hello-

Ive asked many questions on here and have gotten great advise from all of you ....thank you for that.

ive brainstormed possibly putting a 351 cleavland in my 67 fastback but ive also been advised i should look at a small block....a 302. i hear there are more widely used, they have all kinds of upgrades and mods, and it would cost me less and produce as much power...what do you guys think?

im a long ways from getting done but someone gave me the idea of buying one of those small sheds and working on the engine in there since i dont own a garage.

thanks for your input!

 

1. 351c, 351w, 302, 289....all small blocks

2. Sit down with a catalog and calculator and you will find that if you are have to buy all new, there is no cost difference. If you have parts now that you can reuse, reuse them and build what you have, that is the only way you will save any money.

 

Definately more out there for a 351W or 302 than a 351C. I also think it would be cheaper to stay away from a cleveland if youre looking into performance modifications.

 

All this talk of 302 vs 351 and Windsor vs Cleveland has led me to ask:

Has anyone here had experience with any of the stroker kits I see
advertised so much lately? The idea of taking a 302 to 347-355 cubic inches
or a 351W to 426 sounds like a whole lot of fun.

Also, considering the Cleveland heads with their canted valves were
supposed to be tons better than standard Windsor heads back in the late
'60s; how do they compare with the multitude of aftermarket performance
heads that are available now?

I would think that modern performance "Windsor" heads would run better
than the Clevelands if only from better porting. And I also believe that
aluminum heads would allow one to run a higher compression ratio with pump
gas, due to the more efficient heat transfer.

What do they run at NASCAR? Are they cast Windsor heads, cast Cleveland
heads, or aluminum?

I have a feeling that a 302 punched up to 347 with 10:1 and aluminum
aftermarket heads would outrun a 351 Cleveland. I'm basing part of this
assumption on the lighter weight of the 302 although the 351C would probably
have an advantage in intake manifold runner length.

 

I would go with a 302 and new heads. THe 302 is light, lots of room in the engine compartment to work on it, and there are a ton of parts and plenty of power.

 

Depends on what you want out of the motor and how much you want to spend etc. My 351c has between 450 - 500 HP. Full roller cam rockers etc. You can do a lot with a stroker as well. Do you want to be like everyone else or a little different. There is some cool new speed parts coming out for the Cleveland, like Edelbrock's new Cleveland heads with an easy "Cleavor" conversion. Either way you should get a good chunk of HP. If you are interested in any conversion info I can tell you most of what is required.

Thanks,
Tim