charlie,

[charlie rogers]

well, this seems to be the place for getting your noggin filled with w- motor info. just picked up a 409 motor complete long block with very low miles { was told had less than 6 thousand}. it was in a firetruck of all places? from the info I found here it is a 65 409 truck block 3857656. block pad reads to820qd. I have a bunch of questions and am not sure if I should post them here or????.
Charlie,,,

 

[W Head]

Ask away Charlie, there is a ton of knowledge on this site along with abunch of real good guys. If it can't be answered here, you didnot need to know it anyway.

W Head

59 Impala 409-2,4s

 

[Don Jacks]

Welcome Charlie,Wow a late 409 truck engine,theres potential there aplenty!

 

[Dick MacKenzie]

Welcome Charlie!

 

[charlie rogers]

well I just picked it up today and it was pretty nasty looking {oily} so i steam cleaned it. it cleaned up very nicely! and found the remaining coolant looked great . the oil did not look that bad either. after its bath I noticed the Packard spark plug wires dated late 1964. maybe next week I will tear it down to see what it really looks like. i would like to get in the neighborhood of 450-500hp on pump gas if that's do-able.

 

[charlie rogers]

forgot to ask is the stock gm 2x4 intake a good piece compared to the edelbrock 2x4 intake and do they both accept the same carb bolt patterns. what is the going rate for the gm 2x4 intake? how are the edelbrock heads out of the box compared to the gm hi perf heads. i am guessing the heads on my truck 409 motor are not worth bothering with.

 

[tripower]

Welcome aboard Charlie. You should have no problem making 450-500 with that 656 block even with the truck 333 heads. Of course the heads would have to be worked a bit but they will work just fine.

 

[Don Jacks]

The Edelbrock heads are a good choice because they are for the most part ready to go when you get them,the factory[used] stuff will cost you as much,if not more than the new parts do,and then you still have to buy valves,,most likely guides,springs,retainers and such.As to your truck heads,with a bit of port work,and bigger valves,one of our members[yellow wagon] built a stock stroke,409 truck block and heads,and made 470 hp out of it.I'd almost bet that properly done,they could be made to support 500 streetable horsepower.

 

[charlie rogers]

well if am going to dump about the same amount of money into stock heads that the eddys will cost. might as well take advantage of the weight loss of the eddys and am guessing they will support more compression without detonation due to the better heat dissipation in the combustion chamber. any idea on the performance difference on the stock dual four manifold versus the eddy dual four?

 

[mike s]

Welcome Aboard !!!!!!!

 

[Don Jacks]

I've heard as much as 20-25 hp.What are your plans for your build?

 

[charlie rogers]

well I am not going to be doing a stock restoration. heck I don't even have a car for it yet lol. 20-25 hp is a lot to leave on the table so I will probally. I am going to start to look for a 61-63 impala, I always wanted a bubble top! when I start the build I want a stockish look street car with 450-500hp + manual trans. will be going with the edelbrock heads. not sure if there is more than one 2x4 intake from edelbrock? don't want to build a high rpm motor but rather something that has a wide power curve in the lower rpm range with lots of torque.

 

[62impala409]

Edelbrock offers both the large and small port 2x4 intakes. The Edelbrock aluminum heads require the large port intake. The asking prices on the original 881 2x4 intake is usually in the $350-$400 range. The Edelbrock intake is about the same ($400) price. I am trying to locate info on some back to back dyno testing on the 881 vs Edelbrock intakes. I keep thinking either Aubrey or Petepedler were involved in the testing up in Canada. I recall there was a significant difference. I will keep looking. Leo

 

[1961BelAir427]

Welcome aboard.

 

[62impala409]

I found this old thread from 2008. It's about the back to back 2x4 dyno testing in Canada. WARNING! there is some bench racing and jawing involved by some of our more noteworthy members. Leo http://www.348-409.com/forum/index.php?threads/new-edelbrock-dual-quad-intake.10558/

 

[Bub6le 2op]

Come on in these guys fascinate me with their knowledge, and don't mind helping a guy, so get that thing ready for our big convention next year

 

[charlie rogers]

thanks for the welcome guys. leo thanks for the lead on that intake thread, btw I love the bench racing arguments and a little of the calling outs. as far as carbs go what runs good? now I gotta tear my motor down to see what kind of shape its really in!
Charlie,,,

 

[charlie rogers]

forgot to add, what are the popular stroker cranks and size. what about rod length? I wish I had come across this motor before I built and installed my smallblock in my 57 2 door sedan.

 

[1961BelAir427]

For stroker cranks you are looking at 3.766" from a 366, 396, 402, or 427 and 4" from a 454 big block chevy.
You would have to turn the mains and the snout down to the 409 size. I wouldn't spend the money for converting a stock crank unless it was a forged shaft. Nodular iron big block cranks are tough, but not as good as forged and you'll end up with nearly enough in one to buy one of the options below.

You can also just order an aftermarket 4" crank from Eagle or Scat. I am sure Callies offers one too.

For rods, you can use stock big block 6.135", or aftermarket in that as well as 6.385" length. If you go with the 3.766" stroke you can probably get away with a 6.535" rod too. You can definitely get away with that length with the stock 3.5" 409 stroke.

The longer rod you can run, the lighter your piston should end up. A lighter piston is more beneficial than a lighter rod.....although keeping weight down on both is great.

There are many rod brands out there, but for the money and features the Scat Pro Comp I-Beam 4340 with 7/16" Cap Screws @ under $350/set is the best bang for the buck in my opinion. Be careful not to pay about the same for no-name rods, rebuilt rods, 5140 steel rods, and/or rods with normal rod bolts instead of cap-screws. They are also "stroker clearanced" so you won't have to do as much grinding on your block.....and may get away with no grinding at all. I got mine (6.385") for $299 shipped off of Ebay.
Butch has a nice 57 two door sedan with a 409 in it.

 

[1961BelAir427]

I should add to what I said above. I'm on my first W build so I'm certainly NOT an expert. The information I posted was from years of research..... a lot of it on this very site. There are many here who have built more stroker 348's & 409's than I can imagine. We are all blessed to have them here sharing info and helping out.