rhett838

I just read you can put big block heads on a small block. The book said this was a better option than porting the existing heads on a 350.

So- if I get a set of c heads for my 350, will they work? Do I have to have the heads milled down or is there any other machine work that needs to be done for it to be compatible? Is it even worth it????

My goal is just to get some more hp outta the 350. I'm not looking for a racer with top end speed...I just want a little pop!

Thanks!

Run to Rund

You would need a special intake to match the bigger intake ports. The factory considered it for the W31 but went with big block valves in a small block head instead. I'd port SBO heads and put in 2" intake, 1.63" exhaust valves.

SBORule

What was the name of this book ?

The author of the book is correct, it would save you alot of work porting the sb heads but you will have to mill the C heads alot just to get the combustion chamber back to stock small block chamber volume so you wouldn't lose any compression.

Then you will need to open up the ports on either a Edelbrock RPM intake or the Victor intake but that is easy.

coppercutlass

its the bill trovato book if im correct . I read it page to page.

joe_padavano

The fact that you CAN bolt BBO heads to a 350 doesn't necessarily mean that you SHOULD. If this is an otherwise stock 350, you'll probably hurt performance. If, on the other hand, you are building a motor from scratch and have selected all the parts to work together as a matched set (pistons selected for proper CR, cam selected for desired RPM range, intake ported to match the BBO heads, headers and exhaust selected to match the intake airflow, etc) then this makes sense. Otherwise, you're wasting your time and money.

rhett838

The book is called "how to build max performance olds v8s" by bill trovoto. Its very informative, but I think it's all a little bit too much for what I want to do to my 350.

rhett838

Thanks Joe!

I just need some guidance b/c I really don't know where to start. I have an edelbrock 2711 manifold, but that's it. Im just think cam intake and header will get me what I'm looking for, but I have no idea which cam to get. That book says get a hydraulic one bc they won wear like a flat one.

I should just get a 400 block and start from there. That'll be a good winter project!

cutlassefi

Take the contents of that book with a grain of salt, it's just as much for high performance track applications as it is for a mild street build.

A good cam in the 215-220 @.050 range, the right carb and intake and you'll no doubt feel a difference.

It seems BBO heads wouldn't be warranted for your application.

rhett838

Thanks "Cutlassefi"

I think I'm just gonna go with the Edelbrock Performer pkg, and not the Performer RPM Pkg.
The Performer cam is 204/214 at .50
The RPM cam is 224/234 at .50...a lot beefier.

That cam is a little much, plus I'd have to change out other things like the stall.

Plus I need to do this on a budget.

I think it'd be fun to build a beefy 400 motor and trans and have that on standby and swap out the engines every now and again. Of course I'm sure once I went big, I wouldn't go back.

67 Cutlass Freak

I don't think the BB heads would be right for you without the entire engine to be built for those BB heads in mind. I built a 350 specifically for BB heads, Mark even helped me choose a good cam. You can see it here-
https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...ort-block.html
The larger port size on the BB heads can hurt your performance if your compression is not high enough to keep the port velocity up. This should work-
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