I was contemplating the engine I put together a dozen years ago and thought about my thinking of the time. Every magazine article was E cam this B cam that. Ford offered a 320 hp crate 302 at the time and I thought, I'll get a flat top 347 (342, stock bore) and enjoy the torque.
I should have gone with dished pistons, but having been a Chevy boy I thought Flat top and E cam.
I'll never know if that engine would have pinged it's brains out, and George Klass from Coast warned me that I didn't have enough cam. I kind of ignored him, he said it might be close to being a ping monster.
I never really gave much thought to things like deck height, cranking compression, very long runner heated intakes contributing to all of this.
When did you start really thinking about engines in terms of a System and not parts you stuck together based on what the magazines told you?
I remember DF talking about strange engine stroke / piston combos with different parts, like Chrysler rods in a Ford, 3 9/16 stroke 350 Chevy's, that kind of thing, and it started me thinking more and more about what it was I was actually sticking together.
I'm getting kind of old to just now figure out there are more than 4.030 bores for example. I've always been kind of blindered I guess - I was "learned" by the mags that anything less than a 4" bore was a waste of time. Dulcich did a 305 Chevy that would lay that theory to rest in my mind, and a 318 or two that backed it up quite successfully.
Man, what I don't know. Engine Masters may have done more to ruin me than anything. I'm blaming DF and Dulcich for my sickness, and it's hell trying to unlearn all the stuff I "KNOW".. Do you guys ever feel this way?
I should have gone with dished pistons, but having been a Chevy boy I thought Flat top and E cam.
I'll never know if that engine would have pinged it's brains out, and George Klass from Coast warned me that I didn't have enough cam. I kind of ignored him, he said it might be close to being a ping monster.
I never really gave much thought to things like deck height, cranking compression, very long runner heated intakes contributing to all of this.
When did you start really thinking about engines in terms of a System and not parts you stuck together based on what the magazines told you?
I remember DF talking about strange engine stroke / piston combos with different parts, like Chrysler rods in a Ford, 3 9/16 stroke 350 Chevy's, that kind of thing, and it started me thinking more and more about what it was I was actually sticking together.
I'm getting kind of old to just now figure out there are more than 4.030 bores for example. I've always been kind of blindered I guess - I was "learned" by the mags that anything less than a 4" bore was a waste of time. Dulcich did a 305 Chevy that would lay that theory to rest in my mind, and a 318 or two that backed it up quite successfully.
Man, what I don't know. Engine Masters may have done more to ruin me than anything. I'm blaming DF and Dulcich for my sickness, and it's hell trying to unlearn all the stuff I "KNOW".. Do you guys ever feel this way?
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