Project blown 454 gifted to me

[RIDE-RED 350r]

So, my father in law gifted me a 1980 Chevy 454 with what I think is a B&M 174 blower. It needs pistons and a bore job seemingly due to not being built/set up properly for the mini-blower.

I'm planning to keep things kind of modest with the boost and want a good reliable engine with excellent lower end grunt for duty in my '78 Chevy K-10 with the SM465 4spd transmission.

What I think is part of the problem is that I'm told it has 366 BBC heads on it.. I plan to hunt up some proper 454 iron heads for it. Also, even though the rotating assembly has very low hours on it, I plan to replace all the bearings since the block will be stripped for cylinder boring.

Aside from that and as I said, I'm looking for a good "truck oriented" mill in this setup. I won't be drag racing or looking to spool 7k RPM with it, I will be pulling my trailers and just general driving and want a good meaty torque curve that comes in early in the RPM range.

Also, I'm not going to have a $15k budget to work with here, so...

I was looking at I-beam rods rated for up to 750hp for BBC, those seem like they will do the trick. I think of this ends up making 500hp that would be an accomplishment and my goal is at least 400hp/400ft-lb.

Pistons: any recommendations?

Heads: any recommendations? Not looking to spend $3g on a pair of heads...I plan to lean on the blower a bit to make up the difference...

Carb: I'm sure the Edelbrock 1406 (600cfm) AKA: Carter AFB I have on the 350 currently in my truck won't adequately feed this moderately blown BBC, leaning toward a Q-Jet.
Also, I need this to run happy on 91oct as this truck is my summertime daily driver.

Any thoughts on the blower? I know it's a B&M and after looking around online I think it might be a 174. Other than that I can find no markings or numbers other than B&M.

@TJthesawmechanic

 

[Wagnerwerks]

@Redfin

Very cool.!

 

[Plan-b]

The stock rods are fine for what you are trying to accomplish. Spend the money on a set of aluminum heads. Pick the forged pistons based on the cc of the heads.

What fuel do you want to run? Regular gas? Premium? Build it like a boat engine with a max rpm of 5k

 

[rocketnorton]

slow [bigger pulley] down the blower

 

[Big1066ih]

Let me know what you need for 454 parts, I believe my uncle has some stuff and he's little north of Utica.

 

[T.Roller]

I have quite a few new big block parts. Roller rockers, gear drive, pistons but they are domed etc

 

[RIDE-RED 350r]

Shoot, I'm only about 40 minutes west of Utica. The main thing I think I will need is a good set of standard 454 heads. As far as the rest, I won't know till teardown commences. I know aluminum heads would be great, but I just dont think it will be in the cards at this time.

 

[Plan-b]

Just remember with aluminum heads, you can run a whole number more compression. If using iron I would leave the blower off the engine and use it for a different project. It will wake up a lazy engine and make it way better to drive everyday. You can reach your goal power wise with the heads already on it, and no boost anyhow.

 

[RIDE-RED 350r]

So you have heard of running 366 heads on a 454?? I'm not hot rod expert by any means, but it seems to me that any gain in compression due to the smaller 366 chambers would probably be negated by smaller valves and ports for less flow. Am I wrong in this theory??

And if I understand your advice correctly, aluminum heads would be better for the blower due to the added margin for safety with being able to handle a higher static compression ratio than the iron heads can?

Thanks for a of the advice this far, im soaking up as much as I can.

 

[exSW]

I've been led to believe that the smaller port "truck" heads like the 366/427 GM and 361/413/440 Mopar are done like that to develop more torque at lower RPMs. The intake,exhaust manifolds and bump stick all come into play also with that combo. I can tell you this. A 440-III "motor home" engine with the truck heads don't need much when you put it in a pickup.

 

[RIDE-RED 350r]

Well, if it is more common practice than I was thinking to run 366 heads on the 454, maybe I will just set the blower aside to wait until I fan afford a proper set of aluminum heads for it and work on a cam, intake, and piston combination that will make me a nice torquey truck big block that is naturally aspirated. I can always go back in and upgrade the heads and then run the blower sometime down the line.

 

[Plan-b]

My recommendation is go read some stuff about peanut port big block Chevy's. What you need is a budget and you need to find out what your working with. After all the heads can be fine, what makes you think it needs a bore job? Did a ring butt? Is it worn? Cc the head and cylinder and figure out the compression ratio. Was it too high for boost? (I am a sucker for a lot of squeeze and a lot of boots)
The bottom line is how much do you want to spend. A good head rebuild and a excellent set of aftermarket heads might be only a few bucks apart. What would you rather have.

 

[johnny5ny]

Awesome! Love me some 3rd gens
I believe your bro shared a few pics of your trucks with me a while back. Jealous!!!!

I'm a big Diamond Pistons fan but no need to go there for 500 (or even 750) hp. A set of hypereutectic pistons on cast I-beans will be fine (as long as your tune is good). Quality rod bolts a must.

If me, I'd spend the lions share of the budget in the heads, but stock iron castings will get you to 500+ with the blower all day. A quality MLS head gasket (I like cometic) is a good idea, even at low boost.

The two places I wouldn't let budget dictate are; bearings, and fasteners. In that order.
That's not to say you need exotic main/rod bearings or Inconel rod bolts, but don't try to save a few bucks In these two departments IMO.

 

[RIDE-RED 350r]

Well I know the pistons are damaged and the cylinders look to be scored from it. Father in law isn't sure of why it happened as he was never a blower guy and got talked into it. It's possible the bore job was too tight, it is .030 over now. But whatever the reason, it is certain that it needs a set of pistons and a bore job to the next size.

Lots of good info here, I do appreciate it.

 

[Plan-b]

http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...-building-a-peanut-port-big-block-combo.2900/

 

[RIDE-RED 350r]

I'm going to be clicking that link alot in the coming months!

That sounds like just what I'm looking for