I currently have an engine builder that will be starting on a 440-512 stroker build for me. Was curious on experienced people’s thoughts as this is my first Mopar BB. The goal is 600hp or there about. I’ve read many different builds on here all with varying opinions and different levels achieved. The builder is still hashing out details as we don’t completely agree on a few things though I know he’s very well versed in Mopar race cars.

The build will use molnar 4.25 crank 7.1 molnar rods.
Diamond pistons.

One case of contention is the heads. I can currently get either trickflow 240 or 270 heads. He says get the 240s the 270 require and intake I can’t even find to buy right now plus he says it will not make for a good street capable engine.

Cam is undecided but he’s thinking a simple non roller solid cam not sure what good specs would be to achieve goals. I’d like the idle to be noticeable.

Second point of contention is what intake. I wouldn’t mind a victor or trickflow if using the 240s. He says performer rpm.

Last is carb. I’d like to have a Holley. He says they all leak and only uses them on race cars. He prefers an edelbrock carb.

Details for the goals and of the car are 66 satellite full car. Probably 3800 pounds. Daily driver about 25 miles each way. Gas mileage doesn’t matter to me. Car has air conditioning and I plan to keep it. It’s currently a 4 speed 18 spline a-833 with a moser built 8 3/4 and 4 link and coil over rear suspension, mini tubs and 3.73 gears with 275/60-15 though I may go wider Mickey Thompson street slicks. Car may see a track once or twice a year beyond that the goal is 600hp and torque somewhere in the 11s at the track and the ability to fry tires at will at 25mph and drive it to work. Car has power brakes disc front drum rear. Ignition is msd 6al and pro billet distributor on the current 440 which already has a performer rpm intake. Also car has 1 7/8 tti headers electric dumps and full tti exhaust and x pipe and fuel cell and electric Holley pumps. And access to 91-93 octane isn’t an issue. I’m on the east coast in North Carolina at or just above sea level if that matters.

Thanks for any help. Sorry just trying to be as descriptive as possible of cars and goals.

A 270cc head is still small for 512ci. My thought is use the 270 heads and you can make 600hp with a much more mild combo. You can use a Indy dual plane intake, or a super Victor. I wouldn’t use the Indy single plane for your application.
The 270 will also leave you room to grow later if you choose.

I appreciate the response. That builder is not a fan of Indy period and since the motor requires a max wedge intake to run those 270 heads and since no one in America seems to have a super victor intake in stock it’s limiting me. I also don’t plan to go bigger unless I go to an aftermarket block someday. Plus it’s still gotta run on the street.

Well there's plenty people on here with experience of building similar combo's like this for street and will offer better suggestions than me but here are my opinions at least>

He's right on the 240 heads for a street car, generally you want to see max hp out of the smallest port possible

Wrong about the edel carb, holleys don't leak, don't know where he got that from, I ran nothing but holleys on my street/strip car and race only car with zero leaks/issues for 10yrs I was in this madness.
I would run an 850 or 950DP on that.

A solid ft cam close to .600" (326cfm@.600 on the 240's) with dur@.050 in the 240>250's on 108cl with around 10:1+cr would work well although no expert on this.

Performer rpm would work ok but I would be inclined to lose some torque with a stick car as it could be too lethal on the street with a 512 although it sounds as if thats what you want.
A TF intake or Victor would be my choice.

A true 600hp so 630+ on a dyno with addition of ancillaries in a 3800lb car with your rear chassis set up hooking good could run as good as 10.7's@124mph@5600rpm trap speed with 28" bias slicks/3.73's, not the most important to you but worth noting perhaps.

I would be wondering about this guy's thought processes.
Eddie carbs ?
I have been running Holley's since the early 80's and leaks have never been a problem for me.
The 240 heads would be great..............for a torque motor in a pick up or an RV.
Why choke that many inches ?
I do like the air gap , and a dual plane will work for what you have in mind and provide better low r.p.m. performance too.
600 h.p. should not be a problem at all.
I got 492 ft. lbs and h.p. from a hydraulic flat tappet 408 with aluminum heads and 10.5:1 on pump premium , using an air gap , and could have squeezed a little more out of the horsepower number with more time to play with it.
I don't even think you would need a solid lifter cam to get there.
I do like the low maintenance approach of a hydraulic cam for a street motor , and I don't think you would have to spend for a hyd. roller to reach your goals.

Your engine builder's ideas are pretty good. If I was building that engine for that application I'd use the TF 240 heads and would not even consider the 270 heads. The intake choice could go either way. You already have the RPM manifold and it would work on your new engine but will kill a bit of top end power. The TF intake would be the best choice for power if you have room under the hood for it.

I'd put a hyd roller in an engine like that but you can make a solid flat tappet cam work if you're super careful selecting parts and breaking it in. With a hyd roller I'd stay in the high 230 or low 240 range for duration at 050. You do not want (or need) a lot of duration when using the TF heads. The TF heads flow a lot of air at low valve lift so too much duration will kill the power and make the engine run poorly on the street. You need to work with a pro when picking the cam for those heads. Your engine builder may or may not have any experience with the TF heads so talk it over with him. If you need another opinion talk with Dwayne at Porter Racing Heads. Dwayne can get you a custom grind that will match your combination and really make the car come alive.

For a true street car your engine builder is correct in choosing the Edelbrock carb but a Holley could be made to work if you pick the correct one. Personally I'd put a Holley Sniper on it. The Sniper adds a little bit of cost but you gain a built in data logger as well as complete computer control over the fuel curve and the ignition timing. I wouldn't build an engine like that with a carb but some people still do so it just depends what you're comfortable with.

