It’s often said that “money makes the world go around.” And it’s true to some extent. Our hobby is often ruled by the almighty dollar. We crave a set of three-piece forged wheels, but our wallet steers us towards budget-friendly cast wheels. We shop for the best deal and agonize over the prices, but can we go too far?
The heart of our build is...
The heart of our build is this crank. According to Eagle, their ESP cast steel crankshafts have a higher ductility than OE units and feature .092-inch radii on all journals for added strength. They also can use OE-style bearings. Brian Taube, of Eagle Specialty Products, told us that this package is rated for 500 hp at 6,500 rpm. Eagle also treated the crank, rods, and piston tops with their new ESP Armor finishing process. The results are a more-durable surface, stronger parts, and the slick surface sheds oil better.
This happens with engine builds all the time. To save a couple hundred bucks, we stuff in cast pistons only to regret the decision when we get the itch to strap on a nitrous system. We lose the bottom end on our engine because a factory bolt failed when a set of high-end bolts would cost us under $50. Sure, we should be frugal with our hard-earned cash, but it’s not really a savings if it costs more down the line.
For this story we wanted to build a typical 350 small-block; an engine as iconic to our hobby as Timex is to watches. The idea was to put it together in a way that your average gearhead would: Spend cash where it made sense and try to save a buck when it wouldn’t cause problems later on.
The biggest choice was in regards to the valvetrain. Solid cams are great for big power and racecars, but if you plan on logging tons of street miles, adjusting valve lash can get old. Hydraulic flat tappet cams are pretty much maintenance-free and very economical, but oiling issues can flatten out a lobe in the blink of an eye. Hydraulic roller cams are what all the new engines run, only it’s pricey. Or is it? Sure, it costs more compared to flat tappet, but if you’re spending three to four grand on a new mill, is another $500 going to put you in hock? If your cam goes flat, any savings you enjoyed by going flat tappet will evaporate. The hydraulic roller arrangement is more reliable and you won’t be screwed if you forget to pour in a bottle of additive when you change your oil like you would be with a flat-tappet setup.
To test this out we built a middle-of-the road 350 small-block engine, dynoed it with a flat-tappet cam, and then tossed in a roller cam to see what would happen.
Eagle offers balancing of...
Eagle offers balancing of the entire rotating assembly on their Hines equipment. This saved us the hassle of having it done locally, and it let us get to the assembly stage that much faster. Eagle is known for their high-quality connecting rods, and these forged 6.000-inch 5140 SIR I-beam units are no exception. They’re bushed to work with full floating piston pins. The rods also utilize ARP wave-lock fasteners and have alignment sleeves for easier assembly. The forged pistons are Mahle slugs that came coated right out of the box. The choice to run forged pistons means we’re good to go if we want to toss on a 125 shot of nitrous.
At first we tried to find...
At first we tried to find an early 350 block for our build, but everything we found was either too expensive or worn out junk. After speaking with the guys over at AA Midwest, we found that we’re not the only ones having this problem since they are seeing fewer and fewer nice early-blocks as well. They suggested a later-model block, in this case from 1986. They are plentiful, in excellent condition, and can be had for a decent price. This four-bolt main block set us back $295 and included the seal retainer needed for the later one-piece main-seal blocks. AA Midwest also offers an adaptor so you can run a two-piece seal crank in a newer block. Here you can see the block after we cleaned it and had it rough honed.
The first step in prepping...
The first step in prepping the block for assembly is boring and honing out the cylinders. We rough-honed the bores out .025 inch and then finished them to .030 inch. It’s a good idea to use a torque plate during the honing process. This way the cylinders will be true after the heads are bolted on, and the rings will seat quickly.