I had a chance to sit down with the guy who runs the only performance machine shop in my area today. Incidentally I found out he started in the machine shop business when he was 16, working for my Dad in his shop before I was born. Had a fantastic talk kicking over old times. Long story short he is not a fan of the 193 heads i have except in what they were designed for which was trucks. He even showed my flow charts and they are quite duds after 3500 rpm. His recommendation without spending money on another engine is running the 350hp cam RPM and others suggested, run some aftermarket springs with good pushrods and he assured me it would be a good setup. Actually a similar cam is made with a little different geometry but with the same lift/duration, that works a little better, and is made by several different companies as some of you have stated. Those old engines were around 10.25-1 so the newer grinds run better with lower compression and regular gas. (This was his advice, I was just the student). $600 for all the machine work. Valve job, boring, cam bearings and freeze plugs installed, new pistons pressed on, all cleaned up and ready to go. Even included bead blasting my intake. Can't go wrong with that.
I had not dealt with the 193 heads either until I happened upon this engine, which I have not a dime in (one of those trade deals). 193's are TBI heads from 88- I believe 95, then Chevy went vortec. The vortec heads are much better, but the intake bolts go straight down, not at an angle so intakes aren't interchangeable. I honestly don't care about high performance with this engine, I only want to run enough cam to make the engine a little happier, just because I want to run the old school single top. My engine machinist put it this way. A 2011 GT mustang at 411 hp, had a power to weight ratio of 8.75 to 1. He assures me that we will get 300 hp out of this engine even with these heads. Even if project Obie comes in at 2000 lbs, and hits only 275 Hp, that's a power to weight ratio of 7.27-1. Basically 1 hp for every 7.27 pounds of car, and that's way way lower than just about every car ever made. I know i could get a lot more performance with a better setup but that = mo $$. I'm not a Hotrod expert by ANY means, but just knowing math, I think all these cars even with a bone stock engine are as we say, "10 pound of shizit in a 1 pound bag!" I left my need for speed in a hospital room in Cochran Georgia, when I took a late model sportsman car off a very high bank track and flipped it only God knows how many times. After I learned to walk again I enjoy the races from the comfort of my couch, big ol tv, sweat Tea in hand, beautiful bride beside me! And yes firing up an engine for the first time and hearing her come to life NEVER gets old!I've never heard of 193 heads, maybe they came out after I got out of hot rodding. Back in the day, I was a big fan of the 194 heads from the mid-'60s and '70s. They were cheap and plentiful, and although they don't flow as well at 8K as 202s, there's virtually no difference for street use with the right cam. If you've got truck heads that can't breathe above 3,500, I'd seriously consider starting with something else. Good luck with the project, it's always fun bringing a new motor to life.
Jack
Here is one area where the fish always rise to the bait. You're not hitting the lure, and in the long run, you'll be a lot happier for it.
My machinist (Steve) told me this morning if I would just leave that intake in the trash can where it belongs, he would come by my shop after I got the engine back from him and all the parts together, he would assemble the engine for free, then come by after I got it put in the car and dial it all in for me. All I had to do was get the parts HE told me to get, and supply the canned adult beverages. And he said when I put the poster together all us "show not go" guys put up by the cars at the show, put his company name as engine builder. It's a hard thing to turn down!
It's not necessarily so smart, as it is just plain-old common sense. Unfortunately, when a guy is building a street rod of any kind, he has visions of billet roller cams, 16.5:1 compression ratios and dual Dominators on a sheet metal intake dancing in his head. Of course, those are usually the same people who want to run stock valve springs, stock torque converters and 2.74:1 rear gears. I cannot begin to count the number of times someone would walk into the shop and tell me they wanted the biggest cam they could get, but still run stock valvetrain components and a stock converter. That isn't how to build power, that is just pi**ing away money.
