Follow along as we build a Chevrolet 355 CID performance marine engine to power our Glen-L Hot Rod.. 

Block was stripped to bare metal, prepped and masked to ready it for paint. (06-MAR-2010)

Block was primed with DuPont 2580CR DTM urethane primer.

Prior to painting, the block was sent out for hot tanking, magnafluxed to check it for cracks and fitted with an ARP main stud kit.  When switching from main cap bolts to studs, clamping force and tolerances will change.   The main bearing caps were installed with the new studs and the block was align honed to restore the clearances.
(07-MAR-2010)

Topcoat is Dupont Imron black urethane.

Brass freeze plugs were coated with thread sealant and installed with a drift. (09-MAR-2010)

To check the main bearing oil clearance, we cut a plastigauge strip and placed it on the crankshaft journal.   (14-MAR-2010)

The main bearing cap was lightly oiled (to prevent the plastigauge strip from sticking to it) ...

... and torqued to 65 ft/lbs ...

... The cap was removed ...

Clearance is determined by matching up the compressed plastigauge strip with the plastigauge kit's ruler.  Crankshaft main bearing clearance : 001" - .003".

Hydraulic roller retrofit

The early style non-roller block was upgraded to a hydraulic roller setup by using a Comp Cams hydraulic roller retrofit kit (Comp # 12-417-8, Grind Number XM 270HR). 

Cam specs are as follows :

• Gross valve lift : .495 / .503
• Duration @ .006 tappet lift (Intake/Exhaust) : 270° / 276°
• Duration @ .050" lift (Intake/Exhaust) : 218° / 224°
• Lobe separation : 112°
• Intake Centerline : 110°

For this buildup, we chose to install a set of Air Flow Research 180cc SBC Eliminator Street Cylinder Heads (AFR Part # 0919).

The aluminum performance cylinder heads feature 180cc intake ports, a 75cc combustion chamber with a 64cc exhaust port and a 3/4" thick head deck.

The engine is rated at 430 HP @ 5500 RPM.  Peak torque is 470 ft/lbs @ 4500 RPM.  Dyno results for a similar engine can be seen on AFR's Cylinder head dyno results page.