'Budget' 340 build suggestions

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rmchrgr

rmchrgr

Skate And Destroy
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Let's hear your 'budget-minded' 340 combos - nothing wild please so no strokers, aluminum heads, roller cams or high compression stuff. Just hi-po street/mild strip engines putting out around 400 HP (1.76 hp per cube) if that is possible on a budget. This is for stock stroke 340 based engines only. Ballpark estimates of build cost would be helpful and performance reports would be nice if you have them.

I have on hand already - two bare 340 blocks that need machined and the rotating assy. balanced. I got a few variations of forged small block cranks, full floating rods from my 318 I can use, plus a new water pump and single groove pulley set.

I would need to get oiling stuff including pan and pickup, pump, bearings, damper, timing chain, new rod bolts and pistons to complete the short block.

I have a Strip Dom. intake and a 6139 800 CFM TQ for induction but that's it. I also got a Holley blue electric fuel pump, Mopar elec. dizzy and an MSD 6.

Would like to use as many factory stock type parts as possible. Planning on a thorough blueprint job. Thanks for your input!
 
rmchrgr said:
Let's hear your 'budget-minded' 340 combos - nothing wild please so no strokers, aluminum heads, roller cams or high compression stuff. Just hi-po street/mild strip engines putting out around 400 HP (1.76 hp per cube) if that is possible on a budget. This is for stock stroke 340 based engines only. Ballpark estimates of build cost would be helpful and performance reports would be nice if you have them.
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Ball park ets. prices are subjective and vary due to machinest used. Here, on the Island, you could go to S&K Speed and have this done. Theres also LAB in the copaige area. LAB charges a bit more, but also create a superior engine often seen at the circle track.

So overall, prices are hard to quote based on unknown work needed, parts resized or replaced and overall cost over another part. Superior part in, superior engine out. Same with the machinest used and thinking behind the overall package.

I have on hand already - two bare 340 blocks that need machined and the rotating assy. balanced. I got a few variations of forged small block cranks, full floating rods from my 318 I can use, plus a new water pump and single groove pulley set.
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OK, Block that needs work
rotating assembly that needs balancing with what ever carnk and rods are OK'd for use.

Lets start with the rods. Have them checked out. New rods can very well be cheaper, even for certain if they need to be resized. For certain, use the floaters.

I would need to get oiling stuff including pan and pickup, pump, bearings, damper, timing chain, new rod bolts and pistons to complete the short block.
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I have a pan, brand new pick up and IIRC, a pump. PM with an offer, I'll drive by when your ready.

Bearings will be purchased when the crank is checked and used with the balancing of the pistons which will be decided after the block is machined and a known size is finished.
If you get new rod bolts, the big ends need to be resized and the rods re-balanced. This has just become more expensive than new rods almost if not for sure and there weaker than new rods. Still good for over 450 HP, but that's not the point.

I have a Strip Dom. intake and a 6139 800 CFM TQ for induction but that's it. I also got a Holley blue electric fuel pump, Mopar elec. dizzy and an MSD 6.
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The strip Dom. is an excellent intake. It may need work to fit under the stock valve covers or the MP wrinkles. (Personnaly, I'm going to mill the intake to fit under the valve covers on mine rather than notch the valve covers. This way, that intake fits anything.)

That 800 cfm T-Q is best swapped out for a larger 850 because the primaries are on the small side.

An electric pump is not needed. A mechanical pump will do. A Carter street strip pump will fit the bill well.

The MP distrib and MSD are excelent.

Would like to use as many factory stock type parts as possible. Planning on a thorough blueprint job. Thanks for your input!
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Re-useing factory parts is a good route for inexpensive re-builds. Rods exempt.
I figure, your useing aftermarket headers, cam and valve train, what about a torquee converter. Staying with a stock one. What about the gear ratio and the tire size intended?

If you stay with a stock torque converter, this will limit the cam size, nothing else. You can still get the car to run fast in the 1/4, but you will not have a good short 60' time.

