[DeTomaso] 408 Stroker Life Expectancy-----Now 393/377

[ParaPantera at aol.com]

Take the following for what it's worth:
 
 
  From what I have learned from, believe it or not, a College level  hi-po 
engine class where we studied such things as thrust loads, piston  velocity, 
valve timing in relation to crank angle and the such, I can tell you  opinion on 
this.
 
  Forget about 408 cube Cleveland's, your asking for trouble since the  oil 
ring has to intersect with the wrist pin.  Do they make great  numbers?  they 
sure do!  But for how long depends on how often you  make the "happy pedal" 
touch the carpet.
 
  For street use, the 393 (give or take a cube or two) is the way to  go.  No 
oil ring/wrist pin issues when parts are chosen correctly, make  great torque 
for around town stop light-to-stop light bashing of 99% of the cars  on the 
road today, both old and new.  Expect double the life expectancy of  a 408 
stroker from this set up.
 
  For extended RPM use (such as ORR) the 377 combo is the way to  go.  Do to 
the thrust load/crank angle combo nation this sucker will  last.  While the 
torque numbers will not be as impressive as the 393, the  peak HP will be in the 
same ball park but your durability has doubled.
 
  As a side note, all 3 of the aforementioned combo nations will  perform 
better with a custom grind camshaft.  One thing I did learn  is that "off the 
shelf" camshaft grinds will offer only 80 to 90% of any engines  potential since 
they are designed with a wide range of variables in mind.   Give the cam 
grinder your engines specs, car weight, carb size, tire size and  gear ratio for 
optimum performance.  
 
Of course the above statement does not apply to those who wish to remain  
"posers" and brag about cubes while saving a couple of bucks on an engine  build.
 
Ron



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