"...For calculating Super Stock NHRA combos it is a good idea to take the rated HP by NHRA and multiply times 2, and that would be the approximate engine dyno HP required to run a second under assuming you do all the drive train and chassis things very well..."
I want to point out that the specs he mentioned, including those ridiculous .700 lift cams & super high spring pressures, are what's needed "to run a second under".
I don't really know how many ways I can say this.
YES, I realize that it takes a LOT of money & VERY extreme parts, in order to run a sec under.
I think that has been established well beyond any possible doubt.
BUT, I am trying to establish exactly what it would take to build a Pontiac Super Stocker that will just barely run it's index. If the index is an 11-flat, then the car will run at least an 11 flat. Does everybody reading this understand what I'm saying ???
From some of the calculators I mentioned, it appears that only around 500hp, or slightly less is required to run 10.90's-11.00's.
I think there have been LOTS of builds here of both 400 & larger cube builds that have made that much power, with iron heads. And we're talkin about pump gas street engines, with streetable cams, many of which were Voodoo.
For this build, we can use race gas & run any cam we want. Can also run a Victor, or any other single carb intake that will fit under the hood. As mentioned, the car can run a small converter with any stall speed needed, as well as a trans brake, & lightened TH350 or TH200 trans.
So, how about some of you guys who know a LOT about engine building try to help come up with a recipe that will make the needed 480-500hp, without fully ported heads, or a .600 & larger lift roller cam, with huge spring pressures.
I think this can be done. But I'm not an engine builder. My 455 Ventura bracket car ran 7.30's, on our 1/8 mile track. It was just a basic 455, with unported #215 heads, a Torker 2 intake, a 750 vac Holley, a decent HFT cam, that would idle below 1000 rpm. It couldn't have had much over 400hp/500 torque. Other than needing higher octane gas, it could have been very streetable.
Also, the 10" converter was what I call a tight 10". I could only hold the brake to 2000 rpm. So, I have to wonder how much quicker the car would have been, with a small loose converter, & a bigger HFT cam. I think just those 2 changes, if exactly the correct parts, the car could have run very close to 11-flat, in the 1/4. The car also had a long tail TH400, which didn't shift real crisp. It wasn't a light car either. It was a hatchback, with roll bars, ladder bars & frame connectors. The NHRA legal weight is right at 3500 lbs. And that is with a 350 engine/TH350 trans.
http://www.classracerinfo.com/Engine...px?ENGINE=2088
I think this can be done. So, do any of you guys have links to any engine builds that appear to show that, with the legal minor changes needed to make it SS legal, might make the needed 500hp ?
Something that might work would be a 9.5 CR unported iron head build, that made 450hp or more, with a streetable cam & Q-jet. If you took one of these engines, & swapped the cam out for a bigger HFT cam that would not be streetable, but would add 30-50hp, @ a higher rpm than the street cam used.
A lot of guys here are always talkin about not using a cam that will leave power on the table. Well, here's a chance for guys to recommend a HFT cam that won't leave any power on the table. Don't have to worry about idle or vac, just max power at the correct rpm for the engine.
I've read of the Stock guys trying lots of cams before finding the one that ran the best in their car. Since we're talkin about lower budget builds, I'd like to first consider only the big HFT cams, which can use Rhoads V-max lifters, & reasonable spring pressure.
If it turns out that a SFT or a roller cam is absolutely necessary, then so be it. But, even then, it needs to be something reasonable, that doesn't require the super high spring pressures.