I have a frind that's building a chevy 350 for his car. He's geting the whole engine for free (used of course) well he's gonna build it up to about 400hp. I know Olds, not chevy. My question is does it matter what kind of heads he uses? I know like 2.02/1.6 valves are the best (i think) but are really expensive, i'm making a trip to the junkyard tomorrow for a transmission and we were gonna tool around the chevys to see if we can score some good heads. We're guessing the heads he's getting for free aren't top of the line, so he's probally gonna need new heads to get his 400hp, don't want to be sipping thru a straw. Does anyone know a certian type of head casting number we should look for? Or what kind of cars to start looking in?

Does CC chamber size matter on chevy? He's buying new pistons, so he should be able to compensate for a large chamber.

And lastly...is there really a huge difference between the chevy straight and angled sparkplug holes?

thanks

First off, friends don't let friends dive Chevy's.

That is all.




Sorry, I am a Ford person.

If you want it to run on pump gas, go to Chevrolet and buy a new set of Vortec heads. they will run about $400-$500 bucks. By far the best thing going right now.

That sentence is all messed up.
It's supposed to say:

I am a sorry Ford person.

Cant second this enough.  The only problem is that you have to buy a special intake thats like $300.  

These heads have been proven to flow better than almost all aftermarket street heads out there.

The "202 Fuelie" heads, or "double hump" heads as they are also called [b]are[/b] good....[b]BUT[/b] they are basically "old" tech.
If money is not a big object...there are aftermarket, light weight aluminum heads that will suit the purpose [b]much[/b] better.
Lighter, better flow, better combustion chamber designs.



Yes, chamber size matters on ANY engine.
Big open chambered heads are generally well suited for motors that will be running a supercharger...and for low octane gas.

Keep in mind that the formula for horsepower is [b]NOT[/b] simply: "HUGE CARB + HUGE MANIFOLD + HUGE CAMSHAFT + HUGE HEADS + HUGE EXHAUST = MAXIMUM POWER".
The parts must all be "matched".
[b]I would suggest contacting a place like JEGS, and having them put together a "carb/manifold/camshaft/heads/pistons" package for you, based on the horsepower/torque you want to make.[/b]

400hp is not too hard to get out of a 350 mouse...but you gotta combine the right parts.

[b]edited to add[/b]: I have a motor sitting in my shed that I pulled out of a 70 something Caprice...it has 202 heads on it...but a TWO BARREL carb.

I hate to break it to you, but you aren't going to get 400 HP out of a 350 SBC with stock heads from a junk yard.  

If you want to do it on the cheap, I would recommend the vortec heads mentioned above or the Dart Iron Eagle heads.  

I agree with Magic. Nothing you dig up in the boneyard is going to get you 400hp.

Call Summit Racing; tell 'em what you have, what you want, and what your budget is, and they'll hook you up.

Ditto JEG'S or Summit...!

[url]http://www.jegs.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce3/CategoryDisplay?cgmenbr=361&cgrfnbr=947[/url]


[url]http://store.summitracing.com/default.asp?target=department.asp&d=1&x=18&y=8[/url]

Calling up Summit is probably a pretty dang good idea, but if you are interested in the vortec or Dart heads, browse this site for starters.
[url=http://www.sdpc2000.com/cart.asp?action=catalog_start&catid=222]Scoggin-Dickey Parts[/url]

Is this engine going to be carbed or injected? Injection systems make that kind of power easy to obtain while maintaining driveability. I'll be pumping ~400 hp using Trick Flow twisted wedge heads, and  TPIS ZZ-9 cam and mini-ram injection system on my '89 5.7L IROC-Z (38K original miles).