TOPIC: Rebuild Project with New LongBlock 350

Wanted to put a note out here that I am tearing the old engine out of my tired daily driver 93 Silverado. I'm going back with an L31-R longblock 350, larger throttle body, larger cam and TBI injection. I will be implementing as many technologies as I can right now, possibly more in the future. The new engine will start with 9.4 compression ratio, i might have the heads shaved in the future if I see good results.

To start with:
New Groove in larger throttle body.
Cold vortex system by Dr. Dan (transplant from honda civic)
Hotter Coil, distributor, wires and plugs. (No plasma yet, sorry Tracy)
HHO system, 4-5 liters per minute at maximum throttle. 0 liters per minute at idle
Strong magnets on fuel line right before injection
Tuning my OBDI GM truck with equipment from Moates.net ( I will be burning my own chips and tuning to exactly what I need)

I am expecting 25 mpg out of my new 300 hp 350, i'm still pushing a brick down the road so i'll have to look into some aerodynamics if I want to get close to 30.

Still waiting for parts and the engine to come in, I will update with pics when I can.

KGB

Hi Ken, an interesting project there.

So, will the new TBI be an aftermarket one, or a different GM one? No need to apologise on the Plasma stuff, that is a pretty full deal on it's own. I would recommend the absolute lowest resistance Ohms plug wires you can get, though. Less Ohms equals more energy at the plug gap, leveraging all else in the Ignition system. IT's cool to have an HHO setup that is output referenced to load/RPM's!

also on HHO- have you talked to Dan about Merrick's Gas? There was some very interesting info on it floating around the Net several yrs ago. Sounded like a real advance in the field. 9.4 sounds like a great comp. ratio for efficiency, are ya using any of the Swirl Port heads? Not up on the GM stuff here, maybe this Long block already has 'em...?

Notice, I'm not even asking about the Groove, as we know what IT can do! LOL

Good for you, Ken, keep us posted!

tracy G

Ken - can you elaborate on the effect of magnets on the fuel line, and possibly make suggestions about field strength and where to source some? In your experience, do they have that much of an effect on mileage/economy?

Also, you mention Dan Merrick's cold vapor setup - is he still active? are you in contact with him? could you possibly encourage him to return here?

I'm sure you'll have no problem and all sorts of fun finding aftermarket upgrades for that engine...Granatelli has 80kV and higher coils (compared to the factory 40 kV) to match with their Zero Ohm (and yeah, I bought some and measured: it's true!!) wires. (I'm planning on coupling mine with FineWire Iridium plugs because my research indicates the smaller electrode of harder, more conductive metal lasts longer and makes bigger sparks more easily...watch my Buick Rendezvous thread for updates)

Thanks guys,

Tracy I haven't been able to talk to Dan about the Merricks Gas and i'm moving from the swirl port heads to the vortec heads with this engine. I could have kept the swirls but the brand new engine was too good of a deal with the cost of machining in my area.

Sound, I looked into the Granatelli wires and right now I just can't do $170 for a set after what i've already thrown down into this build. Maybe in the future, the msd 50-80 ohm will have to do for now.

Will be interesting, the edelbrock 7116 manifold I just received only has one vacuum port on the manifold and i'm going to be using that for my brakes. Will have to use one of the tbi ports for the map sensor and gauges. That will hurt the groove a little, but I think it will still work well enough with everything else i'm doing. We will see.

KGB

Order direct from Granatelli. That will save some of the cost

KGB- I think the vortec's are better heads anyhow, right?

IF you are getting new MSD wires (red Super Conductor?) I'd just double check w/ an Ohm meter to be sure.

The info I saw on Merrick's Gas several yrs ago was interesting to say the least. I think it was shorthand-ed as HHHN. As in more Hydrogen's, and something 'bout the O2 being bound to the nitrogen. I think Merricks gas uses Ammonia in the water/electrolyte mix. That's part of the difference from regular HHO. More to it than this, of course! Dan Merrick is a smart guy.

A side note- Aaron Murakami has put out info re: Stanley Meyer and a major key part of his whole deal. It had to do with nitrogen in the gas mix. I can't remember the whole exact deal now.

but I recall in general, that Nitrogen is regarded as a part of the Expansion Medium in the combustion chamber. Nitrogen is a much higher % than O2 in the atmosphere, and is regarded as inert far as combustion goes. The Expansion Medium idea holds that what actually provides the power to push the piston, is the heat from combustion makes N and water vapor, and other inert trace gasses, expand. And, that it's the heated expanding inert stuff, that builds the pressure to push the piston.

That's likely why, so many people note that the engine "just runs better" after a rainstorm.

For vacuum ports, If you feel comfortable, you might use a tee on the brake booster port. Chrysler used a NPT threaded metal tee in the brake booster port on the intake manifold back in the 70's. There would be small nipples coming off the same metal tee to give vac. source to other stuff. I think Aaron Cheek talked once about relocating the MAP sensor vac. port, away from the TB to maybe a manifold runner; that this gave some benefit. My current belief is, that as long as there is no vacuum leak, having a vacuum source be on a TBI won't hurt the Groove. It may be that moving to a manifold runner from a "stronger" "constant" central vacuum source like the TBI--for the MAP sensor--might give a weaker vacuum signal to the MAP.

