BBC - Advice required
 

My 68 Camaro is nearing completion, and with the way the Aussie Dollar is at the moment I should take advantage of this opportunity to puchase some performance goodies for my motor.

I'm looking to improve the performance of the motor a bit, and have considered the following options within my current budget. The motor is currently an standard bottom end 454, oval port heads, edelbrock dual plane intake, unknown cam type, tri-y extractors, high torque starter, weiand team-g water pump, alloy radiator, B & M gear drive, Romac hi-perf balancer. I don't have exhaust system run yet. I'm considering twin 3" if i go the procharger route, or twin 2 1/2 if i go N/A.

1) Purchase alloy head / intake manifold package - I'm not sure what size and brand to go with for a mild street combo. What size chamber / runners should i go for with my type of use? Edelbrock seem quite cheap in comparison to everything else. I want to retain stock exhaust port height so that i dont have problems with my extractors not fitting up etc.

2) Purchase pro-charger F1-SC series package direct from ATI - This looks really attractive to me, but how well will this perform with a set of oval port heads?

Will I have nightmares with the carby trying to get it running well with the pro-charger setup?

I would be getting a lot of weight off the front end by replacing the iron heads with alloys.

Thanks guys, I've had a fair bit of experience with small block ford stuff, but am pretty new to Big block chev stuff. I just want to make sure I spend my money wisely, as i dont have a massive budget.

What is your horsepower goal?

I don't know that i have 'horsepower goal' figure in mind. I want this car to be fun for everyday driving. I'd like it to be responsive down low to mid range, and have heaps of torque. I don't want an engine thats a slug down low, and has all top end power.

I think the procharger setup would make it god for everyday driving, and have fun with. (providing i dont get issues with a blow through carb setup)

If you have stock crappy heads whats the point of trying to force more air through them. Not experienced with pro chargers but you might as well plan on buying new heads, cam, carb, etc to take advantage of the blower. It's always a snow ball no matter what. I am sure Frank has all the answers for you. Just watch your wallet get lighter. :D

I'd make sure you build a solid bottom end with good heads (like already mentioned). Your going to need forged internals if you plan on running much boost.

Before slapping on parts, it would be best to open the engine up to see what you have. if you increase the horsepower too much your engine may not be able to handle it. You don't need to bore it out or have a big cam to run a pro charger, but the engine better be sound if you increse the horsepower 50% or more. Any quaility machine shop could check your crank, cam, pistons etc... Then once you know what you have, you could taylor the heads, intake, carb and procharger to fit your engine. That would give you the most bang for you buck!
8.5:1 compresion with forged pistons, forged crank, roller cam, alum. heads, the right intake,carb and procharger; you will have the best of both worlds. The use of lower octane fuel and alot of horsepower.
Nothing is cheap when wanting performance. Just do it right the first time and it will last.

It's a fresh 4 bolt main bottom end, with stock type internals.

What size chambers should i be going for, and runner sizes for a street combo in a N/A form then?

Check out the GMPP "Roval" ports. 290cc intake runners good low and midlift numbers. Well designed head with stock exhaust port location.
Combine with a big lift (.600s) hydro roller and beehive springs for a snappy street 454 that will rev if you want.
You might have to clearance the flanges on your headers to clear the outermost row of head bolts, but any alloy head with standard ports will have this problem.