Rounding up parts for partial 400 engine rebuild, How do I get more torque?

[WH23G3G]

Ok I'm finally starting to round up engine parts to do a partial engine rebuild on my 73 Charger's 400. I'm going to put it and transmission back in as soon as the replacement BB K-frame is sprayed and installed so I want to have it built and bagged before then. A little history of what my 400 is, since this is a recent forum change. It ran smooth and strong, compression was good when I bought the Charger about 2 years ago, brakes were too trashed to drive it home, and it had a transmission front pump seal leak. Upon taking it apart and inspecting main and rod bearings I was told the engine had approxiatmately 30,000-40,000 miles on it and crosshatches could still be seen on the cylinder walls. The engine has .040 over flat top pistons, .010 undersize rod and main bearings. It has a 1973 Cast Crankshaft and Damper, #346 Cylinder Heads, 1973 factory HP exhaust manifolds. The block itself is a 1976 Truck block originally equipped with a cast crank. It was cast 07-22-1975 at 9:00AM. I have not removed the camshaft, so I'm not sure what kind it has or the lift. I planned on replacing the rod and main bearings, oil pump, screen, timing gears and chain, freeze plugs, and installing new gaskets/valve stem seals. I will also be using a remanufactured replacement Carter Thermoquad 4BBL and the stock dual snorkel air cleaner. I know the factory numbers don't really mean much, but it was rated at 260HP, 335LBS-FT in 73. What could I do or add on to the engine to give it more torque without removing the pistons? Meaning, what would be a good camshaft for torque? To maintain a stock look under the hood, what else could be done to up the torque some more? I don't know what's been done if anything to the heads, I'm just cleaning them up checking clearances and putting new stem seals/valves in. I was going to swap the cast iron intake for a aluminum one but with a choke well for the choke hookup. What's the best bearings to use? Do I need high pressure or high volume oil pump? Then with a good exhaust system retaining the factory HP manifolds, what kind of torque could you get out of this? Other than the low deck story, and stroker story in the Mopar Muscle issues a few years ago. There's not much asked or written about the 400 in the magazines I've looked through. One guy even told me the best thing to do with a 400, is to get rid of it and put in a 440. But it seems everyone's got a 440 with a Charger or Challenger, I want to stay with a 400.   

[Chryco Psycho]

there is Nothing wrong with the 400 , it just got a bad rap due to never being built in the performance years
in a nutshell torque is rweally designed into an engine , Compression , rod ratio & stroke control torque , none of whick you want to change so all that is left is rally cam design , intake & exhaust which can Optomise the torque the engine can make shorter duration cams with less overlap help to trap cylinder pressure which helps to make more compression & increase torque , dual plane intakes help to maxize cylinder filling as well & a good exhaust will increase scavenging which also increases cylinder filling
I would use A grind like the Engle K54 or K56 hyd
if you have a 68 -70 cast 383 intake keep it , other good intakes are the M1 dual plane , Weiand stealth
proting the heads , & the intake & exhaust will help
Use Michigan 77 brgs , & a high Pressure oil pump
I didi a stock bottom end 400 last year that ran 14.4 in the 1/4 @ 94 MPH with 3.23 gears @ 4000' altitude

[WH23G3G]

I wanted to ask around and see what cams people have the most success with since there is so many different choices and companies. Which is the best quality Comp Cams, Crane Cams, Edelbrock, Isky, or Mopar Performance. I forgot to include I will be running all the necessary and original equipment Power Steering, Power Brakes, Possibly Cruise Control, and definitely an A/C conversion to a Sanden instead of RV2. I don't know if all that has to be considered into choosing the right cam. I want reasonable idle, and acceptable mileage. Basically I want a mild cam. 

For intake manifolds I was going to go with either an Edelbrock Performer #2186 or a Mopar Dual Plane Aluminum. I might know someone who has a 69-70 383 manifold. Will I be able to hook up the stock choke to the 69-70 383 manifold? Exhaust manifolds I will use the stock 1973 HP manifolds, but I was wondering is there an earlier year that didn't have a heat riser on the RH manifold? Mine is broken and I can't find an NOS repair kit and if I do it's $75-$100. It sucks too because I had my manifolds blasted and dipped and refinished in high heat cast iron gray so they look awesome. The flapper broke after someone was messing with in my garage.

For the undersize .010 beraings I've only been able to find Clevite 77 bearings, Federal Mogul, and Mopar Performance. Are Clevite 77 the best? Is that the same as Michigan 77 bearings you posted about?

