440 duster. Need engine build advice

billyboyd said

I'm going a new route with this thing. New crank and pistons. I want. ....600 horse, light weight pistons, ly rods. Should i get floating wrist pins with Ross pistons or pressed? I want to keep the iron heads and now I have a 557 purple solid lifter. I also have a set of 6 pack rods. Do I implement those? I guess the ly are good for 600 ponies. But will the heads handle that? The demon 850 is a vacuum secondary carb. Do I change it to a double pump or replace the carb?

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I would want a forged crank as well and lightweight pistons will help with balence but performance as well. I don't think it matters whether you have floating or pressed pins. Thre are pros and cons to both.

I used LY rods in both of my engines, while they were both 500hp level engines there was never an issue. I plan to go 650 on my current engine with the new combo and i'm not switching the rods.

You should work the rods though and this can be done very inexpensively if you do it yourself. Beam polish them and have them shot peened. Resized with new bearings and use ARP Waveloc bolts.

I don't know if that cam will take you to 600hp with basicly stock heads. I'd bet a paycheck it won't. Now with good ported iron heads and/or a really big cam I know you can make 600hp on iron heads.

I wouldn't run a VS carb on a bet. Well if it were a great carb, free and I didn't care about performace (street cruiser)...I'd consider it. The whole vac is better for the street and mech is a race carb is BS. If tuned right and driven properly it is all around better.