Man am I a dumbass :(

[eillob]

See this is where my knowlege on motors falls a little short. Can you elaborate? You said the 347 would have a broad power band over the 306. What do you mean? If I were to do a stroker I would go 331 just because I've been told it more reliable and for somthing that is going to be more of a daily driver the 331 is better. But what is the power advantages between the 306 vs 331?

[351wStang]

Ok, generally speaking...the longer the stroke the more torque inturn more power. When you look at the graph on a dyno sheet you see your torque and hp climb and fall. Now, what I mean by "more area under the curve, aka broader power curve" is this: Think of it as a horizon. You have rolling hills or you have peaky mountains. What you want for your car is the rolling hills, which dont get as high at peak but have a higher average power. Its like choosing a set of heads for their flow characteristics. You dont want to sacrifice bottom end power and torque for a really high peak number that takes forever to get to and falls off quickly. This would be easier for me to explane with some pics, I'll try to find some and see if I can help you understand a little better what I am trying to say. But basically say one guy has 450 hp and you only have 415 hp. You may still beat him because when he takes off he is putting 100hp on the ground where you are putting 150 or 200 hp to the ground. Also you have a higher torque curve so you are gonna pull really hard really fast where he struggles to get to his max power by when he is there he is wicked. But, for him to beat you he first has to catch you. See what I'm saying? I'll try to find some graphs for you to look at. Hope I didnt confuse you bro.

[eillob]

No not at all thanks for taking the time to explain. I think that 331 is looking better to me.

[351wStang]

http://www.fast351.com/car/images/pull12.jpg
Here is a pretty good example. I know its a little hard to read but the yellow line is his torque line and the other is hp. See how his torque starts real high and stayes there untill the power builds up there? Also notice how his hp starts pretty high and continues to build without dropping off? This is what you want your dyno sheet to turn out like. Other wise you may get a whole lot of power real quick but its gone in an instant and not very streetable. I hope this helps, was the first decent dyno sheet I found. You may want to look into getting Desktop Dyno 2000 to play around with. The numbers arent extremely accurate but they are fairly close. This would just give you a better idea of whats going on and give you something new to play with. I think it costs about $40.

[eillob]

Yeah your right it makes more sense to see it. I guess Im looking for a motor with more torque. I like the idea of the broad power band. Now is it gonna be cheaper to buy a 331 or build one with the motor I have. And if we are talking stroker are we still looking at AFR 165's or 185's?

[351wStang]

Personally I like the 185's. I just got my AFR catalog in the mail today and it says that the 165's are for operating ranges from idle to 6000 rpms. I like the 185's because they are for operating ranges from 1500-6500rpms. This will allow you to choose a nice hydro roller cam with a 1500 or 2500-6500 rpm range. I like this because you can advance your cam about 4* on install and lower your operating range about 200rpms. Making your shift point closer to 6300 rpms when racing. This way your heads arent limiting you, but you have plenty more room to grow for future applications. With about a 2500 stall converter or a 5spd you will be launching right into your good rpms and can hold your gears as long as you please. You will have nice acceleration on the bottom end thrue torque but also great mid-range to upper rpm pulling power. I would suggest useing your block, having it magnafluxed, decked, bored .030, line honed, stroker clearanced, and cleaned real good. Then order a nice 331 rotating assembly. Eagle makes some nice items. Buy the AFR 185's and get the upgraded springs. You will want probably some double roller springs that have about a .600" max lift, But AFR should be able to tell you exactly what you need. Edelbrock's hydro roller Performer RPM cam and lifters are nice (227/234 duration @ .050, .520/.520 lift are the cam specs), and use your upper/lower ect ect. This should make you potent off the line thrue 6300-6700 rpms, depending on how you set your cam.
Just so you know, when you go to install your cam and timing chain you have 3 options. You can set your cam in 4* advanced (which I would recomend), straight up 0*, or 4* retarted. Now, what this does is sort of set your operating range. By advancing your cam 4* it lowers your operating range by about 200 rpms, and retarding your cam raises your power range by about 200 rpms. So, say your cam is made to operate from 1500-6500 rpms and you advance it 4*. This will lower your rpm range to 1300-6300 statistically speaking. Therefore ratarding your cam will raise your rpm range to 1700-6700 rpms. For your application and for a street driven vehicle I would suggest the advance. This way you dont have to run your engine so close to 7000 rpms which is typically where you run into advanced oiling techniques. Sorry to write so much, just dont want you to get in a position where you have an important question with no answere. Let me know if I can help you any more.

[eillob]

Man your a life saver thats great info. Im printing this out to take with me when I go to the engine shop. I really appreciate all the help. I'll keep ya posted and let you know what kind of price they shoot at me. Now as far as the cam goes will that cam with those specs gonna be emissions friendly on a fuel injected car?

[351wStang]

Now that I dont know about. Its in a widely used Edelbrock power kit so I would say so, but I'm not sure.

[351wStang]

Ooo also just happened to remember, I think you need your bottom end when you go to the machine shop. This way that can balance it while its there, and also clearance the block.