440 Source Heads or 440 Edelbrock Heads??

[Chryco Psycho]

Depends who does the porting & how well it is done I guess , I used to charge $500 to port iron heads & got great #s , a lot of people just screw up the heads porting them

[hemiken]

That was my original plan and then I started getting advice that the pistons are too short, the stroke too 'wide' making the pistons prone to rocking in the bore.  Since my whole point to building the 383 vs a larger 440 is that its the original motor, and I'm not sure the extra wear & tear on the motor with the longer stroke is worth it.  Plus, folks like Chryco & others here strongly recommend the longer rod length of the original 440 vs the shorter rods in a 496.   In my reading there seems to be some different points of view on rod length, with most agreeing the longer rods work better on a street motor.  The stock 3.75" 440 crank only yields 431 cubes in the 383 so that's why I'm leaning towards the 3.9" stroke crank with rods only slightly shorter than std. 440's used in Muscle Motors 450 c.i. kit.  I already have an original Direct Connection 383 6 Pack intake & mechanical carbs so I just have to decide and go for it.  I actually called a local speed shop about the build this morning, and once again was told building the 383 was a waste of money & time since its 'only' a 383 and not really worth saving.....this even after explaining I'd had the car & original motor for the last 40 years...

Later, Jim

Later, Jim

Hey Jim,

Nothing wrong with using a 383 as your base to build from buddy. I myself will build my engine from a 383 out to a 496. It is a good idea to use the linger rod for better rod ratio, it is not a problem if the rings go in to the pin recess, the pistons will come with a support ring to even out the load, the only time i would not suggest to go with a piston that has the ring groove interfer with the pin recess, is if the engine is getting smashed by a heap of Nitrous Oxide when racing, obviously the bigger the NOS kit, the greater the risk. If you are just want a tough engine that has size, go for any of the combinations to suite your 383 block, anything from the 438 all the way to the 496, but do not skimp on the rod length buddy.

[hemiken]

Chryco,

Whats the difference in $$$ with porting the iron as opposed to buying Stealth alloys??

Mozz!

Mozz,

Do yourself a favour and get the stealth buddy. You are not thinking about the fact that the heads you have will have to be stripped, cleaned, hot tanked, ported, maybe harden seats, plus valve guides which in turn will warant new valves, unless you do use your old ones. The porting can go crazy with hours and hours of porting, spend the money on porting a set of stealth heads here in OZ and you will be in front straight away buddy. Alluminium is much quicker and easier to port than iron heads, as long as you know what you are doing with the correct burrs of course.

[momack55]

Yeah Kenny I get it!!  Just throwin it out there!!

I haven't touched this stuff for 40 years!  Since I ported the head on my FX Holden!  Then rebuilt my flathead 239 Twin Spinner Fraud!!  This is my first real rebuild since about '85 with my 383 '71 Phoenix (Fury to our Nth American friends).  I rebuilt my first engine with my dad in a '37 Ford sedan back in '68!!  Since then it has been sporadic to say the least!  Its just good to refresh the knowledge and get input!!  Its all about tapping the knowhow of anyone with the goods!!
Thanks guys!!   I know its gonna be Stealth and 3" pipes!!

Mozz in Oz!! 

[hemiken]

Here to help buddy Good thinking

[73restomod]

I would go with the Stealth Heads all day. Do a bowl blend and gasket match, clean up the rest of the port, and the flow will be on par or better than the Edlebrocks. I flowed them before and after I did just the bowl blend. Had 262CFM at .550 out of the box, 288 cfm at .550 after. I did some more work on the short side radius, the bowl roof, the pushrod pinch, gasket match, and a general clean up. Ended up with 301 CFM at .550 lift. I then sent them to my machinist and he plunge cut them to deshroud the valves, shaved them .010, and checked the valve guides (some of them were really tight). Overall, I spent less than the Edlebrocks and got a little extra flow too boot. Aluminum is so nice to port it goes really quick even with sanding rolls, if you have carbide bits BE GENTLE lol. They will absolutely shred aluminum. It took me one full weekend to do the pair. Aluminum heads are so much nicer to work with.