Quote:
Originally Posted by Scott65
Tom, for my curiosity, was the Luhn engine installed in a vehicle? Stock(style, solid maybe) engine mounts, or an engine plate/mid plate? And was it launched hard on the strip? My personal opinion ( from reading on this forum about split production Pontiac blocks) is that while impressive, I don't think I could sink the money in a production block at 850+ horsepower and feel anywhere close to good about it. I know others have done it with success, at least for a time. And for a long time there wasn't an option. I feel like the OP shouldn't leave this discussion thinking it's anything more than a semi calculated risk to try that. And as has been noted, a trip to the junkyard will yield 1000 hp capable stuff with the corporate stuff. I believe if you go aftermarket block on the corporate stuff, you can get 6 head bolts per cylinder to go along with the cross bolted mains... It takes real dedication to stay with the Pontiac stuff, and I applaud those that have and do...
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When talking about the Pontiac block, and splitting them. One sure way to split a block is to use the 1955-1969 stock motor mount holes just above the oil pan mating surface. You can exacerbate the situation by using a solid mount on the left side. Using the early OEM mounts spreads the torque load over only 1 bulkhead (#3). The 1970-1979 mounts spread the load over 2 bulkheads (#2, and #3). If you anchor the left cylinder head you use all the bulkheads, plus the water crossover and intake manifold to the right bank.
Splitting blocks has a lot to do with how you choose to mount the engine in the chassis, not just because it's an 50 year old piece of iron. Pontiac changed the mounting system when they conceived the 455 long stroke engines. I believe the engineers knew that spreading the load over only 1 bulkhead wasn't going to work long term.
