Thread: 327 Build??

Tweet

Originally Posted by sefrayser

I have a 23 T Bucket with a 327. Im wanting to rebuild the motor. It was my fathers car and I really don't know anything about the motor. I do know its a 68 327 with points, double hump heads and 3 deuces. The carbs are Demons 98's. I would like to go thru the motor completely. I would also like to keep the 3 deuces. Im looking for some input on a good build. Would like to get 400 or better out of it.

OK, first things first. Let's do a valve adjustment to get the cylinder pressure and manifold vacuum maxed out. This video is pretty simple, but doesn't take into account that there will be one helluva mess from oil squirting all over.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEV3Yz0kpDY
This video shows doing valve adjustment on an Oldsmobile V8 with poly-locks, which your motor probably doesn't have, but the thing I want to show you is the cutouts on the valve covers. Go down to the boneyard and buy two valve covers, take 'em home and cut the slots the way you see here. I used a Makita grinder with a thin cutoff wheel on it to cut mine years ago. Wear safety glasses. It will be a whole lot cleaner adjusting valves this way....Make the slot no wider than what it will take to get your socket on the adjusting nut.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCsRPxZ2SLw


Now that you have maxed out the cylinder pressure, do a compression test on the motor to determine if you have a player or not. Use a screw-in compression gauge and write down the cylinder number and pressure of each cylinder. Here's the gauge type you want to use.....
Actron/Compression tester CP7826 - Read Reviews on Actron #CP7826
Your heads will take a 14mm adapter on the gauge.
Here's the procedure:
1. Make certain the battery is fully charged.
2. Fire the motor and warm it up to operating temperature. Shut the motor off.
3. Remove the air cleaner.
4. Wire the primary carburetor throttle blade wide open so the motor can breathe.
5. Disconnect the coil power wire so you can't start a fire from the combustible mixture being blown out the spark plug holes.
6. Remove all spark plugs so the starter motor can turn the crankshaft easily without laboring.
7. Beginning with #1 cylinder, screw your gauge fitting in and tighten. Fire the starter and run the motor through at least 5 "chuffs" to bring the gauge up to the maximum reading for each cylinder. Watch the gauge and you will see when it is maxed out for each cylinder, but it usually takes at least 4 or 5 cycles to max out the gauge.
8. Write down the cylinder number and the max pressure observed for that cylinder and move on to the next cylinder.

A decent pressure for a low to mid compression 327 would be 130-150 psi, but it could be higher or lower depending on the static compression ratio of the motor and the cam that your pop used in the motor. It can also vary with the position of the cam in relation to the crank (phasing). Crane Cams engineers say that a max cylinder pressure of 165 psi would be the limit for pump gas without using other means such as a very tight squish band measurement to prevent detonation. I have seen motors over 200 psi run on pump gas without detonation, but everything must be right on the money with the motor to do that. Less than 120 would indicate a tired motor that would be ready for a rebuild.

A 327 in a 1600 lb. bucket is a great combination for everyday driving and some spirited driving on the weekends, but if it were mine, I would tone it down on the desire to make 400 hp with it. To do that will take out a lot of the drivability, cost a lot of money and decrease reliability. It's pretty easy to make 300 hp with a 327 and you could do it with a fairly mild cam that would exhibit good manners, generate good vacuum and get good fuel mileage. There is a big difference between having to dink with a high-horsepower motor and having a good solid mid-horsepower runner that will start easily and run well over a long period of time.

Originally Posted by sefrayser

Should I replace the complete rotating assembly? Aluminum heads? I do plan on getting the block cleaned, zero decked and aligned bored. If I keep the crank I will also polished and campher it. I have been reading and there is a lot of opinions, builds, etc. Just looking for input from HotRod guys. After all its going in a 1600# car. I will be running a turbo 350 tranny and it has a 9" rear(don't know gear ratio).
The motor runs OK but it is not reliable at all. Every time I take it out I worry about it leaving me where I stop. I think a lot of it is the carbs and ignition. Like I said I know nothing about the motor not like with all my other vehicles I know everything about them. Not looking to break the bank as I want to replace some other stuff too. Im looking for more performance and a reliable motor. It only has a 7 gallon fuel cell in it.

Hold on there big guy, you need to do the valve adjustments and compression tests before you begin buying stuff that you don't need. Find out what you have first and report back to us. As I said above, 300 hp is about all you need in a bucket and you can do that with the rotating assembly and heads you have currently. I am a proponent of zero decking the block, but you need to know what you have to work with. You need the measurement of the block deck height and the measurement of the stack of parts that will fill the block. If you'll slow down and have a little patience, I and others on this board can teach you how to determine all this stuff.

Originally Posted by sefrayser

I want it to sound mean.

Trust me, you don't. A lope in a motor is the sound of the motor being inefficient at lower rpm's. Cams that lope are used in RACE CARS because the motors are normally revved much higher than a street motor, so when you run a race cam on the street, the cam lopes because it was not designed to operate at low rpms that you use on the street. You lose drivability and manifold vacuum and the motor ends up needing stiff rear gears and a very loose torque converter to operate on the street. The other thing is that a race cam requires a higher static compression ratio than a street cam and the motor may or may not operate on pump gas without detonation. RACE CAMS are meant to be operated with RACE GAS, not pump gas.

Originally Posted by sefrayser

but I don't want a pig either.

Then don't use a race cam on the street.

Originally Posted by sefrayser

I have talked to few machinist and they told me to trash the 327 and build a 350 or bigger. My dad would probably turn over in his grave if I did that. Thats why I would like to keep the 3 deuces. My father and I talked about what we wanted to do with the car, just never got it done. Now I will make it happen. My father was a Gear head and mechanic for 50+ years and everything I know about cars is thanks to him. I grew up around hotrods as he owned many makes and models. I Built my first Harley when I was 14........and he gave it to me when I got my license. Everything I am is because of my father. Im sorry if I got a little off track but when talking about the 23 it makes me think of him and all the stuff we did.
Thanks

Disregard anyone who trash-talks the 327. It's a dandy little motor and has plenty of cubic inches to haul a 1600 lb. car around with vigor.

BOTTOM LINE:
Adjust the valves, test compression and get back to us.

.