Technical 55 chev 3100 with 327

The edelbrock air gap intake is the one I'd use with those heads.

 

I like the holley street dominator, or c4b for my 327s.

 

Double humps and double Carter's for me, or you could get a 3 deuce intake.
Nice truck by the way.

 

Carl
Volumes of valuable info in just a couple sentences above.
If you are more prone to do your purchases on that auction site any of these intakes will be readily available and will work great, but keep in mind any of the GM issued ones won't be priced for the budget minded.
Years ago I had a 283 with a factory cast iron intake and a Holley adapter and it ran great.
Still, I would research the component specs for the 327/350 HP engine, these were some of the most copied small blocks and will make a great engine for your truck.
A rear end with gears in the 3.73 range is what this engine likes, especially with a 4 speed.

 

A few posts back, you said you had a pair of "single hump" heads. You have't completed your profile, so we don't know where you are. But, I'm guessing Canada, since single hump Canadian heads are the equivalent of our Power Pack heads. For a street truck, I think those heads would be fine. You may even wind up with a little more CR due to slightly smaller chambers than double hump heads would have; 60 cc chambers compared to 64 cc chambers. You probably have flat top, 4 valve relief pistons, so you'll have 9.5:1 or so CR. Smaller ports and valves are good for more velocity, and lower range torque; what you want in a truck. A 250-300 HP 327 will be fine, especially with the 3.90 rear end gearing your truck probably has.Use whatever factory 4 barrel, cast iron manifold you have handy, and whatever carburetor fits it. IF you have an aftermarket 180 degree type manifold, that would be fine also. Stay away from the single plane intakes. I had a 250 HP 327 in an OT Nova with 3.08 rear end gears and a TH350; very responsive, and did't kill me with lousy gas mileage; all I did more than a stock rebuild was an RV type cam, an HEI distributor, and dual exhaust. It flat towed my 56 Chevrolet Bracket Car just fine, and later my FED on a single axle open trailer. If you get carried away with your build, and don't match parts to your application/needs, you'll be disappointed. JMO.
I am Butch/56sedandelivery.

 

nice truck with what ever you put in it.

 

I think something like the Edelbrock Performer makes sense cool Im getting close now thanks for all the help, Im going to pick a cam that is just under .500 lift and work from that.

 

Yes but I ended up worried that I would lack power with a mild cam and those heads and because I found a set of double hump heads 461's I have decided to upgrade the build a bit, My motor shop says no way I will make 350 HP anyway... I sort of am set on the Edelbrock performer intake now I have to pick cam, I was thinking .500 or a bit under Its hard to know if I am getting carried away with my engine build but I do want the truck to have some good power and be fun to drive. Im going to post some photos of it since I got the entire truck sandblasted, will be done in a few days.

 

Why not go with the performer rpm air gap, it's a much better intake than the plain performer ? It's also very versital in keeping up with later upgrades if you decide to go that route.

 

Yes that looks great thank you.

 

• so far I have the camel hump heads 194/150 64cc , LT1 springs (they were on the heads and new)
  
• I might look for a winters hi rise manifold but they look pretty expensive I think I might use the Performer Air Gap instead it looks good.
• probably the Edlelbrock Performer Air Gap intake.

I will put headers on for sure, I have not picked a carb yet.I will use forged pistons also, the block is bored .40 over.
Do you guys think I can make close to 350HP? its not imperative that I have 350, but I just thought it would be a good HP to go for on this, the machine shop says no way he said maybe 275.

I need to pick a cam so talked to these two and tried crane but never got through.
I am talking in all this advise just so you know its not wasted on me.





Comp cams recommended this one

 

Carl
300 hp should easily be achieved and the "151" style cam should work great whether you go with Crane or Comp Cams. The key is getting your distributor set up on a machine, making sure the advance system matches your combination.
BTW my 327/350 horse engine has an NOS Chevy "151" cam and also is .040 over with forged 11-1 TRW pistons. Your current pistons appear to be in the 10-1 compression range and I'd stay with that when you go to forged.
Have your engine guy physically check those "LT-1" springs to make sure they aren't the OEM optional off road springs as they are way too much spring for your engine.

 

Hi Carl,

Start a build thread when you can. I am building a 59 and will be using a 64 small journal 327. It needs to be rebuilt so I will be watching this thread to see how yours turns out. Mine came from the factory with a set of 461 1.94/1.5 camel humps. I will be running an older performer intake (drilled for oil fill tube). I plan for a pretty mild rebuild with a slightly warmed up cam backed by an overdrive.

 

Dart also makes a nice air gap intake. Have one on my 355 and am happy with it. Has the square 4150/4160 bolt pattern.

