New to V8's. 340 or 383?

Okay, rumblefish360, as you mentioned, the original question was 340 vs. 383; I did get pulled in by the other comparisons--some of which you made earlier yourself, by the way. Since you made the "half a brain" comment, I will respond. Perhaps I see things differently because I don't have only half a brain. 40 years ago, I was awarded a National Merit Scholarship, which I used to obtain my mechanical engineering degree. The only reason I mention this is because National Merit Scholarship Semi-Finalists were the top 1/2 of 1 percent of all those tested. Finalists were a smaller percentage, and those fortunate enough to be selected as scholarship winners, such as myself, were an even smaller percentage. Although I cannot say definitively how many of my brain cells have deteriorated in the past 40 years, my guess is that I still have more than half a brain left. I don't want to come across as having some kind of attitude, and obviously English is not your first language, so I won't criticize that either.

Regarding your first statement, my opinion is that you have further made the case for a 340 over a 360--if you are rebuilding for higher power, you are way ahead from the start with a 340. As far as not trusting a 40 year old engine, I built my 340 in 1975, so it's not quite 40 years old yet, but I still trust it. I have also NEVER experienced any lack of low-end power.

Your second statement: "So since a rebuild is coming down the pile (sic), all advantage the 340 has (sic) is a moot point except the forged crank, in which the only advantage there is IF your (sic) racing it. Otherwise the 360 can be built with all the good points of the 340." It sounds like you are saying that if the engine is to be rebuilt anyway, it doesn't matter what you start with. Yes, you can buy good heads, etc. for the 360--it just didn't seem to me that the original poster wanted to go to that expense level. Granted, 360's are a dime a dozen, but for my money--IF you can find a decent 340 as a starting point--you are ahead of the game.