any ideas on rebuilding my 383 4bbl with automatic trans. I want to use the stock 4bbl, intake and exhaust manifolds as well as the stock heads. I am looking for cam and rear gear suggestions also. I know that i am restricting myself quite a bit but i cant be the first with this situation. the car is all original, and i like the stock look, but looking for more horsepower if at all possible. no track racing, just some stoplight fun. all suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks to all.

How extreme do you want to go? You could do a stroker kit with a set of 440source heads, edelbrock dp4b intake and HP exhaust manifolds and have 500hp and still look stock externally.

well i would like to get as much as possible and still run on pump gas. do those heads look stock, does the intake have a stock appearance? thanks for the input.

yes, the 440source heads flow as well as edelbrock RPM heads, so they are 500+ Hp capable out of the box, they look almost identical to cast iron heads, and they have straight spark plugs unlike the eddys.

that intake is a low rise dual plane intake, and can easily pass for an original, so yes, that combo could be done and look stock on the outside.

a cheaper route for some simple stop light fun would be some high compression pistons, and a decent cam, factory iron heads will support 450-500 hp pretty easily, and would be a lot cheaper than a big dollar, aluminum headed stroker motor.

but, a stock stroke 383 running on pump gas would probably max out at 400-450 hp, and still be a fun street cruiser

And your stock carburetor will work just fine as well as long as it's fresh and running right, no need to go out and buy anything special to support anything up to around 500hp.

what would you suggest as far as a rear gear? i'm not sure what is in there now. i pulled the tranny at the same time, to have it freshend up also. any suggestions for that also? thanks,Joe

It would take a lot of $ invested to get them to flow enough for 500hp, especially on a 383. The stealth heads look stock to most people and their cost is reasonable.

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what would you suggest as far as a rear gear? i'm not sure what is in there now. i pulled the tranny at the same time, to have it freshend up also. any suggestions for that also? thanks,Joe

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Again, it depends on your intended usage and your motor build(cam, compression and converter are the big ones). I always say go with as much rear gear as you can stand to drive. If you plan on doing a lot of highway driving, you typically only want to go so far. You can play with this calculator to help yourself decide:

http://vexer.com/68rt/speed.html

thanks for your help, alot of decisions to make and also a budget to consider.if you think of anything else let me know, I could use the help.thanks again, Joe

If that is truly a 67 motor and its never been apart then you should have the closed chamber 516's which are a good starting spot. They can make good power...especially in the 400 to 450 range...trust me because I am running them now!

Compression is the larger part of the battle for 383's becasue the aftermarket pistons are way down in the hole for compression. Don't use the guides available on manufactures websites to calculate compression.

If you go with KB's at least go with the 400's as opposed to the 162's.

Get a good cam in the 230+ w/ .470+ range and you're good to go. As you probably already know though the limiting factor will be the intake and exhaust. The stock carb will be taxed a bit too. To be honest 400 hp may be pushing it a bit...

The DP4B looks stcok and is a good intake. As far as cam, try the summit 488 for a good cheap cam, or check around with the pure stock guys and see what they are running. Of course you'll want a new t-chain set, bearings and so on. If you're going to do new pistons, summit also has a good rebuild kit, I'd think even the cast set would be fine for your application. Those heads should be fine w/ a stock rebuild. As long as they don't need a bunch of work. I'd also bump up your stall...maybe to 2600-2800 and grab a set of 3.91's. That should really wake up that thing.

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Compression is the larger part of the battle for 383's becasue the aftermarket pistons are way down in the hole for compression

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Don't mean to hijack, but several have suggested bumping compression up.


What would you guys suggest for maximum compression for 383 with iron heads running pump gas?

Not more than 9.5:1.

However cam choice can affect this somewhat, but this is good rule of thumb per say.