IrocSS85

the secret combo that is! hahaha.

Im goin solid roller for my 383's next life. this time around its goin in my Iroc that will be pretty much gutted. it'll be a drag car that gets driven on the street sometimes. anyways started looking into some combo's lately but got a few questions for the LT1 crowd.

comp only lists solid rollers for the gen1. I do have an elec. waterpump, and a cloyes timing chain. would an old school gen 1 cam drop right in right? then what, use a cam button? Im goin to call them soon to see if they do/make it with the step for the stock retainer plate. cant believe they dont already make it.

anyways just curious what you guys are doin for valvetrains? as in, stock length valves or longer valves? what springs? and did the heads have to be modified to fit the large 1.55" springs? do you use a stud girdle, or just roller rockers or shaft mount?

here's the story I am thinking of modeling my build after.

http://www.hotrod.com/techarticles/e...des/index.html

I cant afford afr heads or the jesel shaft mount yet, so it wont make 600hp. but Im thinking of simplifying that setup a bit, goin with a .630 lift cam, maybe 250/260 ish duration. I see cams like that all day long on ebay. but theyre sbc stuff. w/o the cam retainer step. ah who knows. for now, lets just hear your setup. unless your a dork and wont share with the class.

chris

87bandit

gen 1 cam gear drives the distributor

gen 2 cam gear drives the oil pump

if you go solid roller AI is your best bet for a great combo

AI has made over 500rwhp through stalled auto cars with LT1 intakes and LT1 heads

WS6T3RROR

Gen 1 cam gear drives the dist and oil pump. . Just have the cam ground on an lt1 core (a billet one). Don't waste your time having something machined to work out of a old gen 1 core from ebay. Use the retainer plate like stock, its a good setup and I hate buttons (which you cant use if you keep an opti).

Generally I like longer valves and and a tall installed height will get you some nice spring options. I also like to have the heads set up for 8mm ls1 style valve stems to save weight. The lifters will be a longer body (+0.300) link bar style lifter, everyone makes these pretty much. Go for the pressure fed oiling ones and do not cheap out here or you will pay dearly.

I dont like it with the stock computer because imo it quits about 1000 rpm too soon and I am right up on 7000rpm with a hyd roller anyways. If you're going carb and distributor, its a great option. It will also get you more power up top too. From what I have experienced, if you're going with stock electronics lean toward the 260 degree side a little more with a 383. If you go carbed get yourself a big stupid cam and turn it up. Do not have aspirations of driving your drag car on the street build one.. or the other not one thats half *** at both.

Get the shaft rockers when you can. Run 3/8" pushrods not the stock diameter trash most do.

Do not cheap on anything buy the best parts and check them all twice. If you dont something will go boom right before a bunch of other expensive stuff does.

Also joe will sell you that exact cam grind on the core you need if you call him and ask for it. I wouldn't expect to hit his numbers, everything there had some moderate massage work on it. 40 years of engine building he knows where to spend time and will actually do it naturally to get good results, that part gets left out of the mags.

87bandit

solid roller's not something you can really go cheap on and get away with

hence why my brokeass enjoys the mediocrity of hr

Nostang 96z

To do it right you will need $680 lifters (crowers), $1200 shaft rockers (T&D or Jesel), hardened pushrods $200, good springs and retainers $450, billet cam $300. So to do the solid roller combo correctly you should plan to invest $2700-2800 in the mechanicals of the setup. Add another $2500 for a FAST system or $1300-1400 to convert to a carb. It adds up reall quick...I just went through the pain or purchasing all of this stuff minus the fast last year.

IrocSS85

damn, should have been more specific. yeah, Im ditching the opti, and the stock intake crap. goin back to big ol holley carb and high rise single plane. Im thinking 850 carb.

I like the comp cams endurex lifters. not too exp. and have a great rep. for longevity. and are press fed to the rollers.

I might drive it on the street. very limited. but dont care a bit about street mannors. def. this will be a drag engine. with a huge stall, gears. the part where Im goin to try to save on cash, is just to get it goin. I' will eventually buy better parts. Im not goin to put anything on that will blow up, but I might buy a used cam thats maybe not the exact perfect match for my car, or maybe I'll buy a vic. jr instead of that team G intake cause I can get it alot cheaper for now. pretty much set on the endurex lifters. there rebuildable too. good point on the pushrods, I new I had to buy new ones, cause I heard the lifters are totaly diff. length. but the huge springs will require stronger push rods for sure. oh, and also looking at picking up a set of used LT4 heads, but may end up reusing my stock LT1 heads (after I re-port them). flowed 245, but I left alot of meat in there on purpose. when I ported them it was stock shortblock, and I didnt want to cut out too much. got TONS of pics to go off of, and more experience porting. I should be able to get around 260 I think with a little more work, and better then stock valves.
so I wont have the most powerful solid roller eng around, but it'll make alot more power then it did before, and it went 11.69 in a nearly full weight/optioned 4gen. Im only wanting to run low 10's. and since the eng. is built for alot of nitrous, I can just add a small shot to get me down there from whereever it starts from N/A.

really wanting to hear some setups. like, I use this cam, these springs, had to change this to do that........

I like the ls valve idea (already thought of that since Im goin to have to get diff. valves if I use these stock LT1 heads) except, if you read that article, thats why they had to go the jesel shaft rocker route.

what Id like to hear is, yeah my combo has a .630 lift solid roller, and Im using comp promags and no stud girdle. I dont think EVERYONE running a soild roller has a shaft mount setup? I know there nice, and one day would love to have one. but no way right now. gotta spend alot of money on roll cage, paint work, lots of electronics still, convertor, drive shaft, rear suspension (goin ladder bar cause I got a good 8.5" 10bolt sitting here I can use), and on and on. also why I want to keep it around 7000rpm for now too. until I can afford the best heads/rocker setup.

who has converted sbc heads and how is it done? guess that should be another thread prolly huh.

IrocSS85

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...m=270330455509

this cam would put me very close to my cam needs. its a sbc cam though, and Ive yet to figure out if .900" is small base circle cam or what? I need small base circle.

and lifters, not so sure Id want to buy lifters used though. but depends on how much it cost to rebuild them.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Comp-...1%7C240%3A1318

and carb (alcohol carb are pretty close to same price.) tons of THIS carb due to the imca series cars.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...m=220345015593
whatever carb I get will have the replaceable air bleeds so it'll be completely tuneable. getting a wideband to help with tuning. want to run E85, but not sure yet.

vic. jr all day long $110 shipped.

but before I decide on any of that, gotta figure out what valvetrain parts I need, and what the LT heads would need modified to work.

whats the spring pocket size? will I have to have that machined to accept the 1.55" springs? then add the cost of valves, valve job to fit the 2.0/1.55 valves, and lready Im thinking maybe I'll just buy some sbc heads and convert them.

Nostang 96z

I am using comp 943 springs but you will need to know your cam specs, installed height, diameter, etc before you can decide on valve springs. You do not "need" shaft mounts but they do help (if you are using an offset intake port than you should go with shaft mounts) otherwise for stock type heads a set of comp pro mags would work fine with a stud girdle.

Go with crower extreme duty lifters or isky red zones if you want the best lifters. Comps should work for you if it doesn't see a lot of idling time.

IrocSS85

cool thanks. what cam are you running? whats the specs on that gtp-6 cam or is that an old N/A combo?

Nostang 96z

The old combo was a 355 with the GTP-6 hyd roller 235 242 .568 .592 112lsa. The new cam in the 383 with ported AFR 220's is 259 267 .67x .67x lift and 108 lsa.