The Camaro Club (UK)

Online Community for all Camaro Owners and enthusiasts
It is currently Thu Nov 14, 2024 6:28 am

All times are UTC




Post new topic Reply to topic  [9 posts ] 
Author Message
 Post subject: Big Block Vs Small Block
PostPosted:Wed Jun 13, 2012 5:20 pm 
Offline
Small Block

Joined:Tue Jun 12, 2012 12:43 pm
Posts:34
Want to tap into peoples experiences here. What are the relative merits and negatives of a big block or a small block? Appreciate each engine is different and depends on if its been tuned, what carb it has etc, but generally speaking....


Top
   

Big Block Vs Small Block

Sponsor

Sponsor
 

PostPosted:Wed Jun 13, 2012 9:03 pm 
Offline
Big Block
User avatar

Joined:Fri Mar 19, 2010 1:35 am
Posts:2566
Car Details:79' camaro road & track day toy. 383 stroker, 5 speed TKO trans, lots of suspension stuff, 13" Vette brakes, 18" wheels.
Location:Luton
Weight, torque, bhp, cost, useage, personal preference....

Small blocks can make some serious reliable power now, and can be bored & stroked to a very high capacity... but big blocks make easy torque, and more ultimate power. Loads of arguements both ways to be honest.

good article here:
http://www.chevyhiperformance.com/techa ... ewall.html

_________________
“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.”


Top
   
PostPosted:Thu Jun 14, 2012 9:41 am 
Offline
Small Block

Joined:Tue Jun 12, 2012 12:43 pm
Posts:34
thanks for the link, will have a read through, get the impression a lot of people are either firmly in BBC or SBC camp.

To be honest, I'm looking for reliable, easy power. I don't intend to drag it or mod it for silly BHP just something that sounds phenominal, has loads of easy power on tap, turns heads and generally makes me smile.


Top
   
PostPosted:Thu Jun 14, 2012 7:47 pm 
Offline
Big Block

Joined:Sun Jan 01, 2012 5:00 pm
Posts:342
Car Details:Couple of '70 Mustangs
Easily doable with a small block these days, so would never entertain a big block again, had a few in the past so can speak from experience. Big blocks are heavy, require strong heavy transmissions and back axles. Also HD cooling, charging and battery. So it will be heavier than a small block in itself, plus all it's support mechanisms, not good. Even a stock size (non-stroker) small block around 350 inches can be made to run plenty fast with immediate grunt if done right. I have been in many big block cars that under-achieve massively IMHO, despite the owner's belief that they have the fastest car on the road. I am perfectly happy now with my small block car (357ci / 4 speed) and if it wasn't bound by restrictive racing rules, could be made even faster if a little less drivable. HTH
Cheers, Martin

_________________
*WARNING* The following actions have generated error codes.


Top
   
PostPosted:Thu Jun 14, 2012 9:21 pm 
Offline
Big Block
User avatar

Joined:Thu Jul 10, 2008 10:41 am
Posts:827
Car Details:1968 Camaro Racing Car "Butch"
1968 Camaro Convertible 327"Camilla"
1979 AMC CJ7 Jeep 360V8
1980 BMW E21 Alpina B6 2.8
1991 BMW E30 HartgeH26
1958 as yet unrevealed sportsracer with chevV8
Location:Isle of Man and Inverness
they used to say a good big un will always beat a good small un

I disagree!

Unless you are solely drag racing the inherent disadvantages of the big block come to the fore now that the gap has closed in terms of HP etc

_________________
Kind Regards
TopCat
Secretary
Classic Camaro Club
Member of The Association of American Car Clubs UK
Email :tboles@strathnoon.co.uk Websites: http://www.classiccamaroclubuk.com and:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdhLJtR_ZY4


Top
   
PostPosted:Fri Jun 22, 2012 7:10 am 
Offline
Big Block
User avatar

Joined:Mon Feb 09, 2009 12:41 pm
Posts:2451
As has been said above, small block everyday as far as I'm concerned. I've run a big block & small blocks & wouldn't entertain a big block again due to excessive weight which affects most driving charecteristics of the car. Small blocks can be made to run extremely well along with good reliability & fuel mileage.

cheers...Nige

_________________
Too much power...not enough hands!!


Top
   
PostPosted:Sun Jul 08, 2012 8:25 pm 
Offline
Small Block

Joined:Sat Nov 20, 2010 5:44 pm
Posts:31
Car Details:Stock auto 305 sbc. Eibach drag springs, tokico shocks, Edelbrock control arms, Crane cams ignition, MSD Distributor, B&M bandit shifter, headers and dual pipes
Well since im building a big block to stick in my car so im going to disagree on this! :)

Really theres not much difference in weight. If you replace the iron heads and manifold on big block with aluminium parts your find it weights pretty much the same as the small block with iron heads.

Nige, does this mean your big block had all iron parts? Since i can believe that would screw the handling somewhat :?:

If you look at it from a cost point of view big block parts are more expensive generally but its easier to make power and reliability with a larger motor.

As far as i am aware a stock small block is good for 6-700 hp however trying to achieve that without forced induction isnt cheap or easy because of airflow and rpm limits. However its a piece of cake to achieve this on a stock big block and they will handle 8-900 hp, so i hear. :geek:

So you may well get big block performance from a small block but its not going to be cheap and probably be entirely aftermarket solution, dont forget improvements have been made in the big block field as well. Some magazine build managed 911 hp from a stock big block with no power adders :o

Motor i have is a 454 mark iv 4 bolt mains rescued from an RV, have it on a test rig all fired up a treat. Aiming for around 700 hp with a nice set of cnc dart heads and dual aftermarket efis.

