2 bolt or 4 bolt main

[95z28ss]

im getting ready to bulid a 383 strocker for my 95 camaro and wanting close to 450 rwhp but i dont know if a 2 bolt main will be strong enough or should i try and find and lt1 4 bolt main and if so where would i find one or what car would i find it in

[AChotrod]

splayed mains r the ticket!!! Also any LT1 vette should have 4bolt mains

[95z28ss]

what is splayed mains and i thought vettes was the only 4 bolt mains, do u know if i just build my stock 2 bolt to 383 stroker if it will hurt anything

[BLOWNDFIZ]

Unless you plan on making stupid power someday (don't we all) you will be fine with a 2 bolt block. The old school GM 400 guys will tell you the 2 bolt 400 blocks were stronger than the 4 bolt blocks.

The 2 bolt LT blocks are a lot easier and cheaper to find as well.

FWIW, I went ahead and installed splayed caps when I built my motor, but I already had a supercharger and considered it good insurance. I'm sure someone has a pic of splayed caps they can post. I'm on my wifes computer or I would post a pic of mine so you can see what they are.

[AChotrod]

Some one correct me If im wrong but 4 bolt mains just go straight into the block and on splayed mains 2 bolts go straight in like normal and the other 2 go in at an angle.

[Puck]

These are the splayed 4bolt mains in my 383 for reference.

Excuse the crappy cell pic, it was when I was bringing it home on an overcast day and it was getting ready to rain again so I was in a rush to get it inside.
http://ltxtech.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=101&stc=1&d=1232425696

[Fastbird]

Go with the four bolt mains if at all possible. You're going to NEED some RPM's to get to that HP number you're targeting. I can tell you from personal experience that two bolt mains are GOING to let the crank walk around some no matter how well it's balanced.

[BLOWNDFIZ]

I agree if you have the money and you go with a really good rotating assembly then yes try to get a 4 bolt block, or spend the money to splay your block. Again it's good insurance for all that money you spent on the rotating assembly. If you are going to use cast crank and rods you will break something else before you hurt the 2 bolt block. JMHO.

[95z28ss]

and getting my block splayed would probally be cheaper then finding a 4 bolt main lt1 correct

[AChotrod]

Its hard to find a 4bolt block and when you do they want more cash for it, so yes in the end it is usually cheaper to just go splayed and its stronger.

[BLOWNDFIZ]

Splaying the block means extra machining steps (line bore, line hone, drilling the bolt holes, etc.) and also means you will have to buy the main caps.

What I'm saying is do your homework first and see how much the machine shop is going to charge for the machining + caps, and compare that to some average 4 bolt block prices you find.

If the prices are close go with splayed caps.