 

I see

 

Consider EQ 350CH heads.They would be new castings with 64cc chamber, 194 intakes, and 150 exhaust. They are cast with the heat crossover chamber which is great for street use. I believe they have 185 cc intake runners and flow much better than a lot of stockers. You can buy them complete or empty for your machine shop to finish. They are tough to beat right out of the box. They also have the holes in the front for mounting.
As for an intake IMO an air gap open is not for you. I would not use one at all. Good dual plane non air gaps are made for street use. Check Professional Products intakes, their Typhoon is available in square and spread bore. They have worked well for me at a great price.
The HAMB members all have great ideas and share what has worked for them. Camshafts are a science unto themselves and I know what I like and what I would use but I'm an old fashion guy when it comes to 327's and love a couple Chevrolet gave us from the factory. (with a little advance added).. Good luck.

 

Ha ha ha, you are kidding right ? There's been countless dyno articles that show the performer rpm airgap is the go to intake from mild to pretty wild. They also show it to be superior over a Chinese pro comp knock off.

 

For a street engine especially in cold weather you need a intake that has a heat crossover. Especially with todays fuel.

 

Check the Pro Comp Hurricanes. Dynos runs beat everything but a Dart or RHS even beat what they are copies of and way less work to cleanup inside or port match.
Street carbs need heat and are driven from 1000rpm to 2500rpm today and lucky to see 2000 on the freeway at 70 mph with today's OD transmissions, like I said IMO air gaps are not needed.

 

There's 2 Gas Station in the Town that I Live that Sell's 91 Octane
NO Ethanol in it & All the Hot Rods and Street Cars Gas up there

Just my 3.5 cents

Live Learn & Die a fool

 

A nice read on dual plane intakes
http://www.hotrod.com/articles/dual-plane-intake-manifold-comparisons/

 

My 355 with the Dart air-gap doesn't like the cold weather. Even with the manual choke it needs a good warm up before it behaves nicely.

 

A blower will help that problem

 

That Lunati cam is a good selection. Mild idle, good torque and mid range. As far as the intake, you live in a cold climate(a lot colder than Texas) so having the heat crossover and no air gap is a must if you plan on driving in the winter.

A bone stock 300 hp 327 runs real good so it doesn't take much of a cam and good intake and headers to perk one up quite a bit.

Sent from my Moto G Play using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

no way this truck will be driven in the winter. It will be parked inside of a garage. but yes I was favoring the Lunati cam.

 

I have the Lunati 276/268 cam in my 355, really quiet under the hood. The Comp Cams equivalent is the XE268H which I had read was noisy under the hood. I drive mine all winter, had it out last year on some 10* days despite the air-gap intake.

 

I found this today so I thought i would repost it as a reference.

Valve Springs 101. Everything you wanted to know but were afraid to ask!
I've noticed many topics lately about changing cams and there's usually an "oh, by the way" question about valve springs along the lines of "will they take this much lift?" Well, there's more to it that that and what you don't know could cost you horsepower or even wreck your motor!

So I thought it would be worthwhile to talk about these often ignored but EXTREMELY important little pieces of coiled steel. Their only job is to close the valve once the cam is done lifting it. That's it. Pretty simple, right? Hold on. Not so simple.

You see, the valve spring has specs, just like your cam does. You wouldn't throw in any old cam in your motor, would you? You'd reserch the cam, ask a few question of the cam grinder and figure out what works best in YOUR motor. You should do this with your valve springs, too. In fact, the cam grinders are the BEST palce to ask about valve spring recommendations.

But let's talk about some real world stuff you can use. Like what's important about a valve spring's specs? The answer is multiple things:

1. Spring diameter. All factory SBC heads came with 1.25" diameter springs. The retainers are also designed for 1.25" springs and can NOT handle larger diameter springs. The spring pockets in factory heads likewise can not handle larger springs without machining them to a larger diameter. larger diameter springs can create higher pressures, in general.

2. Installed height. 99% of SBC factory cylinder heads have an instaled height of 1 23/32" (That's 1/32" shy of 1 3/4"). That's the distance from the bottom of the retainer to the bottom of the valve spring pocket when the valve is fully closed. Even heads that use a thick exhaust valve rotator type retainer are at this height, but they sink the spring pocket a little deeper to get to this same measurement.

3. Seat pressure. With the valve closed, the spring sitting at it's installed height, how much force is it applying to the valve? That's the seat pressure. And it's an AMAZING little number. Stock springs can be spec'ed for as little as 45 LBS to as high as 85! The seat pressure DIRECTLY affects how high you can rev the engine before you "float" the valves. More pressure = higher RPMs. Other factors also affect when the vavles float (cam profile) but the springs are every bit as improtant. Keep in mind that installed heigh and seat pressure go hand in hand. If your actual installed height is less than what the spring calls for your seat pressure will be higher and vice versa.

