This web page will show as many details as I can photograph of a recent 383 engine project.  I have some experience with engine assembly but I have never taken on a stroker project on from start to finish.  When finished I'll list every itty-bitty detail and try to capture the true cost, (usually 3 times what you hoped to spend).  This web page will also attempt to entertain but for the very best in hot rod entertainment visit the Blackout web site of Anders Envall.  Anders is the ultimate gear head and truly funny guy.

May 20th, 2005 Update:  I have my CAM!!!  Working with Crane, I selected their most mild "TR" track roller cam.  .640/.640" lift with 1.6 rockers, 242/242 duration @ .050".  See photos below.  Will have Trick Flow heads from Combination Motorsports very soon.

June 25th Update:  I have Trick Flow cylinder heads from Combination Motorsports and Jesel Shaft rocker system.  See below where I check for pushrod length and proper rocker tip to valve tip geometry.

July 1st Update:  Installed engine into my 95 Impala SS and now ready for track testing.

July 3rd Update:  Track test at Maryland Int'l Raceway Sunday at high noon. 11.84@114.50 (and trust me, there's more in it.)

June 29th, 2005: The finished engine looks like this at the bottom of the web page. 

Step 1.  Grind on the block in a few areas.  I can look at were Agostino ground back in 1999 for my cast 3.75" (400) crank and stock impala rod combo.

Here is where many of the rods were ground by Agostino.  Only at this stud shoulder area. I guess if I were to use stock rods in a future engine I would do this same grinding.  A small base-circle cam may provide enough clearance so that the rods would not need to be ground.

So now I begin to grind on the virgin block.  This block has been cleaned and checked for cracks via magnaflux by Brinkley Machine Shop, ($200).  This block came from a complete 9C1 engine that I managed to score for $100. Grinding only took about 1 hour.  The stone wheel grinds fast.

I decided to take apart my 383 and mock up the new GM-Cola Forged 3.800" stroke crank and stock LT1 5.7" rod with Lunati piston.  In theory this will bring the piston to zero deck height.  This bock is undecked which is 9.025" Deck Height.  My other engine has a 3.75" stroke crank and 5.7" rod with Lunati piston 0.030" in the hole.  So with a 3.800" stroke and the same 5.7" rod and piston I should be near zero. (This Lunati piston has a 1.420" compression height by the way).

So now the cast "400" crank and cam are out and I have installed new "standard" sized bearings and I also took off the rear main seal adapter, (2 piece rear crank to 1 piece rear block and oil pan) 

Here is the Cola crank I got from "BigCowlimp" for $700 bucks.  They are used in the GMPP Crate 383 truck engine and GMPP also sells them.  3.800" stroke. This one is brand new.

Main caps on.

I put some plasti-gauge on and it squished out to 0.001 and a tad "wider" so it is probably 0.0008"  I'll have to see what clearance is when installed in the new block.  Apparently 0.002" is preferred clearance.

Then I put a rod and piston in and measured where the piston was at top dead center.  It was at exactly 0.000"   Now I think if this was a 4.125" compression height piston that it would be 0.005" out of the hole.  IMPORTANT find:  This Lunati piston skirt comes too close to the crank counterweight.  So this 5.7" rod-Lunati piston combo will not work with the 3.800" stroke Cola crank.  The piston skirt needs to be just a tad shorter.

1-7-05:  Decided to get Mahle pistons and Eagle H-beam rods.  I put one rod-piston combo in the current stroker that I've been using as a guide.  This "phantom" block is undecked and so is the block that will be used for this project. The piston comes to 0.002" out of the hole using the Cola 3.800" crank.  That will be fine.  Now the Eagle 6.0" rod was ordered with an upgraded ARP rod bolt, (L19).  The rod bolt is a cap-screw style and the bolt head is 1/2" 12point.  Although my phantom block has been clearanced for the 3.75" stroke and stock LT1 rods, this Eagle rod and 3.800" stroke crank bumps into the bottom of the cylinder on the phantom block.  My mistake was ordering the upgrade bolt.  It turns out that the standard bolt would have had a 7/16" head and that would reduce the amount of additional block clearancing and truly the L19 bolt is way overkill.

