engine if you can keep the pushrods and rocker arms together. I used 7/16 inch molley pushrods and Roller rockers but not on the street. It was a track only car back then. On the street I kept having roller rockers arm's failing on my solid Cam BBC. I'd break them in half and I'd knock out the bearings. I ended up with stainless steel adjustable with shafts and steel bushings. I made a set for 500 dollars but they cost 1500 to 2500 dollars for a set of them normally. A 400 SBC is the cheapest HP in my opinion. But real power is A Big block . My 350 formula eats a lot of gas for the engine size but it handles great so I don't mind. I don't think that My 454 with the 4.56 is going to be any harder on gas than the 350 with the 3.31 gear to be honest under normal cruise driving. My 525 was getting around 10 or more mpg on the street with a 1050 dominator on it. Probably around 12 MPG. A 10 gallon fuel cell went around 100 miles before I stopped for gas. Of course I added a little bit of toluene for octane purposes. And A little mystery oil in that. I was over 11 to 1 actual compression on the street. Everything was a little bit cheaper back then but the principle is still the same.
The etymology of calling them rat motors according to either a Hot Rod or Car Craft magazine I read many years ago: Chrysler's hemi was known as the elephant, and when people began doing well with small block Chevrolets it was "The mouse that scared the elephant", so they got the nickname of the mouse motor. Then the big block came along, so the mouse motor's big brother was nicknamed the rat.
Just received my LS engine poster. Getting my frame tomorrow. Have it hung by Friday. Awesome
Very cool, thanks for supporting the channel. I have mine up in my garage. : )
Z11 was a 409. The aluminum Mk IV big block was the ZL1.
You may want to check the weight savings between the iron exhaust manifolds and mid length headers. It should be closer to 30 lb.
Z11 was a 427, but still a W style engine. Really cool engine, shame so few were made.
I appreciate that he talks about the engine dimensions, now at least I know the roughly size about a small block crate engine will be around where
Ford guy says “Great video mate “!
Thank you very much
All the best
👍🇦🇺
Ford engines have so many varieties
@@SnoopysVet
Haha! Sadly no!
Clevo Windsor flathead🤔 oh yeah 🧐FE!
When you look at al the incarnations of the Chev small and big block there’s just no boundaries!
😐
I’m still a Ford guy though 😀
Yeah !!! The Ford guys say !!! Hey Chevy BOYS what happened in the 1963 Daytona 500??? The mystery Motor Died!!! The Ford FE 427 took the top 5 positions at the end. Then Ford went on to take on the world!!! And kicked ass there too!
And aussies lean strongly to small blocks
What are the older motor home 454 engines like to put into a nova? Are they usable or are they just gas burning truck engines with low power?
i had an older rv with one of those. i wanted to put that motor in my 87 cutlass. not sure if they have 4 bolt mains or not, which could be a major weakpoint. It would definitely sound good though.
I've always liked small blocks for cars and always had big blocks in trucks.
I would agree, Thats a pretty good strategy!
@@AutoGuild Big Blocks make more power with less RPM though so I prefer BB over SB for that reason alone.
Small block V8s are cool sure.
I have one in my modern 99 Jeep GC Limited but Big Blocks are where all the raw power is found.
The eight of the big block does not bother me at all bc I have 500+foot pouns of torque of idle
Big blocks make off idle torque. Right off idle you could have stock 350-400 ft-lbs of torque sometimes double what small small blocks offer. The issue with big block cars that always matters is traction.
But I have a modded L82 1976 4 speed with a small over driven blower reworked 2.02 heads 9.1 compression 800cfm vac carb blowers cam roller rockers hi volume oil pump clevite 77 bearings big tube hooker headers and dual 3 inch exhaust, variable lift and duration valve system ,which gives much less lift at below 3000 rpm = car act like big block on steroids super flat torque curve from 1000 to 5500 rpm
@@nickking1510 Rhoads lifters?
Im a huge Ford guy, but always admired a nnd loved the 327s...great motor...
My favorite chevy engines were the 283 and the 454. I had vehicles in both sizes.
You can buy a pair of 32V heads for the small block.
LoL. I was going to post your channel reads just like the books I read back in the day, now I see why. Great content!
Thats the L88 on the left there, a full on, no holds barred racing motor...
