Thread: 305 in a bucket?

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what do you guys think? i know im going to open a can of worms with this question ...lets see what happens.
i have a 83 305 ho out of my old z28 it has 68000 original miles if i was to put new rings and bearings change to a flat top piston a torker cam and tunnel ram with two 390s in a 1600 lb car how you guys think it will run .

Originally Posted by S19243H

what do you guys think? i know im going to open a can of worms with this question ...lets see what happens.
i have a 83 305 ho out of my old z28 it has 68000 original miles if i was to put new rings and bearings change to a flat top piston a torker cam and tunnel ram with two 390s in a 1600 lb car how you guys think it will run .

Sure,why not.
I have seen a few of them over the years.

As has been said before "you can't polish a turd"!!! No matter what you do to it, its still going to be a weak assed, wimpy 305. If your going to spend the money, start with a 350.

Originally Posted by brianrupnow

As has been said before "you can't polish a turd"!!! No matter what you do to it, its still going to be a weak assed, wimpy 305. If your going to spend the money, start with a 350.

I have an idea.
If you already have a 305 why not put a 3.75 crank in it.HMMM

HHmmm is right. 329 cubes with std bore. Squares the bore to stroke ratio. Right rod combo and a decent pair of heads, cam it right, should be a little torquer.

I'm going to go on the other side of the fence on this one. I think a 305 would be fine for it as long as you were just out to build a dependable, moderately snappy performing T. Not all of us want or need a scorcher, and I am truly unable to use all the HP mine puts out, and it is just a moderate 350. If I get into it too deep it wants to go sideways, so I would be very happy to have something like a 305 up there.

I understand that if someone is trying to go for as much bang for the buck as possible, it makes sense to start with as many cubes as possible, but look at all of the cars running flatheads and even 6 cylinder engines and the owners get a lot of enjoyment out of driving them. Even the cars running 4 cylinders, like the track T JRobinson is building, are a blast to run around in and perform great in traffic.

So my vote says use it. You can't tell a 283 from a 350 unless you are really up on the slight differences, so a sbc is a sbc. Dress it up and have fun.

Don

I agree with Don on this one. The 305 would make a nice little cruiser and if you are going to put it in a light weight car like a T it should have more than enough power for some red light challenges (just don't bet the farm on it) . After all you don't really need a double plug blown hemi to push a T or an A down the road. Unless you want to.

build it light enough any anything will go fast

thanks guys, this is my first T and from what ive been told from other T owners [ you dont need that much power for it to scare the poop out of ya],im gone to stick with the plan and stay with the 305[it might keep me from getting killed]1600 lbs with motor and trans,yea thats lite.will it[305] handle two carbs with progressive linkage, for cruisin to meets?

Two fours will obviously not be as good as a single four barrel, but we all overcarb our rods for the cool factor. If you play with jets you should get it to be very reasonable performance wise. As for performance, honestly it is hard to use much in a light, short wb t bucket. I got my foot deep in mine coming out of a rest stop to merge with traffic on I 4, and the upshift to 2nd lit em up and scared me a little. In normal driving you won't even get into the secondaries.

I like the idea that you have and know the history of the engine too, that helps a lot. Keep us posted.

Don

thanks guys

Chevy 305...Mighty Mouse in Underdog's costume!!

at 1600 pounds with street tires, especially the usual exaggerated big and little tire combination on T-buckets the LAST thing you want is a whole ton of horsepower.... For 1600 pounds the engine you describe IMO would be very practical and very driveable....

Here's some interesting numbers to ponder...... According to my Virtual Engine calculator, a 275 horsepower engine in a 1600 pound car with the right gears, tires, and suspension should run 11.01 @ 122 in the quarter.....The same horsepower (275) in the usual 3600 pound street car will go 14.43 @ 93 in the quarter....A lightweight car is still the cheapest way to build performance!!!!!!!

Originally Posted by erik erikson

I have an idea.
If you already have a 305 why not put a 3.75 crank in it.HMMM

I actually did this before. I used a 400 crank in a 305 with an 030 over bore and made a 334. It was a good running engine. Speed-O-Motive used to sell a rotating assembly for this swap. I did it because of the emision inspection that we had here at that time. They always pulled me aside and checked everthing on my vehicle because it was a tubbed pro-streeter.

well they do make stroker kits for them, and althought people down play it as a performance motor, IMHO its one of the most dependable v8's chevy ever had, i had a stock 305 in a malibu wagon and we stuck a weiand 142 mini blower on it very well mannered and fun,!