Today @DavidVizard and I took a brief look at the engine blocks of Chevy, Ford and Mopar SmallBlocks we talk about the weight differences and overall physical characteristics of their strengths and weaknesses
this is leading us into our project with @UncleTonysGarage
Mission Impossible 318! stay tuned for more details on this build
#ford #chevy #mopar #smallblock
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Sorry Andy but the factory spec for a sbc deck height is 9.025" not 9.060" like you said twice in the video.
One minor comment about the dates the engines were introduced… the LA 273 Chrysler was introduced in 1964 and the LA 318 in 1967… but the A-block 315, 318, and 325 go back to the mid 1950s, and the block architecture is essentially identical to the LA. Casting methods we’re changed to lighten the block (one common claim has always been that ‘LA’ means ‘Lightened A) but the critical dimensions are the same. The difference of not was the heads, with the A engines using canted-valve polyspheric heads that look a lot like (and pre-date) big block Chevy heads… but with less efficient ports. The block and crank, however, is so similar that people have built poly engines on LA blocks and vice-versa. All that’s more in the vein of trivia, though, because there are enough differences (eg crank flanges, pistons) that it’s not commonly done, and junkyard A engines weren’t really practical donors for building LA-based power in those early years. It is worth noting that the later “poly” 318s mostly had forged cranks, whereas most LA 318s had cast. With a full balance, they’re a usable donor for a forged crank, 3.31” stroke LA… it’s basically identical to a 340 crank, IIRC.
I love that comment we can make enough HP to destroy all these blocks.
Building a 302 and comparing it to other 350 cubes and strength is silly. 351w is what should be used.
Should also look at pontiac
They don't get much respect but stock blocks rods and cranks can take a ton before failing
Personally i love dodge and chevy . Dodge is much harder to build power
Mopar small blocks are a really good engine, but like it was said, it started life a lot later than the Chevy SB, and of course, the sheer volume of Chevy vs. Mopar gave it a huge advantage as far as aftermarket development. That said, I have been running Mopar SBs for over 40 years and I love em and always will.
I WAS quite surprised that the Mopar SB is actually lighter than the Chevy, especially since it was derived from the old Poly head A engine.
Find a scrap yard with an XRF Xray gun and they can tell you what the makeup of the 010 020 Chevy block is.
Mopar blocks are seldom built for a very good reason….
Mopar didn't make a car worthy of a small block engine build for DECADES!
Name one sporty and/or good looking rear wheel drive car from 1991 that you could drop a warmed over 340 into?
Nothing. GM and Ford at least had decent looking and handling cars to drop their small blocks into.
The other thing is the only Mopar cars worth any interest are far less common and cost far more to buy a good candidate for your engine build.
It's not that the public hates Mopar engines…. It's that there is nothing to hobby around with that isn't going to cost you an arm and a leg.
So because of poor executive decisions by Mopar's upper management, people have built what they could do far easier and for less coin…. Ford and Chevy.
My 2 cents….
Gold!
Excellent video guys
DV legend
My Theory is Chevy got all the aftermarket support because they needed it to keep up
Mopar or no car!!! This little 318 is about to turn some heads and make some power!!!!
One important thing that wasn't mentioned is the higher amount of nickel used in Chrysler blocks . This , along with the fact that the head bolts are further away from the bore than chevy blocks , which results in less bore distortion . The Mopar block also uses bigger main cap bolts . As good as the 318 block is , the 340 and 360 have slightly more beef in the main webbing . The 360 block is stronger in the bottom end due to the larger main bearings , and the main caps are beefier and the bolts have a larger spread . The larger mains make for a stronger crank , especially with stroker builds .
I remember back in the late 60’s how popular the 327 Chevy was. Chevy guys raved about it all the time. But they were kinda discouraged when the small journal crank was replaced with the bigger journal crank. The loyalist stayed with the small journal 327. Small journal chevys 265,283 z/28 302 and 327 were great if you loved high high rpm. But the 350 Chevy pretty much replaced most of them unless you were loyal to the 327.
Should have gotten a early 9.5 windsor for the ford
The MoPar small block actually started life in 1956 in the Plymouth as a 277 ci, then 303 0r 301, then 318, and one year only as a 326 in a Dodge. The LA head was designed as a replacement for the poly head in 64 so that the engine could be fitted into the A body MoPars and to reduce manufacturing costs. That is the reason for the odd pushrod angularity at the lifter, the lifter bores were left in the old poly position. The poly engine had a valve layout similar to the chevy 396, 454 engines. The poly 318 & the LA 318 blocks are almost identical except for some oiling holes. MoPar small block engines that come out of trucks are made of high nickel iron and are very durable. Rod/ stroke ratio on the little 318 & the 340 has an advantage also. If you think the main web is thick on the little 318 you should see the main webs on a 340 TA block. A local shop has one of them with the 4 bolt splayed main caps. I can't understand why so many people are surprised about the potential of 318. The 340 is nothing more than an over bored 318. Same stroke, same crankshaft dimensions just a larger bore & better heads. On the Ford 5.0, one downfall is the extreme rod angularity when the crank pin is in the 90 deg position. It places a great deal of side pressure on the cylinder block at that position. The chevy has a big advantage because there are so many of them and the variety of go-fast stuff that is available. Good video & honest evaluations of the 3 designs.
I've always been a B.B.C. guy..or a B.B.C.. guy…
Loved the Colabertion KEEP IT UP (THR EXELENT HELP)
Without question is the fact there's more power per dollar with a sbc than anything else period!
The same engineer designed both the Chevy small block and the small block ford even though there is that few years between them
CRAPP
What is the link to the company that installed the splayed 4 bolt caps on the small block Ford
If Chrysler had straightened out the pushrods, and moved them apart slightly to get basically a w2 port window stock, the small block wars would have been a lot different. Trouble is a 340 would have destroyed the 440s due to head flow.
Andy you need to check out Steve Morris channel he builds race engines and he has his own billet custom blocks one he calls the SMX based on a big block and he just designed a better LS block out of billet that he calls the SML. Here is a link to his SML block https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wg9VrEagJwM