440 piston build question??
#827512
10/11/10 08:21 PM
10/11/10 08:21 PM
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Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 2,655
western PA
mopar4ya
OP
master
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OP
master
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 2,655
western PA
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I am looking for options on a 440 build for a customers 68 Charger and would like to here what you guys are using for your builds. I am working with a 71 440 block and a set of stock 346 casting heads. He is looking to build as much torque/ HP as we can with the stock parts he has. The car has power brakes,air conditioning and we want to use a stock 4 bbl intake. What piston are you guys using to get a 9.5 to 10.0 compression with out running in to a issue with detonation. I want to avoid doing a quench build up to save the cost of labor. A good known cam combination would be helpful to. Thanks! Dan 
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Re: 440 piston build question??
[Re: topside]
#827516
10/12/10 12:04 AM
10/12/10 12:04 AM
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Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 21,318
Manitoba, Canada
DaytonaTurbo
Too Many Posts
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Too Many Posts
Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 21,318
Manitoba, Canada
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Quote:
JE, Ross, Wiseco or SRP will have lighter pistons than TRW. Iron heads are gonna be pretty tough to run with 9.5 or better CR as far as detonation,
For his stockish combo, I doubt he will see the difference between trw's and other piston choices. Just go with whatever fits the budget. If you want to run iron heads with no quench, do a build for a calculated 9:1 compression. If he wants to run a little bit of converter and 3.55 gears or numerically higher, the big summit cam or lunati voodoo 60303 would do him just fine and works well with stock rockers/pushrods. If he wants to run more 3.23's or wants his combo more on the tame side I think a voodoo 60302 would do well.
FWIW I ran stock brakes with a 60303 cam in a 440 with 70's smogger pistons and it ran smoothly, idled well and ran power brakes just fine.
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Re: 440 piston build question??
[Re: DaytonaTurbo]
#827518
10/12/10 02:30 AM
10/12/10 02:30 AM
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Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 27,421
Balt. Md
383man
Too Many Posts
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Too Many Posts
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 27,421
Balt. Md
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Quote:
Quote:
JE, Ross, Wiseco or SRP will have lighter pistons than TRW. Iron heads are gonna be pretty tough to run with 9.5 or better CR as far as detonation,
For his stockish combo, I doubt he will see the difference between trw's and other piston choices. Just go with whatever fits the budget. If you want to run iron heads with no quench, do a build for a calculated 9:1 compression. If he wants to run a little bit of converter and 3.55 gears or numerically higher, the big summit cam or lunati voodoo 60303 would do him just fine and works well with stock rockers/pushrods. If he wants to run more 3.23's or wants his combo more on the tame side I think a voodoo 60302 would do well.
FWIW I ran stock brakes with a 60303 cam in a 440 with 70's smogger pistons and it ran smoothly, idled well and ran power brakes just fine.
I agree with keeping the comp at a true 9.0 with the open chamber iron heads. I run 906 heads and use the KB quench pad pistons to get 10.0 comp and quench. But it is a ton of work getting quench in all the cylinders as you have to work the chambers alot and I even moved a few pistons around (you can only move a few) to get quench and I run a slightly agressive cam using the MP .557 cam. I built my own eng and did all the work myself but it is not worth it for you so I would use the best budget piston you can and build it at 9.0 comp. It wont be the most powerful eng out there but it should run on 92 or 93 pump without alot of ping keeping the total timing at or below 36. And of course the cam you pick also can help fight ping. Its a tuff build with the crappy pump gas out there today. Closed chamber heads are the best way to go but thats not in you budget. Good luck with it.  Ron
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Re: 440 piston build question??
[Re: mopar4ya]
#827519
10/12/10 05:20 AM
10/12/10 05:20 AM
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Joined: May 2008
Posts: 5,399
Aurora, Colorado
451Mopar
master
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master
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 5,399
Aurora, Colorado
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What is the cylinder volume of the heads?
You should be able to do about 9.5:1 no quench with a slightly hotter than stock cam.
Sounds like cost is more a factor than performance, but you may want to consider the weight of the pistons too. For example, the TRW #2355 (6-pack) piston weighs 880 grams with a 191 gram pin.
The KB #237 is 770 grams, not sure about the pin weight, but might be same as the TRW. The Ross #820101 piston is only 640 grams with a 162 gram pin. All these pistons have near the same compression ratio, about 10.25:1 with 84cc heads.
The total weight of eight TRW pistons and pins is 18.889 Pounds! The weight of eight Ross piston pins is 14.145 Pounds, or 4.74 pounds less!
FWIW, the KB pistons are 2.8 pounds less than the TRW pistons.
The pistons above are just an example. They are near zero deck flat top pistons that make a good 10.25:1 compression with the 84cc closed chamber Edelbrock heads. With the iron heads, and not wanting to mess with quench domes, you would probably endup with a flat top that sits down in the cylinder a bit to get lower compression. Usually Sealed Power or Keith black have some decent off the shelf choices for under $400 / set.
Custom pistons are always an option, they just cost 2 or 3 times as much.
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