This video has been done before. Maybe not on UA-cam but in every car magazine since the beginning of time!
Don't get me wrong, this was a great refresher! Have a like and a sub, sir 👍
This is the BEST SBC v BBC comparison I have seen. Definitely keeping for future references.
But I like my 454 in my 69 chevelle lol. I care a bit about the weight, but when I bought it, it came with the 454, and it had already been upgraded with brakes, wheels, headers, etc. I like the way it feels and handles right now so I'm keeping the big block.
Keep it that way, you'll regret the torque you lose by going with a sb..
@@P71ScrewHead lol, I bored and stroked her out to a 508 and threw on a 8-71 supercharger. The big block is staying
@@brycehill6678 Heck yeah man, oh the eargasms that engine must give..
Why are the RPM specs on these chevy engines so low?
The biggest selling point over All other engines were the high rev capabilities.
64 biscayne 409 4spd shifted at 7400 rpm all day long.
The 327 didn't turn on til 4000 rpm and shifted at 8500.
If you don't turn the rpm up you might as well have a 6cyl.
The 402 was called a 396 in the 70-72 chevelle, was called a 400 in the full size chevys, and was called the 402 in the pickups.
400 is a small block, the 396/402 was never known as a 400, ever.
@@mr.e1220 the 400 small block was called the Turbo Fire 400, the 402 big block was marketed as the Turbo Jet 400. So yes the 400 was offered in both small block and big block.
@@matthewsherman1450 if that is what marketing called them, it sure is misleading. I guess u are correct in a marketing sense. But a 402 is a 402...big block. A 400 small block cannot ever be called a 402, so marketing made a huge error. That's probably why that knowledge is not remembered among many, it is bad marketing. Also, a 402 was not just in trucks, many full sized Chevies had a 402, including Monte Carlo.
so what is the different from a 68 396 and a 70 402 nothing
@@jeffrey4547 402 is a 396 bored .030 over.
I own a 96 Caprice with the LT1 which is a 5.7L 350 Small Block and I LOVE it.
Planning on building it for 6-900 WHP though it's just a guess until I can put her on a dyno
The redline of the big and small blocks are way off!
Very inaccurate information!
The redlines and characteristic valve train speed are way off.
You had to replace the valve springs more often, but the L88 would go to 7400 rpm easily.
The heads in the side by side pic at 05:00 are both BBC. The difference is between 'closed' and 'open' style combustion chambers.
Ah, you are right, good catch. I accidentally used the wrong image when editing. Ill note it in the comments. : (
I stand corrected!!!!! I recall my statement of calling this post BS. Forgive me for my ignorance of Chevy engines. I have researched the bore of several of these engines and I was wrong. I have always been a Ford guy and have built several ford engines but never a GM. This is not an excuse but has been my perception.
I dont care about weight that much but i love being able to run 700hp n/a all day long on e70
Sorry is that a big or small block?
@@henrymccarty8014 496bbc
@@williamking8684 sorry is that a small on or big block I font knoe I'm bearly learning
@@henrymccarty8014 i said its 496bbc
@@henrymccarty8014 its a 496ci or 8.1L, which would be considered a big block
Would like to see if you have any thoughts on performance mods for the old Mustang 6 cylinder engines, when I was a kid and vintage Stang's were dirt cheap, my best friends dad bought him a 64 1/2 with a 6 cylinder for a project car. The word was milling the head to raise compression and some other mods to gain performance, they called it the "Ferrari" mod... We were going to strip every ounce of weight we could to turn it into a backroad burner. The only rules dad imposed were "respect my tools, keep the shop clean, and don't kill yourselves". He meant it to be a learning experience, and it was.
ET's Tell the real story. Power to weight and drivability. Been looking into the LS market like them 6 bolt mains.
Agreed and you can make a 454 LS and have the best of both worlds.
I have a 283 small block pre 64 engine that is bored .40 thousands over with 350 heads and it is a very good engine for my 1966 Chevrolet. What do you think about it?
So let me get this straight you claim to have a 68 Camaro but you don't even know what a zl1 is??? You literally called it a z11😂 and you want to LS swap it for braking
I'd think the better choice would be to upgrade the brakes to get that better brake performance.
