im far away from doing this product: finally paid off credit card i used for the 305 when i first got it...

anyway: for those of you who didnt see my previoud posts i purchased a 400 sbc for 200$ and a lawn mower. it was orignally out of a '76(?) caprice. has the intake, heads, water pump, oil pan, (everything else INside) and that circular thing that goes on the crank outside of the timing chain cover that i want to call a dampener but cant rmemeber its real name right now http://www.nastyz28.com/ubb/frown.gif i am however missing the flywheel. im not making this engine to be smog legal, but i do want it to be inexpensive. cause im thrify(cheap). i know i can use the brackets, alternator, intake, heads, ect.. on this new engine. all i really did to the 305 was a new cam and lifters(edelbrock performer) shaved the heads and intake, cleaned it up well (massive gunk deposits in the valley: i couldnt see the pushrods). and checked everything else out to make sure it was in specs to work correctly. all this cost me incredably too much when i combined it with the other stuff for the car
(no job at the time) so back on topic here. how should i handle fixing up the 400? i allready have a edelbrock performer intake that was free. and i was thinking of using the 305 heads since that would help the compression(?) would this work? i would need to shave the edelbrock intake to match the heads, and a machine shop will get that work. and i want to try my hand at porting heads, should i practice on the 400 heads? or reuse them instead of the 305. what cam should i use? pistons? carb? (i want to still be able to use pump gas) umm...what are some options? im still very new at this, and while my neighbor mechanic will help...he has a 350 fetish so is annoyed i like the extra 50 ci http://www.nastyz28.com/ubb/smile.gif is getting the engine dipped and cleaned out worth it? i will be doing all the work i can do by myself (free labor), all those little parts i will need will be adding up...and imthinking about all new bolts, since cleaning them up took way to darn long last time (wire wheeled them all...then they rusted: yeah, i do dumb things, i admit it)
anyway, thats what i need the helpful information on. disjointed and sloopy topic, i know. im tired (love that excuse this weekend) so basically :what would you do?

im thinking i want to have soem fun with it before i ship out next year (otherwise it gets cleaned and shrink wrapped on a stand in my garage)

The 305 heads will bolt on but they don't have the steam holes you need for a 400. You can drill them yourself if you know how to do it- they are required when running cast iron heads on a 400 that will be street driven.

Putting them on top of a stock 400 (with their massive -22cc dished pistons) using some FelPro .039" 400-style head gaskets will bring compression up to about 9.7:1. Lots better than with the stock 400 heads which keep compression down in the low 8s.

BUT......

305 heads with their little valves..... jeez, it's gonna be like a fat man breathing through a straw. This will be a torque motor for sure- no top end whatsoever. Expect nothing above 4000-4500 RPMs.

Here's the deal: 400s like big-flowing cylinder heads, period. If you just want to get it running for dirt cheap then go ahead and put your 305 heads on (after drilling for steam holes), swap over the intake and even the cam out of the 305 (keep the lifters matched with the lobe they run on) and go have fun. Beyond that the very next money-sucking exercise I'd make with that motor would be a complete bottom end rebuild (with higher compression pistons) and some good cylinder heads.

could i change the valves in the 305 heads enough to make them work? and is there any information somehwere tleling HOW to drill steam holes? and what kind of pistons should i start looking for deals on? what i would really want to do before shipping out is getting the front of the car in the air http://www.nastyz28.com/ubb/smile.gif wheels off the ground and all that, i know this is VERY difficult(?)and lots of money, but what can i do to get this? will it being a torque monster assist in this?

<font face="Arial,Verdana" size="2">Originally posted by El 78Camaro:
could i change the valves in the 305 heads enough to make them work? and is there any information somehwere tleling HOW to drill steam holes? and what kind of pistons should i start looking for deals on? what i would really want to do before shipping out is getting the front of the car in the air http://www.nastyz28.com/ubb/smile.gif wheels off the ground and all that, i know this is VERY difficult(?)and lots of money, but what can i do to get this? will it being a torque monster assist in this?</font>

There's plenty of info on here and elsewhere that show how to drill steam holes.

As far as changing valves, that requires spending a few hundred at the machine shop having the seats enlarged and unshrouding things, and as small as 305 runners are I doubt 1.94 valves would change anything. Plus 1.94 is the biggest you can go in a 305 head unless you get lucky and have room left for 2.02's.

A cheap 400 motor! CHEAP!!!!

Use stock, 76 cc heads and install big valves b/c they unshould the valves and breath fine!

Then install a 260 to a 268 or so advertised duration cam. AND a good old CC 260HE or 268HE or Isky Z-20 solid cam would work fine imho here!

The Performer intake is fine up to about 5500 rpm so since this will be building it for low compression grunt, this will be fine!

Finish it off with a cheap set of 1.625" four tube, long headers and a free flowing exhaust system.

Your motor should be explosive in the midrange!!

Short shift it AND let grunt hall you down the road!!

pdq67

You should check your local scrap yard for vortec heads and drill the steam holes (A MUST!).It would be well worth the wait.Look into a small stall and tie in the frame.And put some traction bars on your going to need it with all that torq.If you have to wait it'll be worth it.

416&601 305 heads have the same size runner as 350/400 heads, so they would benefit from 1.94/1.6 valves.