What is a 383 stroker motor?

Answer 1

Okay, the gospel according to the Bear... been through this before. A 383 is (in it's simplest form) a 350 block bored .030 over with a 400 crank. Sethle was closest, however you machine the main journals on the crankshaft, not on the block. Since it is a 400 crank, you must use the 400 vibration dampner and flywheel since they are externally balanced. And yes, some grinding must be done to the block for clearance for the connecting rods and counterweights on the crankshaft, but it is minimal and in no way compromises the integrity of the block. Complete kits available through lots of places, such as the site Sethle suggests, and PAW (Performance Automotive Warehouse), and I believe you can order one through Jasper Engines.

Answer 2

It's a 350 with what they call a stroker kit that makes it a 383. When they say "it's a 350", they mean the "swept volume" of the pistons as they go up and down is a total of 350 cubic inches. The swept volume is the product of the surface area of the piston top times distance up and down the piston travels (times 8 of course for a V8). So the only way to increase motor's size (displacement) is to bore it out (resulting in larger surface area) and/or "stroke" it a longer distance up and down. It's much easier to "stroke" a motor to get substantial gains than bore it out, if it doesn't need a rebuild. Remember the distance the pistons go up and down is determined by the crankshaft. By putting a crankshaft on the engine that pulls the piston lower and pushes it higher, the total swept volume increases. This is a relatively easy way to add more horsepower AND more torque, the kind of power you feel even when you're not romping on it.

Ultimately engines are fancy air pumps, and the more air you can get in & out of the engine in a given time, the more hp you will make, if you can get it enough fuel to match. So to add power you make it bigger, or rev it higher, or push air into it using a supercharger, blower, or nitrous.

Answer 3

Simply boring it .030 over wont get you ANYWHERE close to 383"
It's the crank from the 400 motor that gets you there. I know the 400 requires external balancing on the harmonic balancer and flywheel, but I'm not sure if the 383 does. You cannot run a balancer from a 350 on a 400 motor.

Answer 4

Ok, some of these people are numb nuts.

A 383 is a 350 block that uses the crankshaft out of a 400. Machining has to be done to the block to increase the size of the journal bearings, since the 400 crank has larger journals than the 350 crank. Also, I believe some clearancing has to be done in the block to allow the rotating assembly to turn, or else the connecting rods hit the inside of the crank case. Also, shorter rods need to be used to keep the pistons coming up to the same place at the top of the block with the longer stroke.

Answer 5

OK OK STEP BY STEP----READY
HERE WE GO


350 SBC HAS TO HAVE THE JOURNALS LINE HONED TO EXCEPT THE LARGE JOURNAL OF THE 400 SBC CRANK
THE RODS WILL HIT THE BLOCK DUE TO THE LARGE STROKE----THE WALLS TOWARD THE VERY BOTTOM OF THE CYLINDERS WILL NEED TO BE GROUND TO ACCOMODATE A LARGE STROKE.
AS MOST PEOPLE WERE SAYING ABOUT BORING IT TO .030 TO MAKE IT A 383 IS NOT TRUE....THAT WILL INDEED MAKE IT 388-----DUE THE MATH.
-----HEADS DO NOT MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE------
YOU COULD PUT A SET OF HEADS FROM A 265 TO 400 AND GUESS WHAT------ITS STILL A 383. THE BORE AND STROKE DETERMINE THE CUBIC INCHE.
AS WELL IF YOU WANTED A HIGH HP STROKER......SURPRISE THE HELL OUT OF SOMEBODY AND REV A STROKER TO 9000..........265 CRANK IN A 350.........SMALL STROKE+HIGH COMPRESSION+SOLID CAM AND LIFTER+NICE SET OF WORLD PRODUCT HEADS=SCARY STUFF------

Answer 6

350 bored 30 over with 400 crank, rods, and heads (though some people also use the 202 double hump heads in place of the 400 heads.) Also, you have to line bore the block (in the main cap journals) to get it to accept the 400 crank. A stock 350 bored 30 over is NOT 383 cubic inches. Also, its a damn nice engine.

Answer 7

It's an easy way to squeeze a few more cubes out of a 350 block. It can be internally OR externally balanced depending on the crankshaft. It has been found that the external balanced damper and flex plate/flywheel have a negative affect on the first and last mains in high horsepower applications. Internal balance will be more expensive. These engines are great! They're cheap, easy to build(you don't always need to clearance the block!),they can make more low end power than a big block(due to smaller intake ports in the heads), and they'll bolt into anything.

Answer 8

Take a small block 400 which has a bore of 4.125" and install a 350 (5.7) crank into the block. Use 5.7 rods and the displacement become 383 with flat top pistons.

Answer 9

Wow is all i can say.....maybe if you all smashed you heads together you could figure it out.

355 = 350 bored .030 over
377 = 350 w/ 400 crank
383 = 350 bored .030 over with 400 crank

You can either use a 5.7 or a 6.0 "pink" rod depending on the piston wrist pin placement

Answer 10

Stroked Chevy 350