I feel the need for speed i want to replace the small block in my 72 with a big block the. The question is can iuse the same power steering and alternator brackets/pulleys or do i have to change them? I want to keep it stock looking oh and don't worry about resto om long gone and i've had this car for 24 years it's not going anywhere soon. thanks in advance. p.s. it's a base motor if that makes any difference. Ken
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Re: sb to bb
Ken-----
The alternator and power steering brackets for small blocks and big blocks are ALL COMPLETELY DIFFERENT. You will need to replace all if you make a conversion. Most are GM-discontinued but available in reproduction or used.In Appreciation of John Hinckley -
Re: sb to bb
The conversion is far more than just changing the engine. The weight of a BB is considered into the design of the car. A lot of things must be done to make it right. I would look into building the SB into what you want. I have seen a LOT of horsepower in street SB engines. The final product may be cheaper and more what you are looking for. The base engine is a LONG way from the LT-1Comment
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Re: sb to bb
Ken,
I think I would rather drop in one of those GM small-block crate motors (ZZ4? Select how much speed you need). I don't know how much trouble the brackets would be to set up.
Chuck SangerhausenComment
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Re: sb to bb
Ken,
Check out that 385hp "lean burn" for $3795 on the website below. You would be able to blow the doors off LT-1s and most big blocks too (that's bound to stir up some NDB enthusiasm). E-mail them at tech@sdpc2000.com; they can tell you what you need to do to set it up.
Scoggin-Dickey Website
Chuck Sangerhausen
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I went bb to sb
I can tell you almost everything that has to be changed. It's a long list. Take the advice of Joe, Larry, and Chuck. I bagged the bb due to operating cost and replacement value. I love driving the sb through the mountains. - Dave...... P.S. List begins: accessory brackets, radiator, shroud, clutch X shaft, exhaust line, springs, front sway bar, rear sway bar, larger fuel line, axle yokes, swing axles, oil pressure gauge, battery tray, lower shields, etcetera, etcetera.Comment
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All you small block guys
Crack me up. You spend more time justifying your little engines than it would take to convert to a 502/502, three year warranty, more hp, more torque, killer looks and a 385 will do WHAT to it ?
I don;t recall the guy saying anything about judging or absolutely correct anything, therefore half of this is garbage : accessory brackets, radiator, shroud, clutch X shaft, exhaust line, springs, front sway bar, rear sway bar, larger fuel line, axle yokes, swing axles, oil pressure gauge, battery tray, lower shields, exhaust line ? what is an exhaust line, swing axles ? isn't that a Volkswagen something ?
Okay guys have fun , but I'll take a big block every time. Ken has played with a small block for 24 years and now he wants to have some MORE fun. In the meantime I'll be out in my garage trying to make another owners small block run like my big block, remember the old adage: "the only substitute for cubic inches are rectangular dollars", true then, true now.
jerComment
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Re: All you small block guys
Boy, Jerry,now you started something good fun I hope! I remember we were running NCCC speed events in the early '70's and the big block guys were putting small blocks in not because they could make them run like big blocks, but ,because they ran!No more dippled valve covers from the inside! NOW I started something.Comment
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Re: All you small block guys
Before I bought my L78 I drove some small blocks and some hydraulic lifter big blocks. After the L78 those motors are like "so where's the beef?"1969 Riverside Gold Coupe, L71, 14,000 miles. Top Flight, 2 Star Bowtie.Comment
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Mouse Motors Forever!!!
You big block guys are missing all the fun.
Just try to rev one of those BB to 6500-7000 rpm and see what happens.
There is nothing like the sound of a well balanced, smooth breathing, SB at full chat!!!Comment
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Usually Unnecessary
as the rat will eat the mouse under most conditions, he just chews a bit slower.
jerComment
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Re: Mouse Motors Forever!!!
Sorry to disagree with your analysis of small block vs. big block. After spending 10 years drag racing a super-pro bracket car with a small block 383 (350 with 400 crank) and a Doug Nash 5-speed transmission, I can tell you that the fastest and most reliable motor trans combinations are big-blocks with automatic transmissions. They never break and you can run much more conservative compression ratios and cam profiles and still generate more power than a small block. If you've got a big block that blows up at 7000 RPM, then you have a bigblock that's not built right! Period! Tell Warren Johnson and all those other pro-stock guys who run 500+ cubic inch motors that they can't run 11,000 RPM and see what they have to say! By the way I ran my 383 at 7500 rpm through the lights and never had a problem with it either. It's not the size of the motor, but the quality of the balancing and parts that make up that motor.
--CoreyComment
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Re: All you small block guys
Jerry, Jerry,
I never said I wouldn't like to own one, but converting a small block car into a big block is like a sex-change operation; it's hard to get all the plumbin' right. If the great GM Creator had wanted that car to be a big-block, he woulda' made it that way.
Besides, who would you rather have an affair with, a ballerina or a sex-changed sumo wrestler? Hee-Hee
Chuck SangerhausenComment
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Dimpled Valve Covers
Dave,
You nailed that one alright. The first "CE" big-block I ever saw had one of those "dimpled from the inside" valve covers. Being new to Corvettes, I thought it came that way; But, after I thought about it a little, I realized that dimple was just about the same size as a push rod end. Oops.
Chuck SangerhausenComment
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That's No Sex Change,( Warning, Guy Stuff)
That Sumo is just carring enough raw material around he ain't seen his equipment since birth besides, one blast from his exhaust and that "ballerina" is history.
jerComment
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