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FE Power Forums => FE Technical Forum => FE Engine Dyno Results => Topic started by: CaptCobrajet on October 14, 2025, 11:00:59 AM

Title: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: CaptCobrajet on October 14, 2025, 11:00:59 AM
1016 hp at 7700 rpm.  805 ft lbs torque at 5500 rpm.  It has 990+ horsepower for 1700 rpm up top.  Four digit power from 7000 rpm to 8200 rpm.  Shelby big bore block, Losito billet heads with a little love and valve job here.  4.500 Crower crank, CP pistons.  Dual three circuit 1050 Dominators.  We cammed it for making the Drag Week drive.  I think this engine would make 1100 hp with a 1-inch lift cam, but it wouldn’t make the street miles like that.  Pretty good like it is. I think my son is going to put it on our Facebook page and uTube when he gets the opportunity.
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: frnkeore on October 14, 2025, 11:34:01 AM
Blair, tell us more about the heads and rods.
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: 475fetoploader on October 14, 2025, 02:36:53 PM
You should probably put the big camshaft in, put it back on the dyno, just because....

On second thought never mind.  That's a very cool build. 
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: Stangman on October 14, 2025, 11:10:02 PM
Dumb. How about a round about on the camshaft, less than 750 lift?
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: e philpott on October 15, 2025, 01:52:00 PM
How do you make that crank stroke fit ? Nice power !!
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: XR7 on October 15, 2025, 05:57:54 PM
How do you make that crank stroke fit ? Nice power !!
   I was thinking the same thing! Hard to keep the rods from hitting the cam lobe even with a 4.375 stroke crank. Maybe a 1.888 Honda rod journal or SBC small journal 2.000 for rod clearance? Nice build and great power, should run hard in Scott's Cougar?
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: jayb on October 15, 2025, 08:27:51 PM
A 2.1" rod journal and SBC rod will make the 4.500" stroke possible.
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: CaptCobrajet on October 16, 2025, 08:58:48 AM
This one has a 2 inch journal.  It has about .040 clearance to the lobes on the back four cylinders.  The front four don’t get as close.  A 2.100 rod would not clear in this engine.  A 4.400 is as big as I have been able use with a 2.100 crank pin.

Joe, you are in the ballpark on lift.  The heads flow to 1-inch, and the ports are really big.  A little too big in my opinion.  I think the cross section is just about right for 600 inches, but it sure does come to life about 5500 rpm.  It is extremely long winded for the duration it has now.  A big boy cam would put peak power at over 8000 rpm.  Kinda makes me draw up a little to think of turning a 4.5 crank 8500 through the traps, lol.  It’s a neat combo like it is, and the valvetrain is all stuff that has worked for us before in Drag Week.  One thing about this cam being smallish for port and cubes is that it makes the torque and power curves really broad.  It gets near peak power at 7200 and just stays there past 8200.  Should be a neat piece for Jack and Scott to work with.
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: frnkeore on October 16, 2025, 11:47:57 AM
What is the intake valve size?
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: My427stang on October 17, 2025, 12:27:24 PM
What a wicked build.  Incredible heads on top as well
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: hbstang on October 17, 2025, 03:29:16 PM
is that billet head an inline valve head?a lot of hp for an fe engine for sure.
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: Stangman on October 17, 2025, 10:42:27 PM
Was looking at those cylinder heads Blair with a 280 cross volume do you need to be speeding or filling those runners.
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: Stangman on October 18, 2025, 03:32:34 PM
I think probably almost 200 horse more than he had. She’s gonna scoot.
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: CaptCobrajet on October 18, 2025, 06:43:35 PM
Only 51 more HP than the last conventional Pro Port headed piece we had in it, but this thing has a lot more area under the curves.  It has its peak torque for almost 1000 rpm, and same with the power.  The billet head is a serious departure from the OE layout.  The valve orientation is the same, but they are canted and the ports are tilted.  Meanest head there is that bolts on the top of an FE block.  Some day I want to do a 4” crank in an iron BBM block and spin it about 10,000 rpm with heads like this.
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: Stangman on October 18, 2025, 11:19:59 PM
What would be the benefit of a 4.0 crank than just using a 428 3.98 arm. Besides cubic inches.
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: My427stang on October 19, 2025, 06:49:56 AM
What would be the benefit of a 4.0 crank than just using a 428 3.98 arm. Besides cubic inches.

