Cheapskate tip of the day: coat the carb gasket with chapstick. It will seal but won’t stick. Especially useful if you’re gonna have the carb on and off frequently
I love the 366 and 427 truck block engines. they are basically a tall deck (.400) version of the regular big block chevy. a standard big block has a deck height of 9.800 inches where a truck big block is 10.200 inches. it was made .400 taller to accommodate pistons with 2 oil rings for better oil control. on the 427 version you can run any standard 427 piston and a .400 longer connecting rod. same goes if you add a 454 crank, you can use standard 454 pistons with a +.400 connecting rod. standard big block rods are 6.135, which give is a terrible 1.63:1 rod to stroke ration. the longer rod will dwell longer at top and bottom dead center making more torque down low. with a .400 longer rod you end up at 1.74:1 Rod/Stroke ration. most engine builders consider 1.8:1 to be ideal. The draw back to the 366 and the reason most big block guy hate them is the cylinder bore size. no one makes a performance forged piston for a big block in that size it's just 3.938. which means you would need custom pistons to get the compression up. the best piston out there for a 366 is the H811CP from Speed Pro. its still a 4 ring, but is 3/32, 5/64, 5/64, 3/16 ring package but in a more compact package. allowing for the longer 6.535 connecting rod. and it has a 15-cc dome to help with compression. which is another issue with the 366. big block heads have huge combustion chamber. so, it's hard to get even 8:1 compression on a 366. also, availability for aftermarket intakes and distributors is limited, but better than when i was just getting into cars back in the late 80s early 90s. you can get aftermarket manifolds for tall beck blocks, but they are all tunnel rams or single plane intakes. Pantronix makes a distributer that has a slip collar #D305710 for big blocks and truck blocks. one other thing, those heads are the big oval ports heads. they are a little too big for a 366 and not a good match. they hurt torque down low and the 366 cannot rev high enough to take advantage of them. a good head from them is the early bathtub closed chamber 602 castings, they are 98cc heads. would put compression around 9.0:1 with the speed pro pistons. the other draw back to the 366 is the small bore. it shrouds the intake valves on big block heads. so it hurts flow in to the engine. there is nothing you can do to fix that. you also need a special timing chain for tall deck blocks, but they are readily available since GM 572 and 632 engine use the same 10.200 deck block. bottom line is that the 366 is really disliked because you can make a performance engine out of it like you could with 427 truck version. that said the 366 is a stump puller down low. and honestly doesn't even need that Q-jet, since you will never really be int eh 4 barrels on it. the 4 barrels don't kick in until around 3000 RPM. and by that time, you have revved that 366 about to the limit. it would be much better off with a Holley 500cmf 2bbl. just my 2 cents. I had a friend in high school that built a 427-truck engine with a 280-comp magnum cam and the old TRW high-performance pistons and .400 longer rods. and put it in a 1970 nova, every time you would shit it at full throttle, it felt like the rear end was going to roll out from underneath. those were the days.
@@ryangulley2051 GM/Chevy has never offered a 540 create motor. GM skipped everything in between 502 and sent straight to 572. all 540s are either aftermarket create motors, or strokers built end users or other shops. which is why I didn't include it. you can build a 540 with a standard 9.800 deck block. which is also reason why I didn't include. I have nothing against 540. I used to use a 540 aluminum Donvan's for my Hondo SK drag boat in the late 80s. I also left out the 496/8.1L vortec and 502/8.2 liter as well. again becase they use the standard 9.800 inch block. As far as stroking tall deck 427. I say go for it. it's no different than a standard BBC. in fact the 427 BBC tall deck truck motor is better than the standard deck BBC. an easy and cheap way to go is the 454 factory crank, +.400 rods and a standard 3 ring 454 piston of your choice. becase of its better rod to stroke ration. However, if I was going to stroke one, then for me it would be a 496 all day long. 4.310 Bore (.060 over) and 4.25 stroker crank (.025 longer than a 454 and .500 longer than a 427). the only difference between a 496 stroker kit for a standard deck block would be the +.400 length connecting rods. At that point you need to look at your application. are you building this for a Truck for Towing or a high-performance engine for a streetcar or the track. for a Truck you want torque, so I would go with the Bigger oval port aluminum heads. the combo I would use is Edelbrock Performer heads 60459, Performer RPM intake #7161, a 750 carb, and a flat tappet cam with around 230 degrees @.050. it should make around 550HP, and close to 600lbf torque. you would want to run a TH400 or a 4L80 series transmission. since no manual transmission designed for a truck will hold that torque. for a hot street cars I would stay close to this combo, only a bigger cam. something close to 245 @ .050 on the intake and 250 on the exhaust with a lift around .620 lift. it would be very close to 600 HP and somewhere close to 570 lbf torque, again transmission choice would be an issue, so a Muncie M22 Rock Crusher 4-speed, a TKX 600 series 5 speed, or a TR 6060 for a manual. or again a TH400 or 4l80 series automatic. if I was building it for the drag strip then the heads i would use would be the Edelbrock 60559, you would lose some torque down low but trade it off up on the high end. I would also use a Victor Jr and 850-1000cfm carb cam in the 260 range @ .050. and it would be close to 650HP and 625 torque. add a small shot of Vitamin N and you are well over 750 HP. stuff it in a lightweight car like a 1960-1973 Camaro and you are in the low 10s if you can keep that beast hooked up. i had a buddy in High school that had a 427 tall deck motor in a 70 Nova back in the 80s. that thing was a killer, every time he would shift, it felt like the rear end was going to roll out from under the car.