This is the amount I ground away from the cylinder bottom in the actual 388 stroker block.  It looks like I'll need to grind more.  The question is, "how much material can be removed before finding the water jacket?"  I'm moving very slow now with the block grinding due to lack of experience.

A part of any engine when running 10.99 and quicker says FIA, NHRA and IHRA.  The SFI 18.1 damper.  This is the ATI Super Damper part number 917275.  This is the part number you need to match the Y-body Corvette hub-damper combo which is 16mm further away from the engine than the stock B-body LT1 hub-damper.  I have been running the Y-body LT4 hub-damper for a long time and LOVE having my alternator further away from my valve covers.

Side by side compare-o.
Remember to read the instructions with this damper.  The hub needs to be honed a certain amount in order to properly press onto an "aftermarket" crank.  It is possible that when using a stock crank that the hub will not need to be honed.

After about 1 hour of grinding I washed, dried, and oiled the block.  Set the crank in and mocked up a rod.  It clears the oil pan rail but still bumps the bottom of the cylinders.  See the red blob marked area on the next photo.

This is the spot that the rod bolt hits.  Looks like I'll be grinding and washing this block one more time.  This is where experience has a great advantage.  My lack of experience knowing how much metal I can remove is slowing me down.

Jan 17th.  Moving along slowly.  I ordered a set of rod bolts that have a smaller head, (7/16")  These were found in the ARP web site as "Manley replacement rod bolts"  Cost $90 via Summit.  Noticeably smaller head diameter.

More grinding. 

So why did I have to do so much block grinding for rod clearance when these rods were "stroker" rods?  If you click on this thumb for the full size photo you'll see a stock rod, (thru bolt design), laying on top of the Eagle H-beam with cap screw bolt design.  Also look at the .030 over Lunati piston skirt length compared to the Mahle 0.030 over piston.  Because the Lunati skirt is so long, I cannot use it for my 388 stroker.  The skirt hits the crank at the bottom of the stroke.

And thar she blows.  My brand new blemish repair 4340 forged crank.  $350 bucks and $30 shipping.  The rod journals are 0.010" under.  This 3.75" stroke crank should balance much better with the LT1-4 damper and flexplate.

If you would like to purchase the Cola 3.800" crank just give me an email.  It will balance well with a weighted damper. Or if desired neutral balance with about 3 slugs of mallory metal.1st $500 takes the Cola crank out of my storage room. 

3-10-05: Just got the block and rotating assembly from Brinkley Auto Machine.  $1350 total for block machine work and rotating assy. balance.  The machine work included sizing and installing Milodon splayed main caps.  I'll begin assembly in a few weeks and I'll detail each $ spent more clearly in a list. 

3-25-05.  Time off from work.  Primed and then painted the block "flat black"

Milodon splayed caps in center and stock GM at #1 and #5.  Milodon bolts being used.  ARP studs did not fit.  Will look into another set of studs or stick with the bolts.

How do you like my shop set up?  All the parts and tools are right at hand.

Crank in. Caps on.  65ft-lb for the center bolts and 35ft-lb for the outer bolts. Plasigauge showed .003 at #5, 0.0025 at #4 and .002 for the rest of them.

1st ring .028", 2nd ring .036".  I was aiming for .032" on the 2nd ring but went too far which is better than too tight.

Installed pistons-rods and then did a Plasigauge check on rods.  0.0015"
Then took my ARP rod bolts to 0.0052" stretch.  Turns out that is 80ft-lb on my torque wrench which is about 20ft-lb more than it should be.  ARP says 60ft-lb with their molly-lube should give .0052" stretch.