I'll take a stab...10K RPM on a cast crank at those power levels may not end well :)
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: CaptCobrajet on October 19, 2025, 11:07:29 AM
Exactly right, Ross.  The cast crank wouldn’t make it.  The narrow 2.438 journal size wouldn’t either.  We found ways to make the FE journal live to 8500 when we had to, but even there, not those power levels.  The 2-inch is size of choice for me.  The 1.888 Honda at that power level won’t make many runs before service.  There isn’t enough load bearing surface area at that power.  The Honda is good at 800-900hp.  The 2-inch is more durable past that.  On the stroke, the piston speed would be a problem at 10K rpm.  The stroke eventually becomes a parasite when you swing the mass faster and faster.  Comp Eliminator guys have had success with a 4-inch stroke, so it is doable.  You won’t find long strokes in Pro Stockers……They make the bore as big as possible, and plug in the stroke number to make 500 inches.

The 800 inch mountain motors don’t rpm like the 500 inch ones do.🙂

For most purposes the FE journal, or the normal 2.200 that is common to the stroker cranks is just fine.  I’m doing a twin turbo 400 inch FE for myself.  Not a super high revving engine.  I prefer the 2.200 in this case, for the wide bearing and generally available “boost” tolerable shelf rods.  We want to make 1000 hp below 6500 rpm with .550 max lift, so it can drive anywhere.  Still debating draw through carbs with water-meth versus port injection with an intercooler.  The latter will probably prevail, but the carbs would be much less complicated for a Holley carb guy.  Okay….. am getting off the subject….
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: Stangman on October 19, 2025, 12:57:52 PM
I understand but I wasn’t talking about a stock crank. I thought when scat makes them you can get them as a steel crank and they were the same 2.20 journals as the 4.250 cranks. That being said I understand what you are saying.

When you got off the subject with the 400 inch boost motor a lot of guys around here are running blow through carbs with procharger. My buddy a few houses down (Chevy 540) makes 638 naturally aspirated with 600 lbs torque with procharger he makes 1070 Hp and 1247 lbs of torque. Makes me want one maybe next setup.
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: My427stang on October 19, 2025, 03:47:39 PM
I understand but I wasn’t talking about a stock crank. I thought when scat makes them you can get them as a steel crank and they were the same 2.20 journals as the 4.250 cranks. That being said I understand what you are saying.

When you got off the subject with the 400 inch boost motor a lot of guys around here are running blow through carbs with procharger. My buddy a few houses down (Chevy 540) makes 638 naturally aspirated with 600 lbs torque with procharger he makes 1070 Hp and 1247 lbs of torque. Makes me want one maybe next setup.

I was only teasing...

Boost is fun, we did a 347 2 years ago or so, 585 HP on 8 lbs of boost, sounded like a Granada at idle, HP curve looked like a steep mountain.  Would have made more if we spun the blower faster, but we were afraid of the block splitting in two!
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: Stangman on October 19, 2025, 04:28:24 PM
No sweat I’m not that thin skinned. But really if you get a 3.98 from scat they are 2.20 rod journal right.? There’s a guy around the neighborhood has like a notchback with a 347 I don’t know what kind of block he has but he runs 12 psi with a procharger she scoots along pretty good. That’s why I was saying maybe Blair will keep us informed on his 400 cube motor
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: My427stang on October 19, 2025, 05:26:33 PM
No SCATs 3.98 have FE rod bearings. I wish they did have that option to use a better bearing and longer rod, or at least an FE I beam to get some weight down on the cast crank builds
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: blykins on October 19, 2025, 05:44:52 PM
They are available from Scat in a custom. 
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: frnkeore on October 19, 2025, 06:38:49 PM
You can get a 410 CID engine, using a 361, steel FT crank and a SBC journal. 4.13 x 3.83
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: MeanGene on October 19, 2025, 09:45:27 PM
396 if you wanna hear it scream lol

Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: MeanGene on October 19, 2025, 09:49:27 PM
396 if you wanna hear it scream lol

Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: Stangman on October 22, 2025, 08:44:33 PM
By looks at least I could be wrong but is that piston heavy? Also looks like thick ring set.
Sorry missed the box picture. That is a heavy piston. What is the benefit of the weird design.
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: MeanGene on October 22, 2025, 09:23:07 PM
Trim to fit pistons for maximum compression. Also pretty old, hence the wide rings
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: e philpott on November 07, 2025, 09:44:27 AM
Only 51 more HP than the last conventional Pro Port headed piece we had in it, but this thing has a lot more area under the curves.  It has its peak torque for almost 1000 rpm, and same with the power.  The billet head is a serious departure from the OE layout.  The valve orientation is the same, but they are canted and the ports are tilted.  Meanest head there is that bolts on the top of an FE block.  Some day I want to do a 4” crank in an iron BBM block and spin it about 10,000 rpm with heads like this.

Blair is that 51 horsepower difference with the same drag week camshaft ?
Title: Re: 541 cubic inch FE drag and drive
Post by: CaptCobrajet on November 09, 2025, 11:35:04 AM
Similar cam, but not exactly the same.