I used to haul steel with an old GMC it had a TD 427 in it, cast iron headers I was between 40 at 50,000 lbs loaded, 5 speed manual with a two speed rear end. That engine was a beast, happily dragging 45K down highway at 65mph all day, fun times.
I started my career as a school bus mechanic in 1990, 75% of our buses were GMC’s with 366 engines. These things ran good and rarely gave trouble. I enjoy your videos because I’ve always wondered how a 366 would run in a pickup. Keep up the good work!
Good point, I distinctly remember the 366ci shown on the option stickers on our GMC school buses in the 80s when I went to high school. When I was little they had all GMCs but in the late 80s they started switching a lot to International gas buses.
@@JimBronson when I drove a bus back in high school that was the engine in my bus. Then in 91 the Hyster 250 and 300 fork trucks used the 366 in them.
keep em coming, it'll catch on and views will pick up, you've got something going here, people love the rawness and the mistakes ( everyone makes them ) cause if you don't screw up, you're not working, keep pumping them out, it'll work
old guy here your shop looks like mine .we put the 427's in pull trucks they work well,and we leave them like we find them, there is lots of room in the squares.keep up the work you will do just fine.
I've always wondered about these engines, great to find your videos to inform me about what they are. I think they'd make a great and different vintage truck build. I'm thinking anything from '60's to '80's 3/4 - 1 ton build. Could be interesting! Also interested in that knock-off Q-jet, too. ...and that green doesn't look bad.
Cal, love your content and your presentation style. Easy to follow and understand. Keep up the great start to a soon to be a very popular video channel. Never knew anything about these engines, probably going to be a regular stump puller!!!!!
Great channel. You are passing down valuable information to the next generation. These tall decks were pretty well used years ago before all the aftermarket stuff showed up. These engines ae a great base for a performance build. And inexpensive to buy. Hot tip form farm country, find Massy Ferguson 510 combines and you will find a small block worth of attention as well.
Loving it man. There's almost nothing around on the 366 let alone talldeck engines in general. I'm having my own adventure with a 1980 c60 366 so this is a good little thing to dig into.
I think you have hit on a combination of being a normal, honest guy who likes this engine, that has almost no content on the UTube. Road in many old grain trucks as a kid on Grandpas farm in North Dakota, Brings back good memories. Can't wait to see it in the truck!
Saw the first tall deck video and came to the channel for the next one. Sad to see more of the build but I'm interested to see how it performs. I don't see an issue with monetizing these videos being as RU-vid will anyway and just make money off your effort. Might as well not let them have all of it. From a fellow Canadian to another, you seem like an interesting and knowledgeable guy. I'm interested to see how your channel develops!
I found your channel because I was watchung a channel called The Reluctant Gearhead and he was building a TD 427...then I searched 366 BBC because I wanted to see someone using one and I found your last video and subbed.
I appreciate your videos. The 366 is an engine I recall from when I was a kid, 50 years ago . I’ve always had an interest in GM medium duty trucks. Thank you!
It seems like a truly awesome project I subscribed 10 minutes into the first episode obviously other people find it as interesting as I do. I think that if you were looking for a gas truck for heavy trailering it makes sense. I’ve never known anyone one who put one of these motors in a light truck before. I do know of a guy who replaced a 427 with a 454 in an old tandem Chevy he said it was a dog really disappointing and went and found another 427 to swap in that says a lot.