Just cant wait till its all built up and i start it, going to make my teeth rattle :lol:

Il stick some pics on here if peeps are interested? :thumbup:


Top
   
PostPosted:Mon Jul 09, 2012 1:27 pm 
Offline
Big Block
User avatar

Joined:Thu Jul 10, 2008 10:41 am
Posts:827
Car Details:1968 Camaro Racing Car "Butch"
1968 Camaro Convertible 327"Camilla"
1979 AMC CJ7 Jeep 360V8
1980 BMW E21 Alpina B6 2.8
1991 BMW E30 HartgeH26
1958 as yet unrevealed sportsracer with chevV8
Location:Isle of Man and Inverness
Yes please -We would love to see/hear how you get on with this project

presumably you intend to drag race the car- if so as I have said before the inherent weaknesses (of BB over SB) will not be so evident?

_________________
Kind Regards
TopCat
Secretary
Classic Camaro Club
Member of The Association of American Car Clubs UK
Email :tboles@strathnoon.co.uk Websites: http://www.classiccamaroclubuk.com and:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdhLJtR_ZY4


Top
   
PostPosted:Tue Jul 10, 2012 1:57 pm 
Offline
Big Block
User avatar

Joined:Mon Feb 09, 2009 12:41 pm
Posts:2451
Quote:
Well since im building a big block to stick in my car so im going to disagree on this! :)

Really theres not much difference in weight. If you replace the iron heads and manifold on big block with aluminium parts your find it weights pretty much the same as the small block with iron heads.

Nige, does this mean your big block had all iron parts? Since i can believe that would screw the handling somewhat :?:

If you look at it from a cost point of view big block parts are more expensive generally but its easier to make power and reliability with a larger motor.

As far as i am aware a stock small block is good for 6-700 hp however trying to achieve that without forced induction isnt cheap or easy because of airflow and rpm limits. However its a piece of cake to achieve this on a stock big block and they will handle 8-900 hp, so i hear. :geek:

So you may well get big block performance from a small block but its not going to be cheap and probably be entirely aftermarket solution, dont forget improvements have been made in the big block field as well. Some magazine build managed 911 hp from a stock big block with no power adders :o

Motor i have is a 454 mark iv 4 bolt mains rescued from an RV, have it on a test rig all fired up a treat. Aiming for around 700 hp with a nice set of cnc dart heads and dual aftermarket efis.

Just cant wait till its all built up and i start it, going to make my teeth rattle :lol:

Il stick some pics on here if peeps are interested? :thumbup:

This could turn into an interesting debate :thumbup: . As I said above, I've had big blocks before & wouldn't entertain going back to one again. Obviously, it's horses for courses & as Topcat said, if you're looking for all out power on the drag strip, then yes you could quite easily wring out more power to around the 7-800 hp mark. However, most cars don't live on a drag strip & will be used on the roads. I had a 468 cu in motor in my '55 Chevy & yes it did have iron heads. It was putting out somewhere in the region of 660 hp or so. That car ran 10.57 sec @ 135 mph without nitrous & was fully street legal. However, the thing would only return single figue mpg. I took it out on a run with the family, & did 30 mile round trip & used 16 gallons of fuel!!! :o :o

As to weight difference I have to disagree, a big bock weighs in at around 685 lbs & a small block is 575 lbs, give or take a spit. You say you can fit ali heads to the big block to save weight,...well you can do that to a small block too, as well as adding an ali water pump, flywheel, mini starter etc etc. If you fit ali heads to a big block you save 70lbs. Do the same to the small block & you'll save 50 lbs. The big block still comes in at a whopping 615lbs but the little 'un is now 525 lbs. If you're using your car on the road, you have to lug that weight around, so not only does it affect your fuel consumption, but the handling in lateral cornering. Added to that, the whole support system for the big block has to be bigger/stronger, which also adds weight. Add to this the extra cost to build a big block & to me it's a bit of a no brainer. Luckily I had a flip front on the '55, so engine access was easy, but on some big block cars you can't get to a lot of the parts easily because of the restricted engine bay room due to the sheer size of the motor. Having owned & driven a big block 10 second street car on the road, I can honestly say it was a pain in the arse. Great in a straight line but useless for anything else.

I'm now running a very strong small block in my '69. There's been some weight loss with this car & weighs in at 3250 lbs down from 3765 lbs as stock. It has been set up to handle extremely well & does so with ease. With a bigger, heavier engine, it'd be trying to push the front end out in hard cornering & wouldn't be so controlable. I know you're aiming for around 700 hp, but to be honest, unless you're only going to use the car very occasionally, you'll probably soon tire of it. The fuel costs & driveability will make going out hard work. Realistically, anything around the 500hp mark is more than adequate for regular street use, even then it can be a bit too much (can't believe I just said that :lol: ) In the dry my car can break traction in every gear if I nail it hard. In the wet you have to be sooo careful not to be abusive with the throttle as it will put you sideways without any hesitation. As I said in another post, in the damp, at 2-2500 rpm in fourth it will easily break loose when the throttle is stabbed. It has way too much power for road use as it can't be used to it's full potential. Anything more would just be a total waste IMHO.

500 hp is easily achievable in a small block, won't break the bank & will scare most people rigid if abused, yet it's light enough to handle in the corners too. Job done in my book :thumbup: :thumbup:

I understand you've a big block & want to build that, which is fine, but I wouldn't want another one :thumbup: .

cheers...Nige

Ps please post up your pics & keep us informed on how things go :thumbup: :thumbup:

_________________
Too much power...not enough hands!!


Top
   
Display posts from previous: Sort by 
Post new topic Reply to topic  [9 posts ] 

All times are UTC


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 18 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot post attachments in this forum

Search for:
Jump to:  
cron
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Limited