I am a firm believer in only boring when it is needed to eliminate scoring, out of round, centerline discrepancies, or other cylinder defects... But hey, if I have had a block with a gazillion miles on it and it still has high oil pressure, I would probably bore it to .060 too (if I can) after the next two gazillion mile rebuilds!
I know the 351C pistons will work perfectly with a pin bushing in a 400, but just haven't looked at larger than .030 overbore for availability before.

If I were in an engine building competition and I could bore to the max for power, I likely wouldn't think twice about doing it for that 'edge'.

Thanks!

 

trinogt,

I'm with you on this. From some of my previous posts, someone might get the idea that I'm just ready to bore the heck out of it in the name of adding cubic inches. My philosophy is quite the contrary. I believe in seeing the boring bar make a few cuts to see where the cylinders will clean up, and bore no more than is necessary to do so. This means running the boring bar first and ordering pistons afterward.

My comment was only meant to voice my belief that these blocks can be bored to .060, if needed or desired, with very little worries.

 

madrockwyo has a good plan for his build.

The other guys are right about doing the research first to save money later. I would spec my block first since you said it was rebuilt once. See if it was machined correctly. If the deck is flat and the bores have good crosshatch with no glazing, then jus wipe them down with some good cleaner and go with the overbore you have. Overboring a block only makes sense if you have to correct tapering, cylinder wall damage, or excessive wear. If the mains check out fine, then pick up a crank and have it checked for tureness and get it cleaned up. As for cam, pick that after you have picked your heads and set your compression. If you are wanting to make some power, get a set of early 2V heads and TMI pistons OR get a set of rebuilt Aussie heads and pistons from TMI. Then, you will have a know compression ratio and you can go from there with the cam. I'd bet a 265DEH would fit the bill.....maybe the bigger 275. Carb is up to you. An Edelbrock 750 would run great out of the box and even better if you take a Saturday to tune it. The Holley 670 would be another good choice but take the time to learn how to tune it. Spend the $290 and get a A/F wideband meter and a good vacumn gauge and you will find that tuning a carb is a lot easier than it used to be. Finally, spend a little money on a good ignition that is suited to your application. Spending $1000 on a bunch of MSD stuff that is suited for a 8000rpm drag car makes no sense. A good blueprinted DSII dizzy, aftermarket coil will go a long way in a sub-5500rpm street motor.

 

With the air/fuel meter, can the sensor bung be welded onto one exhaust downtube, or does it need to be done on both, or run on a single exhaust after the 'Y'?

 

trino,

Yes, the sensor bung only needs to be in one downtube. I did this about ten years ago when I built my 400, but I didn't spring for the air/fuel meter. I simply welded a bung in place and put in an O2 sensor. I used a one wire version and ran the wire up to a test jack that I put under the lip of the dash. I then connected a digital voltmeter to it and monitored voltage while driving. 451 MilliVolts is ideal stoichiometric. Less voltage is lean and more voltage is rich.

The sensor output curve is not at all linear, however. SOOoooo... If you are looking at anything between about 200 and 700 MilliVolts you are between ABOUT 14.5 and 15 to air/fuel.

This was my low buck air/fuel meter and it worked great.

 

I was gonna do the same thing on my 460 some time ago, but there was talk about the wide band coming down in price... And boy, it sure has!
Perfect tuning tool for any performance minded guy.