Thread: Building a BBC

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So I want to build a bid block chevy in a couple of months tho will be a racing motor. I need to learn a few things before I even start this project though. I would like to know if you guys could give me advice on building one. I know what it takes to build an engine just not the technical stuff, such as what determines the compression of your engine or even how I decide what fuel to use. If you guys can give me advice I would be most grateful

Welcome to CHR! We’re a bunch of hot rod guy and gals who really do like to share what we know about the great sport of hot roddin! There are some extremely knowledgeable big block builders on this site with Pat and Jerry coming to mind as two of the best in the country. Hopefully they’ll chime in soon and give you advice based on their real world experience. Listen to them as they’ve covered every possible combination of build from budget to mega-bucks.

It would help us to know a bit more about what you have in mind. Racing means different things to different people. Do you intend to drag race, boat race, hill climb, in the mud or something else? Will you ever run this car on the street? Do you already own a vehicle that you’re intending to use?

We typically like to start at the rearend and work forward in terms of gears, transmission, stall converter and of course the weight of weight of the car. If you’ve not built an engine from scratch, you be wise to buy a couple books and read the cover-to-cover. One like this from Amazon would be a good place to start: http://www.amazon.com/Big-Block-Chev.../dp/1557884846 – it is twenty bucks well spent.

Speaking of money – you’ll find out very quickly that big horsepower is tied to big dollars. When someone on this site suggests a high quality part, you may wince at the cost associated with it but remember they’ll be speaking from experience. Your initial post indicates that you really need to learn more than, “… a few things…” and you need to know that the “…technical stuff…” is the most critical part of this venture unless you just want to spend a ton of money and end up with a huge doorstop. I certainly am not trying to discourage you and please don’t think me to be picking on you – but your project needs a lot of forethought and planning to be successful and no one here ever wants to hear the stories about thrashed engines due to lack of knowledge in assembly. It’s real easy to spend $10 or more per horsepower up to five hundred horses and then it can get astronomically expensive to increase horsepower properly.

So tell us what you what your car is and what your goals are and we’ll jump with more suggestions.

Again, welcome to CHR!
Glenn

A fellow should determine what fuel is readily available to him before he ever buys one part to build a motor, then build around that fuel. You'll need to do some reading to know how to figure static compression ratio. Once you know the SCR, you can do the math to figure DCR based on the intake closing point of the camshaft.
Here are some cheap, used examples of the math handbook on amazon. I buy used books all the time to save a few shekels.....
Amazon.com: Buying Choices: Auto Math Handbook HP


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Welcome to CHR.. Pat McCarthy is the guy you want to talk to he is on here all the time. He lives just North of you. Glad to see another Michigan guy here

yep what is racing to you. street. strip . hill n hole . mud pit . sand drags what ? what is your budget ? not much. some. or not much ?its not very hard to see what your can put in one open a jegs blook start adding up the list. what are you looking for big engine past 565 cid ? max is about 582cid with a 4.375 crank in 9.800 a big m block short deck.. tall deck 10.200 .572.598. 638. after market blocks . will need good heads the bigger CID you go . stock gm 454 block 9.800 . 489 to 510. gm tall deck 520to 540 is about it