I was hoping you’d respond I’ve followed many of your responses on these heads in particular. I’ll be talking to the builder Monday again. I don’t believe he’s ever used the trick flow heads he normally uses edelbrock or similar for street builds. From talking to him he didn’t seem to know much about the 240 or 270 but felt that a super victor would be far to much for a street car. As for the carb. He runs holleys on his race cars custom ones. However doesn’t like them on the street. As for the sniper. Maybe in the future but at this time I want to steer clear of computers. In terms of the cam you were referring to I assume that’s pretty mild sounding in a big stroker? Any thoughts on carb size or type 4150? 4500? I’d likely have one built but was ASO looking at the ultra HP. Probably just better in the long run to have one built though. Also have a small hood scoop so a single plane will clear.

Yeah he runs holleys on his race cars but not street. I’ve always liked holleys and I can say in terms of mechanics near me if I need anything all the good ole boy racers that work on stuff all hate edelbrock carbs so I’ll get no help from them.

Thanks for the reply. Cool to hear the Drag time possibility but honestly I’d be happy to run easy mid 11 to high 11s.

Indy has new owners & are great people, 270 heads, indy single plane intake & a Thumper carb, [ Holley ish ]

I would encourage you to give more thought to putting the Sniper system on right from the start.
Once you spend $1000-$1500 for a carb, fuel pump, regulator etc, it is hard to justify changing.

Everybody's idea of "good street manners" is different.
That Sniper will really make it nice to drive everyday.

A regular Holley carb or Proform, etc can get the job done. It will just act like a well tuned old school engine/car.
If you do decide to go Holley style carb, I don't like the 850 cfm venturi ratio. Those 950's just work better all around, IMO.

Another thought, for a real nice street driver, put a long collector extension (18" min); before the rest of the exhaust system. For 1500-3000 rpm smooth torque.
Anyway, I think with decent heads and 512 CID it will be a tire frying machine on the street.

Are the Trick Flow heads actually available to buy right now?
I will stay out of the cam discussion. I would end up putting much more duration than most people.... LOL

You should just copy the engine that I built for my Coronet. It is an RB block with a 4.25 stroke with 7.10 rods and TF 240 heads. I used a 239/245 hyd roller from Porter Racing Heads and a Trick Flow intake manifold. That engine made 613 hp at 5900 rpm and 630 ft-lbs at 4800 rpm so it would do exactly what you want. It also idles nice at 850 rpm and is easy to drive around down. You don't need a big cam to make 600 hp with the TF heads so don't get talked into putting a race cam in there. I had to go thru 5 or 6 cams when I first switched to the TF heads before I figured out what worked with them.

If I was going to run a carb in my Coronet I'd use a 800 cfm Edelbrock. The Edelbrock carbs have a much better idle circuit than Holley carbs so they work better for typical street driving. You'll give up some top end power to a Holley but you might not ever notice it. You'll notice the idle improvement every time you drive it. I think you could make 600 hp with the 800 Edelbrock but it would need to be dialed in by someone who knows those carbs. The Edelbrock 800 isn't really designed for 600 hp so you have tweak them a bit. The other option would be to use a CH28 dual carb, dual plane intake with a pair of Edelbrock 500 cfm carbs. Buy the ones that are calibrated for dual carb use and they'll work great right out of the box.

The CH28 with dual 500 cfm carbs would be a monster on a 512 with TF heads. It would also be a very nice driver with great torque down low. Run that idea by your engine builder and see what he says. I used to have a 505 with a CH28 and dual 500 carbs but that engine had Edelbrock heads on it. It would've made more power with TF heads.

To be honest I sold my new vehicle just to get away from electronics and computers hence this build. The car already has a 440 with cam and intake a fuel cell and electric pump and regulator so the carb is all it really needs in that respect. As for drivability. I used to drive a clown BBC with no interior and no defroster or heater year round in Kansas winters 😂 this car on the other hand is very nice and well built and great paint just want the go to match. I don’t mind it being raunchy as long as it’s reliable.

I’m sold on the dual quad set up I’ve always loved the look but you’re killing me with the cam and dashing all my hopes and dreams of having a cam that scares people 😂. Thank you for all the help.

Of course now that I go look for the dual quad manifold no one has them haha

Why not learn what you need to now about fuel injection? No better time than BEFORE you drop $$$$ on a build.
If you have e85 in your area you can build a lot of power with e85 and high compression combined with port injection. It will also allow less cam if you want. Look at the ports on the new Hemis. Big. And long tube tuning. Very mild cams.
No experience here trying this, but I wonder what trick 270 heads, Indy dual plane intake with port injection and a mild performance grind of about 232/232/108 with a high ratio rocker would perform?

Just not something I’m after at the moment and no E85 readily available here.

Car in question

You can put a big cam in there if you want but it will kill power down low and it won't make more power up top since your exhaust system will kill the top end power anyway. Been there and done that a few times.

The 505 in the picture with the CH-28 manifold made 610 hp with Edelbrock heads. It used a 242/248 @ 050 hyd roller (Comp 292 grind). With TF heads it would make more power, maybe 620 or 625. Peak power would be around 5900 or 6000 rpm so no need to twist it much harder than that.

Talk to your engine builder about a hyd flat tappet or hyd roller cam. If peak power is going to be at 6000 rpm then you don't really need a solid flat tappet cam since a hyd cam should work just fine up past 6000 rpm.

You might think you need a big cam and a big carb to make 600 hp but that isn't the case with TF heads. It might have been true with 906 heads but not with the TF heads. Just follow the advice and you'll have a really nice 600/600 engine that runs smooth and makes wall to wall torque.

Thanks. Great looking engine and car btw. Also I’ll have him call Dwayne if you think his cam may be better suited then the comp you spoke of.