Do's and Don'ts for a 455 Olds?

[Knucklehead]

I am going to be rebuilding my 455 , any advice to make it better?(besides installing A ford or chevy)
It had Kieth Black pistons I was told they have been know to cause detenation problems, anyone else hear that
Anyone know of a great cam to go with a tunnel ram and single 850 holley.
Any oil system advice, because thats the reason for the rebuild :rolleyes:

[Wicked Performance Boats]

When a jetpump goes out it sounds like" rattle rattle bang bang clunk clunk." When an engine freezes up it sounds like" knock knock knock------silence." Keep the single 4 barrel tunnelram after you rebuild the frozen motor and you'll be rebuilding it again soon. But hey Knucklehead, they don't call you that for nothing. Funny you don't ask why everybody says it's a bad manifold. So we guess you don't care. Budlight I had already written the reply post to your last thread that you deleted. You don't get it do you? That is a bad manifold, the fuel distribution is terrible, that's why it burns pistons. Look at yours when you have it apart or if your inexperienced, let a machinist look at it. We are not being smartasses. We are trying to help, so don't get butthurt. BL

[Moneypitt]

." Keep the single 4 barrel tunnelram after you rebuild the frozen motor and you'll be rebuilding it again soon. But hey Knucklehead, they don't call you that for nothing. Funny you don't ask why everybody says it's a bad manifold. So we guess you don't care. You don't get it do you? That is a bad manifold, the fuel distribution is terrible, that's why it burns pistons. Look at yours when you have it apart or if your inexperienced, let a machinist look at it. We are not being smartasses. We are trying to help, so don't get butthurt. BL(Partial quote)
The idea of a tunnel ram is high RPM performance. The idea of an Olds is low RPM TORQUE.......Put a good open plenum single 4 brl intake on it, or a low profile 2X4 with small CFM carbs. The bottom end torque will amaze you and you don't have to have all that "Olds destroying" RPM to make it work. You mentioned Keith Black pistons, are they the Hypertounic? (sp). If you re-use the Hypers, the ring gaps recomended are CRITICAL to piston life. I run an Olds in an old hydro (1968) v drive, 2X4 w/ 600 Edlebrocks on an Offy low profile with 3" carb spacers. Works great, 78.5 GPS @ 5300.............MP

[Wicked Performance Boats]

The gearhead forum is the best place to find olds engine info. There's a lot of good info to help on building a great reliable olds. BL

[pimpinpdr]

yesterday i hit a 1 foot deep cove doing about 60 or so and now i have got some vibration problems. i checked the impellar and there were no sticks or rocks in there. the vanes looked fine. so my question is what do i check next?

[Knucklehead]

Well thanks for the answer, that has an explanation.. I dont come on here to make enemies or talk $h#t.
The jet's thrust bearing did go out also the shoulder of the bearing is gone it rode on the ball bearings and there was not any clunks or just not louder than the engine so I didnt hear it
What manifold do you and anyone else recommend then?
If I put 2 smaller carbs on that tunnel ram will this be better or will that not work either?

[Wicked Performance Boats]

yesterday i hit a 1 foot deep cove doing about 60 or so and now i have got some vibration problems. i checked the impellar and there were no sticks or rocks in there. the vanes looked fine. so my question is what do i check next?
Pimpinpdr, You should start your own thread. This one belongs to knucklehead. The thread is completely different. BL

[Wicked Performance Boats]

Well thanks for the answer, that has an explanation.. I dont come on here to make enemies or talk $h#t.
The jet's thrust bearing did go out also the shoulder of the bearing is gone it rode on the ball bearings and there was not any clunks or just not louder than the engine so I didnt hear it
What manifold do you and anyone else recommend then?
If I put 2 smaller carbs on that tunnel ram will this be better or will that not work either?
If you put 2 smaller carbs on it will definately help, But it's hard to find a 2 carb top for it and if you find they still make a 2 carb top, It will cost you as much as a new complete manifold. Go to the spam section forum and post for what you want to buy. Maybe somebody has what you want. Budlight

[sleekvino]

Well thanks for the answer, that has an explanation.. I dont come on here to make enemies or talk $h#t.
The jet's thrust bearing did go out also the shoulder of the bearing is gone it rode on the ball bearings and there was not any clunks or just not louder than the engine so I didnt hear it
What manifold do you and anyone else recommend then?
If I put 2 smaller carbs on that tunnel ram will this be better or will that not work either?
we need more specks on what cam you want to run ,but dont go to big of a lift because they cant take it.that manifold will eat your motor up .as far as pistons go get some good forged pistons dont go with the hypereutectic,they dont like the marine motors,if your top gap isnt right it will pop the tops of pistons.

[pimpinpdr]

sorry i was just looking for a little help. thanx though.