Photo of bottom end with all installed accept #8.  I used Eagle H-beam rods with ARP 7/16" cap screw.  The Ohio Crank is a repaired blem and the mains are standard size but the rods are .010" under.  I bought el-cheap-o Clevite 77 bearings.

As of 3-30-05 I'm still waiting on a new cam and the AFR heads.  Actually I just asked Dave at Combination Motorsports to have a cam picked out for my application and to match the AFR heads they are having manufactured and ported for me.  To get ahead of the game I wanted to see if the rods would bump the cam so I installed my Crane solid roller that I use in "Thumper".  Here you see the new ARP cam bolts and the Cloyes timing chain installed after inserting the Crane cam.  It turns out that the rods do not bump the cam.  Good news.

Check this out.  I bought a 25ml glass burette from Indigo Instruments for $26.  I can "cc" combustion chambers and things like that to get accurate static compression ratio calculations.  Here you see my new burette filled with water and iodine and I'm simply filling the valve relief to see how many cc's they are.

Well it turns out to be 6ml (or 6cc)

And a nice photo of my Stef's-Ellwein Spec. oil pan and oil heater.  Why do I need an oil heater?  Hot oil is better than cold oil.

I could gaze at this thing for hours.  A thing of beauty.

I am putzing around with the engine and looking for possible oil leaks and so we find that the dip stick tube won't go in all the way.  Turns out the splayed cap interferes.  See in the link to larger photo.

Double checking all of the rod-to-block clearance brought up a bolt too close for comfort.  I shaved the bolt head down a bit to give me a more comfortable space between this bolt and the block.  I don't worry about the balance since rotating assembly balance is not an exact science.

Lots of news and info about the cam selection and the heads.  Combination Motorsports and I decided to ditch AFR due to the fact that they were ignoring me so that they can produce LS1 product.  We have a set of Trick Flow LT1 heads ready for CM's head porter in Utah.  I picked a cam finally and paid Crane $360 for a cam on the basic pattern of #118131 but on a 112LSA and iron distributor gear.  This is the smallest of their Track Roller series. (grind TR-242/3867-12-IG).  It requires a massive valve spring, (99885 installed at 1.950" for 223# seat pressure).  The cam is basically 242/242 duration @ .050" and .619/.619" lift with 1.6 rockers.  It's a true race solid roller and will be murder on my valve train.

Finally, direct from Crane in Daytona Beach, FL  $367.22 for 10TR00005 Mechanical Roller Special, Grind # TR-242/3867-12 IG
Click the pic to see cam timing.

OK guys, my Trick Flow LT1 heads have arrived.  They are fully ported by Combination Motorsports with taller valves to provide for more spring. Here I have the head torqued on an Impala SS gasket and Jesel supplied 4 head bolts with low profile head so that the shaft base will fit.

Jesel base is on and one set of rockers, (1.6 ratio).  Just checking for general fit and clearance.  The valve spring is so wide that it is awfully close to the rocker body. I'll keep an eye on that.

Jesel provides a pushrod length checker.  It must be inserted before the rockers go on due to the design of this head.

Here I'm checking for pushrod length with the Jesel provided adjustable pushrod .  The pushrod here measured a 7.850

I just so happened to have 7.800" length pushrods in stock so I'm using them for now.   There is 2 turns of usable adjustment and it's .042" per turn.  Most of the valves need 2 full turns so I have a set of 7.850" push rods on order from Jesel.

Here is a valve to rocker tip check.  This is with the Jesel provided shim installed.

All installed and cold lashed at .016" (that might expand to .022" when hot as per cam card).

The next day I put in the 7.850" pushrods and set last to cold .016" and buttoned her up.

Here is a side view of the ERE-383

Here is the engine mostly installed into my '95 Impala SS

How do you like my alternator relocation bracket?  It's from SJM Manufacturing.
Turns out this thing is a POS.  Too flimsy.

So it's 5am and I'm getting the car ready for track testing.  Nab Guffey was getting our project car ready too.  This is my backyard.  It's a comfortable place to work and there is plenty of elbow room.