Might even be that there is a difference in results, even though a hand held vacuum gauge won't show a difference. Happens too fast. The vacuum pulse (pressure drop) in a manifold runner would theoretically be strongest during that cylinder's intake stroke. So, for a V-8, that stronger pulse is during the first HALF, of 8 % of the total firing order. Peaking out at 90 deg. crank angle (intake stroke) for that cylinder. Going out as far as I dare on this limb- The pre-OBD2 ECU's, could just be less sensitive to relocating the MAP sensor vacuum source, than '96 and newer ones...?

"Allowing" you to "get away" with a MAP Sensor vacuum source Relocate Mod... And- I think I also remember, was it Scott Castleberg, who mentioned doing this MAP Sensor Relocation mod, to a late 90's Ford 5.4L...??? isn't that a Frequency output type MAP, on an OBD2 setup? Come to think of it, was it Scott and Aaron talking about doing this MAP Mod in later model OBD2 Ford V-8's. Like, they had both tried it with good results....hhhmmmmm...... ? And, was it this kind of thing, that gave rise to the MAPSTER, with Ron...??? Am I revealing Secret Gadgetman Tricks here? Just my 3 1/2 cents!

Anyhow, it sounds like a sweet build, good luck w/ it!

Tracy G

Starting to put things together, the 42mm bored throttle body came in and I noticed that when I use the large bit i'm probably going to cut right through. I'll have to build it up, but it should work well.

Regarding the magnets, I get mine from a place in dallas called 'magnets 4 less'. field strength is as much as possible while not collapsing the line and killing your hands. I have tried 3 magnets all in opposition to each other and had great luck, my new approach will be 4. I can feel the difference when I am driving but i've never been able to tune the engine tight enough to see fuel savings. I hope to have that chance in the coming months with my new tuning programs.


KGB

Just to clarify, "in opposition" means similar poles pointed inward to the fuel flow, magnetism fighting itself?
The inlet to the fuel rail (outlet of fuel supply line, from the in-tank pump) on my engine has a 90 degree bend in it, but it's aluminum. I'm wondering if a 2nd set on the crossover might help too...

KGB- that bored TB is interesting. As you say, you can just backfill w/ epoxy before Grooving. How much larger are these bores from stock? I can tell right away they are larger, just not how much. Will this be on a stock manifold, or other? Just my 2 cents here- I've Grooved 2 or 3 of these in stock form. As it's a TBI, and the intake manifold is a "wet" design, I would opt for a divided plenum, like a 2-plane carbureted design would be. To be honest, right now I don't remember just what the stock intake man. looks like. If I wanted to increase plenum volume, to boost power, I would try to use a 2 hole spacer under this TB, to maintain velocity. To keep the throttle response sharp. But, that's just me!

Are ya going to use stock injectors, or larger ones?

That TB looks cool!

Tracy G

Sound,
Yes, I meant the magnets opposing one another. The longer the gas is in the magnetic field the better, on my engine i'll have to move the coil which I hope to do when I install the new engine.

Tracy,
Yes, they are bored out to 42mm for 625cfm of airflow. With the vortec heads on this L31-r crate it will give me the intake ability to use the engine to its fullest. I'm using the Edelbrock 7116 performer rpm intake and i'll attach the tbi with an adapter. I'm sticking with the stock injectors, but I bought a pump for a 96 truck and pressure adjustment for my tbi so I can pump up the pressure to the injectors. Stock tbi usually runs at 9-13 psi, I want to be able to run around 14-15 psi without over taxing my pump.

Looking forward to the build and then learning how to tune it all up. The more I look into it, the more I can do with this computer and actually take advantage of the tech i'm going to be installing. This weekend will be no extras, so i can get the base tune down and just start driving it. Once she sees 3000 miles i'll have hho, groove, magnets, ozone and maybe a couple other tricks I've been wanting to try.

I'll try to post more pics of the install later.

KGB

Sounds like it will be a Thumper, KGB!

So, 625 CFM. Same airflow as an Edelbrock Performer 4 bbl, the carb. I pictured here recently. On that Edelbrock intake, with those heads and overall build. Except- Grooving that TBI will be more effective than Grooving a Performer carb, since the Grooves will be wider. I'd expect VERY good throttle response. The ratio of "Groove area to throttle position %" is favorable.

yeah, I think this engine will get ya to the store and back jest fine!!

Tracy G

I am still working on this project and refining the spark and fuel tables. Need to get this thing perfect so when I put the groove on the new larger throttle body.

Learning all about adjusting fuel and air while programing these early gm tbi systems. I have the ability to burn custom chips and will help those with these motors as I can. Steep learning curve but its the best way to get the most out of these engines.

Ken