There was a 427 z11 big block w engine based off the big block 409
"you don't want to have to pull engines to change plugs"
Small blocks for life
I have a 67 Cougar 390 GT. I love the fact that its a Big Block. You just cant beat that sound of the thump of a mild cam and good exhaust pumping out back. A small block is no comparison. I swapped out the intake for an aluminum version. Installed an aluminum water pump. Jba tri y stainless race headers. Installed a Mini starter. Moved the battery out back. Installed an aluminum radiator with electric fan. All this made the 390 only 50 pounds heavier than if a 302 was in the engine bay.
I have a 4.6 liter on my 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis so it would be good to see the same comparison on the Ford big block and small block. The 4.6 Liter is a 281 cubic inch.
Our Panther's 2v is a hell of a torquey engine for how small it is, there's a reason why cops n taxis used them for so long in 4k lbs cars.. i love the 2v, great lil engine..
only ford b/s blocks, are the 385 series, 302. 351. 460. this, is how chev, should of built engines. not 2 completly different types. a chev 454 needs more speed shop, than a 460, to have 7hp more..ill keep my ford truck engines. chev dont rev, cos of the press in studs, a 460 will do 7k std..my 351 did 6k. all day,every day..f100. 4x4. funny how chev had canted valves on some bbc, but not small blocks..sht design from '55..never improved it. just floged it to death..money maker..
ps. from what ive seen of the 351w, it might of been going to be a bb. but 70,s killed that.
No comparison to a BB. ONe ride in a healthy one you wont like your 4.6 like you did before
I used to circle burn dirt tracks with my Buick 455 I ran that motor at 6000 to 6500 at the end of every straight. Won almost every race unless I got knocked out. Never turned a bolt on it for four years
Yeah right!! Everyone knows 455 Buick is the king. Those things even see 5k and the bearings are all over the bottom of the pan, cylinder heads like a pencil sharpener hole, Come on man 😂
@@sammendoza7168 Haha! His avatar of a 4wd gives a clue
The big block is for types that think just driving in a straight line is cool. Chances are the small block will make a more livable car.
Lol i risk my life enough at work, im perfectly fine taking turns at like 70, rather than like 150 or whatever speed these little awd cars can push. Just my opinion.
If you like to be able to handle small block is the way
In Chevrolet racing the L88 out performed the ZL1 for long endurance as proven by John Greenwood and others.
Please do the sane for Mopar bb and sb!
I usually don't care about fuel mileage and I usually Drive things that are old enough where space is not an issue.
My 454 revved to 6 grand
All the time. Granted it had a mild cam.
My Dad wound his 455 Olds 442 ('71) out to 6k, especially at top end. He did have to rebuild it 3 times though, in 100k miles. 😂
YES! ALWAYS! Note: Top fuel dragster and THE wasp engine
I have a big block in my 55 chevy. My college professor always said there is no replacement for displacement so bigger is so much better.
Tesla beg to differ
I will never go electric you hippie. Combustion engine's will live forever . when Tesla sales a electric car do they tell the oner that it costs about 20,000 to put a new battery in it
@@patricksaylor6210 the statement about displacement. You can add electric and turbo to replace the displacement. Supercar now used hybrid setup.
Show me a Tesla car with a 11,000 house power electric motor
@@patricksaylor6210 not tesla but it can be done. There's even 2000hp.
ua-cam.com/video/xS4q-r3ybdY/v-deo.html
Not concerned about big block weight but aluminum heads/intake is a must for me in a muscle car
both have their strong points, but excluding the LS-6, the small-block 70-Chevelle outran the big-block Chevelles
FACTS
For real ???? How with the massive torque advantage of the big block
@@bilbobaggins4710 it's because of a short stroke so therefore small blocks would wrap up faster than Big Blocks which gave them the advantage on quarter mile runs back then. Big Blocks had the advantage on half mile
@@ryanpoloski4322 but et. Is torque based...I'll bet on a car with 500ftlbs @ 4500RPM against a small block with 500hp @6000 RPM any day of the week
@@bilbobaggins4710 I'll bet on a small block on 1/4 mile any day of the week. That's because I've seen it firsthand. I've seen small blocks spin 9000 RPM all day long and absolutely destroy Big Blocks quarter mile. Half mile I would bet on the big block.
I remain convinced that the best V8 America has ever made is the 289 cid. Studebaker unit. That will do just about ANYTHING you ask it to and more!