Alot of the reason the TD 427 and 366 are dogs stock is the governed carb/intake combo they only rev like 4000rpms stock, the tall pistons and heavy crank don't help either, the TD 427/366 do have closed chamber oval port heads, forged crank, good rods, four bolt main and heavy block castings going for them. It would take swapping to thinner pistons, 6.535" rods, re-balancing the crank, some head porting, sciencing out the quench between the piston top and the closed portion of the chamber and possibly adding larger intake valves then running a good intake however a 427TD can easily beat a peanut port light duty thin casting 2 bolt cast crank 454 if you are willing to do the work, most people just aren't willing or capable of doing that. Now that these big blocks are becoming more expensive and hard to find, SBCs and LSs are getting more expensive, one of these tall decks is becoming more attractive. They're built with good stuff, if one was willing to do the work they could be the basis for a huge power build. If you could take a 366 out to even 4.094" 396 or better yet 4.125" 402 size and work the heads I believe you could easily have a 500hp engine n/a or run a 6.4" rod, mill the deck 0.015" with a 4" 454 crank and have a 421 or 427ci tall deck 4 bolt main to build on. I think that a 366/427 TD build could easily handle 1000+hp with boost compared to a 350/383sbc based build.
I love the 366 engine. We had a 1978 C65, with the 366 in it that we used in a feed business. It was one of the best engines I was ever around. Always added like it had an oversize cam in it.
That big damper/pulley unit, if you know somebody with a lathe, he can part-off the additional grooves you don't need for your application ; I once bought a 350 from a plow truck, and I cut off the extra groove for the hydro pump on my small, but very usefull lathe!
I put a sniper 2 on my 366, mated with a msd 6al and msd cap, rotor, coil and also put electric fans. I just have to get the timing set properly and go do a long enough test drive so the sniper exam can learn and program itself. It’s in a 82 ‘20 long box with a 350 transmission 208 transfer case and 3:73’s, long tube headers, dual 2.25” pipes into a dual in dual out single chamber muffler into 3” tips coming out at the rear corners
I bought a complete 396 with a steel crank standard bore long block at a car parts flea market. Paid $100 in about 1989. Got it home and it turned out to be a 366. Sold it to a friend who needed the crank for a 427 he was building! Sold it for the $100 I paid for it!
Be interesting to know what the cam specs were for the 366/427, but I imagine pretty lame. I'm sure a cam swap would really wake it up. I had a 454 with the truck heads, an Edelbrock performer, Comp Cams High Energy 268 and full length headers in my 3/4 ton square with an auto and 3.42 gears and it was a torque monster! Set the cruise with the trailer and never slow down on the hills. Subbed and looking forward to your next video.
The 366/427 have decent oval port heads, with a bit of porting, valve/spring upgrade they are way better than peanut port heads like you probably had unless it you had like Vortec 7400 heads or something. Most forums are claiming a 366 can only take a 0.030" over which is 3.995", yet they say a TD 427 can go as far as 0.125" over at 4.375", that sounds ludicrous to me, I can't imagine a 366 without some sort of defect like core shift couldn't go to at least 4.094" or 4.125" to make a 396 or 402 and once that is done and the Oval ports are worked or perhaps a 4" crank from a 454 is added with 6.4" rods and 0.015" milled off the deck(as opposed to the same pistons with a 6.535" rod and 3.76" crank) to make a 421 or 427 from a 366, you should be able to out perform a junkyard peanut port 454 no problem. If it's worth the trouble, it's tough to say, at least you will have the heavy duty 4 bolt mains and the much heavier thicker block than a typical light duty 454 from the mid '70s to mid '80s. I would imagine a 396 or 402 built 366 with good rods and pistons would be a great alternative to the typical turbo LS. The only thing that I see as a more viable option right now for the money is a PSI 8.8L if you are willing to port the heads and run an LS computer like Holley. 535ci for $2000 from a core supplier in Illinois, 547ci with a 0.050" overbore 4.400" bore 4.500" stroke.