[SmokinLowriderSS]

Personally, I like a free-breathing dual-plane (OK, that has a rep for being an oxymoron) of the type like the Edelbrock Performer (also other makers similar, I am just unfamiliar to drop names). I'm runng a Performer RPM Air Gap on my Chevy, it pulls good air from idle till well above the 5K the pump holds me at. Some others prefer a more traditional single plane open plenum, just don't go too big. A friend of mine last summer was trying to run an Offenhauser single plane that was designed to max over 7,000 RPM, and he had idle and midrange troubles, and was being held at 4,800 if I remember correctly. He switched to a standard Performer he had and the character change was immediate.
The 2x4-barrel tunnel ram is ok with 2 small carbs, if you can pull hard enough on them, but even with 8 throats feeding 8 runners, you get trouble anywhere below WFO from fuel dropping out of solution, puddling, caused by too little runner flow speed/velocity. With 1 4-barrell on it, the center 4 are the only ones who even have a chance of getting a decent mixture ratio, both ends get left lean from trying to pull accross the plenum and then arround the corner into the runner. Just hard to do all the way arround.
Some folks have run the Hyper-u pistons sucessfully, a lot seem to have not. For the money, especially if you look at the cost of Speed-Pro Powerforged pistons (since it isn't a fire-breathing race engine), THOSE are only about $40 each, not much more for forged piston stability & strength. IMO, regardless of which piston, that top ring gap is critical as it should NEVER be allowed to close completely under heat load, bad stuff happens next, expensive bad stuff.

[75MillerJet]

I have a Edel Torker on my 455 Olds. It came on the original motor in my miller when i bought it but i have since dropped in a new long block. I kept the Torker and have taken it out to the lake 3 times since then. I don't have much experience with engine components so I was wondering if the Torker is a good suggestion to knuckle? Anyone know anything about them? Seems to work for me.

[sleekvino]

I have a Edel Torker on my 455 Olds. It came on the original motor in my miller when i bought it but i have since dropped in a new long block. I kept the Torker and have taken it out to the lake 3 times since then. I don't have much experience with engine components so I was wondering if the Torker is a good suggestion to knuckle? Anyone know anything about them? Seems to work for me.
i bet if you put a performer on you see a huge differance

[SmokinLowriderSS]

I think the torker is one of the more comon single planes being run, and lots of folks seem quite happy with it. At least, that's the history on the threads I have seen.

[malcolm]

The Victor is about the best olds intake now. I'm going to run the Torker, we'll see.

[breezeblocker]

i have been runnin a torker, happy with it. am going to change carbs this season though.

[Floored]

I traded a single tunnel for my torker. It will idle at 10 deg now instead of 25 to keep it running. I use a 2" spacer and a 750 vac sec carb and never have any problems. In fact I'm going out on the river in a little while. I have the speed pro's in mine and wouldn't consider a cast piston in a boat motor that will be mildly rodded. Do it one time realllllllllly careful and you will run for years without a problem

[RICHARD TILL]

Knuclkehead, keep the tunnelram and the 850 holley. put .080 jets front and back with 6.5 power valve. get competition 292h cam with new lifters and springs. get 3 angle valve job. the 292 cam is .518 lift, @.050 is 244 and lobe seperation is 110. use a stock pressure oil pump such as melling and keep it full. flat top forged pistons would be nice and arp rod bolts too. b impeller. then watch the naysayers faces. :220v:

[malcolm]

So have you had luck running a tunnel ram with a single carb? Seems to be pretty unpopular around these parts.

[Knucklehead]

Knuclkehead, keep the tunnelram and the 850 holley. put .080 jets front and back with 6.5 power valve. get competition 292h cam with new lifters and springs. get 3 angle valve job. the 292 cam is .518 lift, @.050 is 244 and lobe seperation is 110. use a stock pressure oil pump such as melling and keep it full. flat top forged pistons would be nice and arp rod bolts too. b impeller. then watch the naysayers faces. :220v:
Watchout Richard you are stepping into the dark side! the first person that says keep the Tunnel ram,
I have pulled all the plugs they all appear to be running the same the front cylinders arent any different ( not black and not white ), I was going to take pictures but forgot my camera. I will have to look at the jet sizes might fatten it up a little.. But I am going to keep the ram.
I pulled the engine today to find I have a new inspection cover on the side of the block, bent my oil pan a little but fixable. a guy around the corner has a block so I will purchase it this week and start ordering parts... I have not pulled the heads yet but I am interested to findout if the fronts pistons are going to look worse than any others I will post pictures.. and the truth will be told.
Thanks for everyones input

[mickeyfinn]

The do's and don'ts that were explained to me here when I had one come apart. They were pretty simple:
DON'TS;
Put money into it, put it into a chevy
DO'S:
Replace it with a chevy
Use a high quality rope and you can still get some benefit from it as an anchor.

[Old Guy]

You don't say anything about your exhaust system. Unless you are planning to use a blower or turbo to push air all the way through the motor, your exhaust system is going to determine what you need for the intake.
It may come as a surprise to some here, but unless you can get the exhaust out efficiently, a very nice port matched Victor intake with (pick any carb you like) and all the tuning skills you can manage, will only result in a LOSS of hp.
It's a lot like breathing. You can't just inhale. You also need to exhale.
A few months ago I spend a lot of time and money proving the above.

