hey im building up a chevy 400 that in got not long ago, i was going to buy a cam an pistons from northern auto parts, i would need so info to get the right parts. this is my first time buy ing and buikding up a 400 and i dont really know about the cams, what would be a good kit for a street 400, probably a good carb and headers only, im trying to get 350-400 hp, any tips ? going in a 1979 cutlass with 5 speed manuel

 

well first off what is you buget ? its easy to build a 400 sbc to make 400 hp.
are you geting new heads or using the 882's ? because the 882's have a 76cc chamber and makes for low compression .
as for cams check out comp cams extreme energy series .they work well, i have them in both my 400 sbc.get a 750 cfm carb and long tube headers .

 

im going to go check out a set of 642 this week end, i dont have any yet. the buget is just the lowest possible,

 

yeah if i remeber the 642 are 350 heads and will need to be driled for steam holes.
but when you get them find out the cc's for the chambers then you can get pistons to get a good compression.and from there you can get the rest of your combo.
you should be able to built a stout motor for around 1500$ maybe less.

 

thats about what i had in mind for the build, i am already aware about the steam holes, gonna do them at the shop, where could i go to get the cc's checked, or how to do it myself? after having the cc's how can i know how to get the right cam lift and, i heard about some diffrent rocker ratio? what does this affect ?

 

just bring the heads to the machine shop to get them cc'ed it will not cost that much .and they may even know off hand what they are saving you alot of time .
as for a cam get somthing like XE274H or XE268H .and as for rockers for the sbc there 1.5 and 1.6 i myself prefer the 1.5 .the 1.6 will get you a bit more lift. but if you chose the cam you want all you need is the 1.5

 

k so it set for the rockers, its gonna be 1.5, an dthe cc's, ill get that check, that will tell me if the heads have already been lapped down, the cams u gave me a for a 350, im building a 400, am i better off with these, or 400 cams ?

 

small block chevy cam is the same 265-400.