I like that you are using a Qjet, they might not be as tunable as a Holley...however if you are not using efi of some sort then you might as well get that luscious Qjet sound...hopefully you run a quiet enough exhaust that the deep induction moan is there. I have thought about running a Qjet on a 6L LQ4 for my GTO or the 393w with AFR heads in my F250 just for that sound. If it makes less power...so what...that just means that if I am making 450hp instead of 500 or whatever...it's still going to be strong enough to be fun and I get to leave it cracked open and hear the Qjet longer😂😂
quadrajunks (as my dad calls them, he loves the carb just sticks well with the name) are great carbs for street performance, great fuel mileage for cruising and great sound and performs very well when you want to make the car or in this case truck dance, they vary from car to truck on how large they are, they vary from 600 or so cfm and can be up to 800 cfm
You might be able to turn that green paint black if you mix in some black and then you can stretch it longer and use it for a bunch of stuff...I love to save things, find a way tonuse them and hate waste too.
I thought the tall decks had peanut-port heads, and I didn't know if even an oval-port manifold would work. From what I read recently though, people just don't care, and the engine don't neither; aight then!
Cool motors and glad there’s someone out there appreciating them. 👍🏼 I knew a guy back in the day who had a Camaro 68 I think. It had a 427, but it was a tall deck truck engine and didn’t really fit. He wasn’t the sharpest tool. 😂
Back in '81 my 396 expired. I looked around for a rebuilt shortblock but all I could find was a Masterbuilt 427 tall deck. The price was cheaper than a standard deck 396, plus the 427 was in stock and they had no idea when they would get a 396 again. The only problem was no one could tell me if my heads, intake, and exhaust would bolt on. I had to pass on it and settled for a 350 sbc that needed rebuilt. If only I knew then what I just found out from this video, I could have had a great engine and got my Chevelle up and running in alot less time.
I like the green paint. The plan you have should work well, I say this because I've done something similar years ago and it worked well, lots of torque. Keep up with the good work and keep us posted with new videos.
I like this build. I’ve got a 77 Chevy C20. No engine in it but had a big block. I also have a tall deck 427 I want to put in my truck . I’ll keep following
Absolutely enjoying Ep. 01. When you get to that point. might I suggest you take a look at Small Rig All-in-one kit for smartphones and a Lavalier mic. As for that... Carry on my my friend... p.s. what province
I drove dump trucks with 366's in them. Good engine if you do not over rev. them. I was told it was best to shift at 3200 but most shifted at 3600 rpm.
Big block gm’s are my favorite engines. I had a 73 C10 with a 454, a 83 K30 with a 454 and a 90 K3500 with a 454. I was a TTO ( tanker truck operator ) with the US FOREST CIRCUS on a 78 GMC C6500 SWB fire truck w/ 600 gal. tank and up to a mile of 1”” and 11/2” fire hose on it. It came with a 366 w/ 5sp/2 speed rear axle with a locker. That truck was pretty fast for its weight and could climb very steep terrain like a goat!! We even beat the helicopter crew to a fire ! Take that hellaslack! Being from Arizona in the Phoenix area I had the very good fortune of having a friend who’s dad was an engine engineer at GM proving grounds make my Quadra flood carbs run fantastic! Yes we do have some nice rust free older vehicles but, the price tag is getting out of hand. Stay safe and healthy brother from the northland!
we are doing the exact same thing currently a 427 tall deck into a 1979 c20 custom deluxe that came out of a 2 ton truck. we have ran into several little snags. Oil pan that was originally on in was to large and hit the hogs head under the front end. had to change that along with a shorter snout on the oil pump. The exhaust manifolds originalyl on there would not work they hit the motor mounts. also put the intake and the spacers didn't put the china rail spacers in just used the RTV on the ends. overall Just a little frustrating, parts are not as plentiful where I'm located but I am living this video currently. The motor is in the truck now so we are getting close. Still needing headers or exhaust manifolds. Has rectangle ports and most headers have oval ports. But im getting there
I can't thank you enough for hitting on the tall deck - I'm so sick of EV and almost as sick of LS - the old saying "there's no replacement for displacement" I can't believe a young man as yourself is sparking entrust in real horsepower - thank you , P.S. just paint the darn oil pan and you'll be perfect
I really like the green, its like a Forrest green and i think it looks really good on that engine. Very nice. Stumbled upon this channel recently and quickly became a fan. Cheers 🍻
Yell ya man I'd really like to see the work your doin and learn more about these tall decks I've herd of them but never though of them as a performance engine I'm intreaged
Patiently watching, have a grain truck with Goodwrench 366ci at the farm. Your green isn't too far off from Buick Nailhead green or Detroit Diesel. Keep up the good work!
happy to see this is at almost 20k now , you definitively have an interesting subject ppl just have to find it , was suggested to me so something's working . got this suggested after the older one . that john d color is awesome i think .