[Knucklehead]

heres a picture, still cant figure out how to post it properly

[Old Guy]

I think it would work well with a Performer. A good set of heads and cam should get more with a Victor, assuming that is the exhaust system you're going to use.
Most Olds info can be found in and around here
http://www.realoldspower.com

[Floored]

where do you live? I have a spare 461 with forged pistons. Might be able to work a deal

[Squirtcha?]

Knuckleheads motor.
http://www2.***boat.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=12981

[Knucklehead]

Thanks Squirtcha.
Floored I live in Parker, AZ

[TIMINATOR]

***boat has a MAGAZINE!!!!!!!! Thet have a 12 page OLDSMOBILE article coming out in the next issue! It will answer all of your questions and some that you never thought to ask! Subscribers will see it in about 3 weeks, and the newsstand about 4 weeks. Spread the word! TIMINATOR

[RICHARD TILL]

Knucklehead, you`ve got a nice looking boat and motor. i did`nt just dream this up about the tunnelram. look at the kentucky dragboat association site. click on the stock eliminator pictures. schroll down til you see a white texas tunnel hull owned by buddy bullard. it was the mid south drag boat association high points champion in 2000. weiand tunnelram, 850 holley. thats my motor. i`ll go further out on a limb here. all with the same exact modifications that i previously prescribed, a oldsmoble will run with a chevy and both will outperform a ford. i built my first olds in 1982. i`ll bet this will get some do-do started.

[HHauler]

Knucklehead,
I'll be the second one who says to keep the tunnel ram. Your engine looks great! Keep it and make it work. I have a 461 with edelbrock aluminum heads, Speedpro forged pistons, with an offy dual top tunnel ram. I have all the torque I need and can run 75+ mph GPS at only 5000RPM. It idles great and will start and stop all day long to pull skiers.

[SmokinLowriderSS]

You don't say anything about your exhaust system. Unless you are planning to use a blower or turbo to push air all the way through the motor, your exhaust system is going to determine what you need for the intake.
It may come as a surprise to some here, but unless you can get the exhaust out efficiently, a very nice port matched Victor intake with (pick any carb you like) and all the tuning skills you can manage, will only result in a LOSS of hp.
It's a lot like breathing. You can't just inhale. You also need to exhale.
A few months ago I spend a lot of time and money proving the above.
That's quite true, you have to get it to exhaust as completely as possible, otherwise it just dilutes the incoming mixtures and you spin your wheels getting nowhere.
As I've been upgrading my chevy, I've been trying to get rid of the restrictions at each upgrade. First was cam & intake, and made improvements, but then being held by log manifolds. Those turned to headers this year, now, my stock heads are the restriction. Next winter's porting work will solve that problem, then, she'll be making all the HP my Taylor has any need for. Then, I'll need a Tunnel Hull. LOL

[Floored]

hhaul- you have a dual carb tunnel and those work better than the single and I have never found a Weiand tunnel for an olds. Got a pic.

[HHauler]

Floored-
It's an offenhauser and it's the only one available for the olds, atleast I think.
I think I got a picture put in here, but I'm not sure.

[HHauler]

There we go...

[Knucklehead]

HHauler if you look back he got you confused with Richard Till he said wieand
nice pic's

[69TAHITI]

I have a single 750 on a tunnel ram with speed pro pistons and log exhaust, the motor was built 3 or 4 years ago and still running strong with zero problems. I bet that I will regret that last part. I do run it hard but not for long periods of time just short 15-20 second bursts. It's probably not the best set up but it works for me and my budget. In fact it beats my buddys blown big block Chevy every time we've been out together. Of course it's hard for him to beat me when he's on the trailor broken!!!!! Sorry about that one Mike but those of us with slow boats don't get to brag much.

[Taylorman]

I have a single 750 on a tunnel ram with speed pro pistons and log exhaust, the motor was built 3 or 4 years ago and still running strong with zero problems. I bet that I will regret that last part. I do run it hard but not for long periods of time just short 15-20 second bursts. It's probably not the best set up but it works for me and my budget. In fact it beats my buddys blown big block Chevy every time we've been out together. Of course it's hard for him to beat me when he's on the trailor broken!!!!! Sorry about that one Mike but those of us with slow boats don't get to brag much.
Been there done that. I had a single 750 on an offy ram when i bought my boat. I though it ran great until i put dual 600's on it. Made a huge difference. I thought that was great till i got a victor single plane and an 850 demon, Much better that the tunnel ram.
http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b334/vidrinek/Boat/DCP_6136.jpg

[Knucklehead]

I think this will be a good fix :) http://www.***boat.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=13141

[Knucklehead]

I have a new to me motor at the machine shop right now cant wait!!, when it is done they are going to put it on the dyno. I will post the results if there are not to embarrasing :rolleyes:
And I would like to say thanks to Floored, who went out of his way to help me get this engine, I owe you one or a couple :)

[Oldsquirt]

Since I see you selling off some Olds parts in the spam section, does this mean you are switching brands or were they just surplus parts from the "new-to-you" engine deal?

[Knucklehead]

I am selling the parts I got from the motor purchase, I am sticking with the Olds 455 :crossx: It came with newer Bassetts so I'm selling my old ones.
It was a complete engine minus the carb, got a screaming deal...This will help out with putting some real nice parts in the engine!
more money = more horsepower