A book I have with old magazine road tests says a 1973 Dodge Charger SE 440 - 280hp - 380lbs-ft did 0-60 in 7.0 seconds, 1/4 mile in 15.0 seconds at 93 mph and had an average city fuel economy of 9 mpg and 11 mpg highway. It also has a Motor Trend road test where they tested a 1974 Charger SE 440 - 220hp - 350lbs-ft that did 0-60 in 7.4 seconds, 1/4 mile in 15.4 seconds at 92.9 mph and had average fuel economy of 10-12 mpg. It shows a 1972 Dodge Charger SE 400 - 190hp - 310lbs-ft did 0-60 in 11.5 seconds, 1/4 mile in 17.6 seconds at 76 mph. So what could I expect with a mildy cammed 400, with stock heads, windage tray, dual plane aluminum intake, and stock hp manifolds. I'm wanting at worst low 15.0s possible in the 1/4 mile or high 14.0s at best. Because I want it to be a street crusier, but have the power if I decide to race it and not get embarassed off the track. My 1998 Ford Ranger 2.5 with superchip, borla exhaust, accel ignition, and cool air intake did 19.14 @ 69.90 mph in the 1/4 mile on an abandonded straight strip so I'm glad I didn't do it at the track, that would be embarassing so I don't want that to happen with the Charger. Although I do get 23-25 mpg with A/C on 90% of the time in my Ranger, so I'm happy with that. 

[Chryco Psycho]

the Clevite & Michigan 77 are the same brg
I`m not a fan of the Eddy dual plane intakes , the RPM series are decent though 

[cudaken]

 While the engine is a part have the shop check the deck height. Mopar was real bad about that. It effect everything from compersion to vale lift and head to intake alinement.

If looking for just a litte bite more, adavances the cam by 2 degress. But Neil knows is stuff and sure the cam's he listed will make your eye balls sink to the back of your head.

Cuda Ken

[Chryco Psycho]

I use Mopar , Engle or UltraDyne/ Lunati cams

[WH23G3G]

Does Clevite,Sealed Power, Federal Mogul make any hi performance main and rod bearings? Or are they all the same for a stock engine? I'll probably go ahead and order the bearings next week, while I clean everything up. I was planning on handing over the cylinder heads to the machine shop just to clean them up and put new bronze guides in. How reliable are the teflon valve stem seals? I just can't bear to think how after awhle the new Fel-Pro Polycryalite Valve Stem Seals I was going to install would just harden and cumble like the original ones I pulled off. I heard something has to be cut to install teflon valve stem seals. And some one told me you don't even need teflon valve stem seals unless you've got a dragster motor. I went ahead and bought all new valves and of course I'll get new springs when I get a cam. I want to by the best quality for a stock engine I can afford. So paying a little extra for engine parts is ok.

[Chryco Psycho]

Clevite 77 are the premium brg & the only ones I will use , you have a choice of 1/2 groove or full groove , I always use full groove brgs to get more oil under the crank
the valve seals I use are the nylon inner lined & rubber outer shell positve seal , the guide still needs to be narrowed down for the seal to fit properly 

[Ghoste]

With the full groove bearings, does it pretty much become mandatory to have a high volume pump?

[WH23G3G]

Do you have a part number on those Clevite 77 full grooved bearings? My rod and main bearings are undersize .010. I've either missed them or not come across them in the catalogs and websites I've looked. One of the more experienced guys at the local speed parts shop, said with already some miles on the motor and new bearings, that a High Pressure Oil Pump would be what you wanted not a High Volume. Is that right? I've found a Melling High Pressure Pump for $20.00 new. I'll be getting a new factory replacement oil screen too.

[Chryco Psycho]

I do not have the part # handy for them , my machinst always orders them
a high volume pump is not nessisary & I do not recoomend it with a stock pan as it can empty the pan on a long pull , a high pressure pump is cool though

[Ghoste]

So with full groove bearings you recommend a high pressure one then?

[Chryco Psycho]

Yes , i recommend using the full groove brgs & the high pressure pump as well

[WH23G3G]

This is the main bearing description from Summit, I just copy and pasted. Is this the Main Bearings you were suggessting?

CLE-MS877P10

$69.69
Estimated Ship Date:  Today
      Application         Show All    
Brand:   Clevite Engine Parts
Product Line:   Clevite P Series Main Bearings
Bearing Usage:    Direct replacement
Grooved Bearing:    Yes
Groove Location:    Upper and lower
Groove Style:    Full
Bearing Material:    Tri metal, TM-77
Quantity:    Sold as a set of 5.

Main Bearings, P Series, Full Groove, .010 in. Under Size, Tri Metal, Mopar Big Block, B/RB, Set of 5

    * Check to make sure this part fits your application

For high-revving engines.
P-Series main bearings are the oldest members of the Clevite 77 bearing family, and are intended for high-revving engines. To compensate for the high load factors and distortion in these engines, they have higher eccentricity and a high crush factor. P-Series bearings are built on steel backings with extra-thin overlays, to prevent overlay fatigue. In addition, the oil grooves on most applications extend all the way around both halves for better oiling.




Do they have any special rod bearings like these main bearings? I've placed an order for the Mr. Gasket Full Gasket kit and a new Mopar Performance Oil Pump Screen. The cam I decided to go with is from Comp Cams it's a .454/.454 lift and it comes with valve springs, retainers, stem seals, lifters, and a double roller timing set for about $384 from Summit. Is that considered a mild cam? My 1973 factory service manual states that the factory 400-4BBL and 440-HI-PO had a camshaft with Intake lift .450/ Exhaust lift .464, at zero lash, whatever that means. I wanted good torque and acceptable mileage when cruising, I have A/C and Power Brakes if that makes a difference in cam selection. What cam do some of you'll use for 383-400 powered Mopars for a street car/cruiser?