Hey Cal, glad your video popped up in my feed. The green paint I like, go ahead and paint the pan. I noticed your 710 cap is upside down :) Be sure to video your next tear down/build, you could get several episodes from that. We do get the option of some rust free or rust less stuff here in the states (Kansas City, Missouri here), but you pay for it…as for the Arizona vehicles, uh yea…usually can’t touch those with out a second mortgage. As for the green, I did a 283 in an old school style hot rod once, Rustoleum ‘emerald green’ hammered paint, turned out absolutely fabulous with the Chevrolet script valve covers to match.
Who knows? Maybe you’ve discovered the next thing. I clearly remember in the early and mid ‘80s how nobody wanted a “400” SBC. You could not give one away. They were “smog dogs” everybody knew. Siamese bores would overheat according to the conventional wisdom. Then, little by little, people started building them. Then they got popular. Then you couldn’t find one unless you had a pile of cash.
Found a stock 400 SBC in a 1971 Caprice. Other than sitting, the motor looked real good inside. We polished the crank, scuffed the bores, new bearings, rings/pistons, had the rods resized and shot-peened. Freshened up the heads. Used a good cam, intake and 4bbl carb to replace the stock 2bbl. Never dyno'd it, but it was very potent.
It makes sense to give these TD 366/427 some love, they have a lot going for them, heavy thick block castings, closed chamber oval port heads, huge 4 bolt mains, forged cranks, strong rods that can be used in a short deck build. I want to see a 366 taken out to 4.094" or 4.125" as a 396 or 402, 6.535" rods, rebalance the crank, work the heads, good intake like a Weiand Team G, 800cfm Qjet, headers, big cam, maybe even a 6.4" rod, mill the deck 0.015", 4" 454 crank, for a 421 or 427ci with all the same stuff for an n/a build or leave the forged 3.76" crank and add boost.
My father ran a 366 in a ‘69 C60. That truck loaded would scale out around 24,000 lbs. The 366 handled it very well and I always thought it’d be a fantastic engine for a half ton. It was indeed a tad thirsty. With the stock Holley it’d do about 4.5 - 5 mpg at 24,000 lbs in the mountains. I’d probably run a Quadrajet if I had one in a pickup.
I've known about them, but never really thought about them much but figured they'd have to be kind of torquey at tbe very least. Good videos and I'm looking forward to seeing what you do here
Sask guy here always curious about these engines, see em for cheap all the time and thought about throwing a few bucks at em, nice to see someone else thought the same. my 80 has a junkyard lq4 in er and tbh this is probably more interesting lol. cant wait to see more keep up the good work.
G'day young fella, came across your first video on the tall deck by accident as I enjoy watching these types of videos. Glad my subscribe and like helped you out. Ken from Oz
If the truck is 4WD, your mechanical fuel pump may not clear the cross member. There are different pumps that will work but they seem difficult to find lately. May have to notch the crossmember.
I ran into that problem on my 75 four-wheel drive you can use big block fuel pump from a '60s car , there the normal height like a small block but most of them don't have a return line so I got one from an '80s 4 wheel drive truck with a big block and made it work but you're right you might have to do a little crossmember work I didn't have any fuel starvation problems with the short fuel pump either
Make sure that intake matches to those heads.... I had aford 460 put closed chambered 427 cobra jet heads... intake sucked oil underneath the valley and bent a connecting rod... just make sure, please 🙏
My father bought a 1969 gmc k2500 with the last of the sting ray tall deck 427 it was a special order from our local gmc dealership with a granny 4 speed long bed camper special which still sits in my mothers house in mint condition in the garage still starts and runs great keep up the great videos
They built 427 tall decks until the late 1990s for medium duty trucks and busses. Then there was the L19 454 from like '98-'01 which was a forged rod and crank Vortec 7400 before they started using the 8.1L and now PSI makes a Gen 7 based 8.8L.
I prefer using either Summit or Jegs remanufactured carbs on my Chevy & Pontaic engine builds. No issues in over 40 years, just normal carb tuning after initual firing and cam breakin.
RU-vid recommended the first tall deck video a day or two ago. Just before the 2nd video dropped. Monetize and use the revenue to do more filming on projects.
I made my spacers from 3/8 aluminum, because I'm cheaper. The stock tall deck intake wasn't with your 366? Those look to be better than the squashed QJ ones, and can accept a Chinese AFB