Performance pistons may cost more, but they also handle more, give more ceiling and longer life over basic cast replacements with the intedned power your looking for.

Just food for thought.
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I'd go with the KB243s and those 318 rods. Have the rods redone w/good bolts and the deck height set to 9.609 if possible (check decks for that first). Have it line honed, square decked, bored and plate honed, crank indexed, ground, and polished, and internally balance (rods and pistons are LIGHT...). That gives you flat top piston above the deck by .008". Run the std Felpro blue or anyone else's stock gaskets and you'll have right around .038 quench. For heads I'd run EQ Magnums with the LA intake pattern. MP or Hughes valve springs, Stock Magnum rockers. Run a hydraulic cam like the Engle 4420H (.499 lift, 268°, 228°@.050 w/1.6s), your intake and carb. I'd think that should be very close to, or exceed 400hp and be good on pump premium, maybe pump 89. In terms of costs... lower end machining (no assembly... assuming you'd do that...) $2100. Parts $3000 give or take (including carb rebuild kit and everything new but lower end cores...) for a total of $5100 plus shipping/handling, assembly, run-in/dyno session, etc etc etc...lol.
 
1.76 hp per ci...!!! on a budget ...this is going to be good.
 
if your running a 800cfm carb your going to need an updated cam for sure to have a longer intake duration but if your going through the trouble of having the engine cleaned and bored you might as well get a stroker kit or a rebuild kit they're going to cost around the same or you can go on e bay fin a used crank pistons and connecting rods and other various parts for the cylinder heads but that also is going to be at least over $1000

hope that helped
 
Inexpensive stock rods can be had at PAW,Here; A set of 8 is only $120 and has been shot peened etc. Just add some arp bolts and your done.

A budget build means reusing the crank,rodds,heads etc.

Probably the most inexpensive piston would be something like a KB or a sealed power.

Summit brand intakes are cheap and apparently work pretty good.

One of the best ways to make cheap power across the band is lots of compression. Maybe some home ported magnum heads,as they have built in det resistance and can easily make 400 hp without porting.

https://secure.pawengineparts.com/shoppingcart/ShowItem.cfm?itemid=65630&catid=1174
 
Sheesh:

Find a low mile magnum engine, put some EQ heads with LA bolt pattern on there and get a custom hydraulic roller cam and Air gap intake.

$2500 max if you use pretty stainless bolts on everything.

You can probably sell your 340 stuff and fund the whole thing! LOL

:)

Steve
 
i think the hyd cam recommened is to small, unless you have a tight convertor, with a 4 speed , or 3500 stall you need a cam with something like in the 240 range @ 0.50,solid cam would be nice if your not afraid of adjusting the valves a couple times a year. use some reasonable priced kb hyper pistons, some mild port work on intake /ex side, either carb. will work ,recurve the dist. work on the headers, gasket match them ,as well the intake. my 2 cents
 
Well, here's what I've been considering.

Block - lets say I go to SK Speed here on LI - tanked ($125), magged, ($100) square decked (not just decked) ($85) bore and hone with toruqe plates, ($160 up to .030) ($65 more with t.p.) line hone, ($140). After machining requires a through cleaning and painting, which naturally adds to the cost. Let's say $750.

Rotating assy. - 273 crank, 318 rods with ARP bolts ($58.95). KB 243 hypers with moly rings ($342.99) Melling oil pump, ($59.95) Kevko pan and pickup ($210 - little expensive, yes). new bearings (not sure which ones yet). New pan bolts, gasket. Thinking about an Ishihara Jonhson crank scraper ($69.95) Rear main seal too. Balancing an internal Assy. @ SK is $275. It's another $40 to add the damper for balancing and the flywheel/flexplate is another $75. Let's say another $1,200 at least. I'm already over my budget by several hundred. That's a $2K short block using basic stuff. Not cheap parts, no but not wildly exotic either. Just a basic street machine deal. Sigh.

Continuing on - have a timing cover, need a new crank seal, timing chain tensioner. Various gaskets and fasteners add up fast.

