So... i know im stupid and all....but i was just wondering... What (besides the displacement) is the difference between a 426 and the stock 6.1 with a head/cam upgrade in it... I just am wondering for my own information cause...well...i dont know lol again...i know im stooooooopid...but i gotta learn somehow right?
kind of a wide open question steve??? what exacty do you mean by "the difference"???? speed, power, reliability, torque, etc??????
good point... i mean the actual mechanical parts....what is the difference...or is it basically the same physical parts of a 6.1...just the bore and stroke are different?
then this might be a stupid question...but could you just use your stock block and stroke that rather than getting a whole new engine? or am i over simplfying it?
it seems to me (again this is from a very NON expert)...that if you could just get a stroker kit (if thats a good way of describing it) and bascially turn the stock 6.1 into a 426 with the bigger bore/stroke along with the new heads/cam...it would be cheaper...maybe? Kinda like stroking a 302 to a 331 for mustangs....
i know...i guess i should have said... "all the stuff you need to stroke it along with the new heads/cam" instead of making it seem like just the heads/cam was needed to stroke it lol
I know you must bore the block for the pistons but I do not know if it requires more block prepping but I would also like to know.
The biggest importance of these 392 and 426 "kits" (crank,rods,pistons) is they are "forged" components which are WAY stronger and lighter (yep...stronger AND lighter) material and can take the HP increase even if you choose to run a "boost" of some sort compared to the "cast iron" rods and pistons in a stock 6.1. If you buy it built as a "short block" it SHOULD be a balanced and blueprinted short block. This is a VERY simple explanation of blueprinting and balancing. 1. All excess and unnecessary material removed from block. 2. All clearances are correct 3. All major components measured and weighed and then matched for location by weight and clearance. Pistons and rods are "balanced" by grinding to equal weight. 4. Block assymbled and all bolts installed corectly to be torqued to correct procedure. All assymbly components (bearings, pistons, piston rings, piston rod length, piston rod journals, crank lobes, block cylinders and block height) have a slight +/- tolerance to size. Knowing this tolerance will help to get the best bearing for each crank lobe and best piston for each cylinder. You can do this your self with a kit or just buy a built "short block" and let someone else worry about missing something.
A 7ltr (426) has custom pistons, rings, rods and crank. The block has to be modified to allow clearance for the piston skirt and rods. You can build a forged 6.1 and not modifiy the block, still retain the piston squirters and you would have a strong reliable engine that could be turbo'd or supercharged.
A 426 in this engine configuration...i.e. the 6.1l...has a bigger piston (wider) requiring your block to be properly bored and finished to accept this piston. It also had a longer travel (stroke). Both of these features require custom pistons and a custom crankshaft. If you tried to run this setup in our cars the computer would see data outside of it's programmed area and try to compensate unsuccesfully. CMR tuning puts us in the game. I am not sure where 392 engines fall as far as stroke and bore but anything that get farther away from the stock configuration will more than likely require more tuning.
Size---Bore----Stroke 6.1L---4.055---3.580 6.4L---4.055---3.795 7.0L---4.080---4.080 You can buy the 4.080 crank, 6.125" rods, and custom 4.055" pistons and have a 418 instead of a 426, but you will not have to bore the block. However, you will need to stroke clearance the block for the added stroke. The 6.4L/392 needs no boring or stroke clearance and you can retain the use of the oil squirters.
Hey Stevo - Stroke THIS!!! j/k I think one important thing to remember that with our engines, there isn't that much room to bore. Also don't forget about the angles. The rod angle will get worse and could become a weak point when you bore and stroke. I don't think this has been an issue with our engines though.