Life changes causing me to rethink some things. My 72 Cutlass Supreme convertible is sitting in the garage stripped to the frame from the firewall forward with parts everywhere. I've recently gone on disability after two knee replacements and some back/neck problems. Originally a 350/350 car, I spent some time collecting parts to put in a 455 and a 2004R tranny. By the time I had everything I needed, I managed to have two blocks, a set of bare small valve C heads, a rebuilt set of G heads. Purchased a pair of Edelbrock heads, ford type roller rockers, and correct length pushrods and a bunch of little things from Mondello.
I have my short block built but have not installed the heads.
Now I'm cash poor and I keep thinking maybe I should sell the Edelbrocks, pushrods, & RRs and use the cash to build my C heads, get a new radiator & get it put back together. Once I have it together, I could sell my 2nd block, crank, resized rods, +.030 pistons, and rebuilt G heads. This should get me on the road again. I'd be down about 40 HP or so, but it would still be healthy.
The downside is I still need valves, springs, retainers, rockers, pushrods, studs, and guide plates (?) for my C heads. Also, I seem to remember needing a specific head gasket for the Edelbrock heads. The cam is a comp cams XE 274 (274/286), 520/523 lift. Can anyone comment? I'd appreciate opinions and ideas on parts and suppliers if I end up going this route. Also I guess I'd need to know what to expect for the heads, rockers, and pushrods.
Lastly, could I use the rockers I have if I change studs in my C heads?

 

Unless that 200-4r has been rebuilt to take it (and they can be) ... it's really got no business behind a 455.

 

Keep the Edelbrocks. By the time you rebuild the C's you won't have saved much money.

 

built by a local shop with an excellent reputation. They are pretty sure it will last on the street. Long list of upgraded parts. I hope it works out!

 

That is one of the things I'm concerned about. Not sure where to get parts to finish these heads and at what price or what my Edelbrocks are worth. Anyone else have an opinion?

 

I've ran that cam in 2 builds for around 8,000 miles, very street able in a 455 with decent compression and rear end gears.

 

That's good to hear. Several people suggested going bigger at the time I made my selection, but I didn't want to run a high stall converter or lose bottom end to gain 20 hp at 6200-6500 rpm (not likely to rev past 6000).

 

Just an FYI, it usually takes a pretty serious build to make peak power at 6200-6500 with these things. That cam you have is very similar to what I have in my '65 and I shift it at 5200-5400 and go through the traps at about 5400-5500. It makes peak at about 5200. You would be suprised how many 10 second Olds race motors never see 6000 rpm.

 

Good Points and nice to see a real world example. "Serious build" means it takes a big chunk of money and some rare parts to get it to live at 6500 rpm. I think some of the reasoning behind the going big idea was to bleed off some compression at lower rpms to live on pump gas. Also, recognizing that the olds has so much torque you wouldn't miss a few lbs/ft down low when moving the curve up 700 rpm.

 

Still on the fence making no progress. I think part of the problem is not wanting to give up the dream idea of what I wanted. Stepping back from it a bit though, it would still be a pretty nice car if I just put it all back together with what I currently have ( plus a radiator). I've got 2 months of work to do before it would be ready to run at the pace I get things done these days. I guess there are no easy answers.

 

Better to have a running car you can drive than a garage full of parts IMO.....Sell what you dont have to have to get the running and invest it into a running car...

 

hey sh_t happens just get it done this fall and winter and enjoy it, your combo sounds good and your lift on your cam is excellent. I use a 3500 stall on the street with decent gears and get reasonable mileage but I also use a gvod and your 200 trans can take abuse, I would take a look back at buick grand nationals and there fast times and massive torque!

 

Jerry has a very good point here. I know exatly what your talking about being cash poor. My project has stalled for the same reason. I think you should keep the Edelbrock heads and sell off your other spare parts to finish your project. I agree with what others have stated about the cam choice and building up your small valve "C" heads. As good cores I think they are worth about $200. If all the machine work has been done on your spare engine you might want to assemble it with the "G" heads & sell it as a long block. Here's a short list of vendors you can contact for all your Oldsmobile needs:
http://www.btrperformance.com/
http://www.mjproformance.com/
http://www.jsmachineoldsmobile.com/home.html
http://www.rocketracingperformance.com/

 

Good points guys. Thanks. What you are saying makes sense. Also appreciate the links.