Quote Originally Posted by craig akiyama
I need some input on a build i'm doing 454 short deck open chamber, It looks like it's pretty affordable to get like a eagle stroker kit, simi dome pistons, It must pass ca. smog. so like a voodoo flat tappet cam with a rv grind, mabey a swap meet aluminum intake dule plane mamifold to fit a 850 cfm Holly, My qustion will this make good low-mid power with stock oval heads that have been port matched and polished by me,new heads are way out of my budget. I would try to buy stainless swerl polished valves stock, and and new springs
If you stayed with the 454, yes those 236 will make excellent LOW and MID range torque with a mild cam like that. Top end power does get soft rather quick when you approach and cross the 5000rpm mark. For a purely street car, I dont see this as a problem. This is basically what I am running with 3.36 gears, 9.3CR, and the Voodoo 60201 (basically your "RV cam"). If you want to keep a small budget, that's the way to go.

Many people will tell you different. I am here to tell you that they are playing on a different level. With the 236's you would still have plenty of power for the street with the right gears.

However, yes, even I would NOT recommend those heads for a 496cid.

Do you plan on running street friendly gears? Auto or Stick?