Build Your Own 91 octane, 500 HP, 377CID CLEVELAND?

I was running a Torker and a 750dp Holley with Boss heads and valve train. I would say the thing was pretty ho-hum flat till around 36 then it would crispen up and start to growl and would explode at about 4200 to the point of being unsteerable. It was a very peaky combination. With the dyno testing done since then showing that perhaps the issue was in the intake manifold then the Dominator should have been what to go with. Who knew then? Not everyone had a dyno in the basement like now.

I never had the pleasure to try the Dominator. It could be the key to the big 4v iron heads.

Keep me posted. I need to know this stuff so I can sleep at night.

I'm thinking about building a simple engine rack to run the engine in on, I want to strip the rocker's off the Heads and retorque the head bolts and reset the clearances out side the Pantera before installation, this can also be used to store the old original block on afterwards. ????????? I got to find my welder, it's buried in the garage somewhere, and my weldhood, damned I need more room man.
All the toys are taking all the room, geeze where does it end???????? (':')

I'm here to help. You can store the Pantera or the Vette in my garage. Must leave key just in case the house goes up in flames.

I don't see much more room in that garage but a test stand for me has been invaluable. Everything from running down leaks to basic set up. It is also a breath of fresh air to hear the engine run when the car is in a 1000 pieces; real motivator; although it would help to make sure your rpm gauge is working. After I got my rpm gauge hooked up I realized I was reving mine well above 5500rpm!

One pointer.......Get Very Good casters; better then you think you need. They are rated by weight but go at least an extra 50%. I had a doleys with casters which were just rated for the weight and it rolled the wheels off.

A good point made on the casters.
I used 6 inch when I built mine.
My shop floor is pretty bumpy and uneven at the seams.
With the 6 inch casters it rolls very easy over the problem areas. At that size I will not ever worry about over stressing them.
Actually it rolls too easy and I had to make some simple wheel locks to keep it from rolling away!

Hey Mark,
I'll keep it in mind, if you look above the Pantera there is a 63 chevy II hard top, LT1 350 450HP/ Turbo 400/ narrowed 12". Itching to get after that after the Pantera, I'm going towards a streetable bracket car.

Brooke & Comp2, Thanks for sharing your idea's & Pic's, I'm going out & starting the process to build a stand today.

Mark

Found my welder, cut, aligned, and welded pushrod guides

a

b

c

Will finish final adjustment & torque with locktight, this has been a back and forth effort and I want to get past this, A person should not weld on the engine as the weld splatter would surely damage the springs.

Also finished part of the engine run stand.

re: welding split valve guide plates- besides spattering little steel dingleberries everywhere, if you do this on the engine using an electric welder and have an upgraded ignition, you can kiss your MSD or other spark-box goodbye, too....

quote:

Ok so here's a great build...483 hp...351c, ... It's not my motor, but I was talking back and forth about my engine build and before you know it I had all the specs.

So who's engine is it? Thanks for sharing!

Charles Engles

quote:

Ok so here's a great build...483 hp...351c

No sir, not me. That is too much horsepower for an old car and an old driver like me. That would make me have to upgrade brakes, suspension and all sorts of stuff and I am already broke the way it is. Not to mention having to change underwear and pants and using upolstery cleaner. No way, 400 horsepower is more than enough for an old fart like me, thank you very much. I am sticking with the George Pence build he suggested for me. You can just go take your 500 horsepower and play somewhere else. Thank you.

quote:

351 Cleveland Build….483 hp @ 6200 rpm & 436 ft lbs of torque at 5800 rpm

WOW
Jeff

Why is everyone surprised? Haven't you been paying attention?

Put on a good set of modern heads on this engine and it is easy 500hp.

I tell everyone mine is 563/450 torque on the dyno and no one believes me.

The crank is described as "ten under". What does this mean?

The peak horsepower is reached pretty high on the RPM scale. Is that a characteristic of the Holley Strip Dominator? Would a Street Dominator reach it's peak HP earlier? About how much HP would you lose with the Street Dominator?

This looks like a great engine to copy!

Thanks, Mooso

Mooso, "ten under" means the crank was reground to ten thousandths of an inch under it's original diameter. This is pretty common when rebuilding the bottom end with new bearings. It just cleans up the surfaces to a like new bearing surface. I don't believe there is any performance gain(others may know better).