4. Maximum lift. This is determined by subtracting the height at which the spring reaches coil bind (when the coils stack flat against eachother) from the installed height. So let's say your installed height is 1.75" and the spring coil binds at 1.25". Subtracting, you find that the spring's maximum lift is .500". You better make sure you don't exceed that much lift with your cam and rocker arm ratio or you will DEFINITELY break parts!

That's a lot the keep track of. Especially when you start to mix-n-match parts. Here's how to get a handle on it:

1. Call the cam manufacturer. They will steer you in the right direction on valve spring specs. But don't expect them to have ALL the answers, especially if you are using aftermarket cylinder heads which often have different spring pickets/diameters/installed heights than stock heads!

2. What diameter? That's a function of your heads and reainers. If your heads are designed for 1.50" springs then you need retainers to match. Stock heads are 1.25" springs, like I mentioned above. Bigger diameter springs can create higher pressures than smaller ones, in general, but are not strictly necessary for most street applications.

3. Installed height. There is no substitute for measuring this yourself! Take out the valve spring, put the retianer and locks back on the valve, pull that valve fully closed by the retainer and measure as accurately as you can beteen the reatiner and the spring seat pocket (the area the spring will fit into). You can do it with a simple machinist's rule or a more expensive valve spring height mic. Either way you better be DAMNED sure of what yours is becuase it's a critical measurement! Using longer than stock valves or spring pockets that have been machined deeper than stock can affect this measurement. Aftermarket heads? God knows what their installed height is goign to be. Measure for yourself! It's CRITICAL!

4. Seat pressure. It's tied in with your installed height. A spring's seat pressure is usually expressed as lbs @ a certain installed height. Like 65 lbs @ 1.700". That's a typical stock spring spec. If your installed height is different than what the spring is spec'ed at then your seat pressure will be different from spec, too. Shorter isntalled height, higher pressure. Taller installed height, lower seat pressure. Remember that seat pressure = RPMs.

5. Maximum lift. THis is affected by installed height (see how they're all tied in with eachother?). Check your ACTUAL installed height against the coil bind height of the spring (which is usually published by the spring manufacturer on the spring spec card). A shorter installed height will lower your maximum lift capability (but increase seat pressure). A taller one will increase it (but decrease seat pressure).

WHAT TO LOOK OUT FOR IN THE REAL WORLD:

If I had a dollar for every time I saw a radical cam installed with stock springs, I'd be rich. While they may handle the lift (most stock springs can take about .500" lift) they just won't get the job done! They don't have enough SEAT PRESSURE. 65 lbs seat pressure of most stock springs is BARELY enough to get the job done with a stock cam at 5500 RPMs, let alone a high lift cam with aggressive ramps at 6000. Weak stock springs and an aggressive cam equals valve float at surprisingly low RPMs! Floating them at 4800 is not uncommon with a setup like this. SEAT PRESSURE GIVES YOU RPMs!

Here's why- valves don't float when the cam lobe "throws" the valve train off the tip of the lobe (as is often believed), it happens when the valve comes back to it's seat too fast and literally bounces off the seat! So you can see why spring seat pressure is so important. Even a mild-moderate performance cams should have at least 100 lbs seat pressure in most typical street SBC applications. Wilder cams can take more than 130. And full race cams can have seat pressures well over 200! Suddenly stock 65lb springs seem a little weak, don't they? Don't get me wrong- no need to go overboard with massive springs, but make sure you have enough to get the job done with whatever cam you are using.

Things other that the springs: So you've been a good little boy and have made sure your springs have enough seat pressure, the correct installed height and can handle your radical .525" lift cam. You're all set, right? Not so fast. You could also have interference problems with the retainers hitting the valve guides at high lift. Measure how much lift it can take before hitting. Also, if you are using popular press-on or umbrella style valve seals you better have them installed while you are taking this measurement- they both reduce the distance between the retainer and valve guide! Typical stock SBC heads using these type of seals will run out of room at about .470" valve lift due to the room the seal takes up! Be careful! Without these style seals most SBC heads can take a very large ammount of lift- over .600" usually (but your valve springs will bind long before you get there).

Last, check your rocker arm geometry. Buy a $10 Moroso rocker arm geometry checker, learn how it works and use it. Having pushrods that are too short or too long can cost you horsepower at least and can WRECK valvetrain parts at worst. Also, stock stamed steel rocker arms, even if rocker arm geometry is dead-on are all out of slot travel at about .510" maximum lift, FYI.

This is only beginning to scratch the surface of how complex valvetrains can become, but I hope it at least causes you to consider for a minute the importance of the lowly valvespring in getting what you expect out of your new cam!



[This message has been edited by Damon (edited April 01, 2001).]

 

Good reason to buy matching valvetrain parts from one mfg.