Comp Cam 280H kit is $390. Includes cam, lifters springs, locks, retainers, seals.

Smith Bros. pushrods? Not cheeep. Guess I could go with a more economical choice here.

Have a set of NOS 273 rockers but I also have a set of hyd. rockers from a set of '302' heads I could use with the juice cam. Need shafts, hold downs, fasteners etc. I've stopped adding at this point.

Thin head gasket $30 @ Monicatti.

Heads - Used 360 heads with a mild port job - let's say $900 or OOTB RHS Indy LAX heads @ $900. Either of these would be better on a 340 with 2.02 valves which seem to add a few hundred bucks depending on where you buy them from. The EQ's are $799 from Hughes but require the Magnum valve train. It'd end up being the same as the other choices in the end. Need head bolts, would rather not use ancient ones from some old engine.

Having an intake and carb seems like pissing in the ocean at this point! Guess I already knew that 'engine build', '340' and 'budget' can not be uttered in the same sentence. Ahhh well. Was interesting to look up the parts though.

Unless you work in or own a machine shop or know someone willing to do the work for super cheap and have tons of parts laying around, there's basically no way to build even a mild performance engine for less than $5K in 2010. Even if I just rebuilt the 318 that's in the Dart right now I'd be in for a couple K. :angry7:
 
I think that balance job is expensive with the added cost, which should not be, for the flex plate/flywheel and damper. I payed $330 with all those parts @ Elssaser, Rocky Point on Rt.25.

Line hone shouldn't be needed along with a squaring of the block. While it adds to the excellance of a build, a basic street build doesn't need it.

MP has a gasket kit, IIRC I payed $60. While the head gaskets are not exacting for ever application, I used them. There bore is 4.1+++ X .039. Timing chain tensioner extra and not truly needed though a good add on.

By compare, I built my current 360 for under $1500, shortblock only.

Anytime you build up for a performance engine, nothing is cheap and no one brand gets away much better than another.
 
Seems the cheap days of hot rodding are gone. I did a short block 340 and found out those parts add up fast.

Check out ebay if you can drag out the build. I found an nos Crane cam for $35 total..nos MP lifters for $55 and got a never used old model converter on here for $80. Got a forged crank on here for $175--darn shipping costs.

If my block was .030 over and not .040 might have found pistons cheaper on ebay--or here.

But yeah my bills I'm afraid to add up..gee $900 at summit, these other parts $350..now oil, filter--gas, lol

A 2-3 year old 300hp-31 mpg 2011 Mustang for $15,000 a few years from now its going to make more sense :neutral::sad5:
 
rmchrgr said:
Let's hear your 'budget-minded' 340 combos - nothing wild please so no strokers, aluminum heads, roller cams or high compression stuff. Just hi-po street/mild strip engines putting out around 400 HP (1.76 hp per cube) if that is possible on a budget. This is for stock stroke 340 based engines only. Ballpark estimates of build cost would be helpful and performance reports would be nice if you have them.

I have on hand already - two bare 340 blocks that need machined and the rotating assy. balanced. I got a few variations of forged small block cranks, full floating rods from my 318 I can use, plus a new water pump and single groove pulley set.

I would need to get oiling stuff including pan and pickup, pump, bearings, damper, timing chain, new rod bolts and pistons to complete the short block.

I have a Strip Dom. intake and a 6139 800 CFM TQ for induction but that's it. I also got a Holley blue electric fuel pump, Mopar elec. dizzy and an MSD 6.

Would like to use as many factory stock type parts as possible. Planning on a thorough blueprint job. Thanks for your input!
Click to expand...

1.2HP/CID will give you a tad over 400HP. Using stock ported heads, you'll need a good size cam and some Compression!
I know if you get the heads to flow in the 240cfm range and use an rpm intake and a cam with at least 240@ .050 it can be done.
Good headers, exhaust, and carb will help get it there.

I would look at using Comp's mutha thumpr cam for this build and 1.6 rockers. Also the edelbrock 800 carb is a great inexpensive carb that performs comparably to a holley 750DP.
Brian
 
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