154 STREET MACHINE
MILL OF THE MONTH
T
HE vast majority of big-power LS
engines rely on some form of artificial
aspiration to make grunt, so it’s easy
to forget that these mills can be pretty
handy in all-motor trim.
This example was pieced together by Troy
from Warspeed, and it’s essentially a full-effort,
naturally aspirated deal. It uses a Dart SHP LS
Next block, with a 4.155-inch bore and four-
inch stroke to arrive at a capacity of 434 cubic
inches.
The rotating assembly consists of a K1 steel
crank and K1 6.125in H-beam rods topped
with custom CP pistons. A lofty compression
ratio of 15.8:1 means that the engine, much like
my good self, is alcohol dependent.
The camshaft is a big ’un – a custom grind
from Comp with duration in the realm of 270
degrees at 50thou, and total lift of .800in. Troyexpects it’ll spin to around 8500rpm as a result.
Morel lifters send the bump skyward via Manton
pushrods to T&D rockers, which act upon REV
stainless valves with PAC springs. The heads
are CNC-ported CID LS7-style units.
It’s a fearsome-looking thing too, topped with
a towering Pro Billet intake manifold and an
Enderle Bug Catcher, which has been outfitted
with barn door-style butterflies by Joe Blo. The
engine bucks the trend of EFI components
hidden inside a hat, instead retaining traditional
mechanical injection with the nozzles hidden in
the valley of the manifold, fuelled by an Enderle
80A pump.
A Joe Blo timing cover offers provisions for the
belt-driven MSD dizzy that sparks the plugs, but
it’s all timed off an MSD crank trigger mounted
to the ATI balancer.
Oiling-wise, a Moroso front-hump pan willclear the front end in the VH Commodore to
which the engine will be fitted, while a Melling
high-pressure, standard-volume pump was
utilised. “The Dart blocks have priority mains
oiling, so that helps matters there,” said Troy.
“The Manton pushrods used feature a 40thou
restrictor at the top, which also helps control
the oil and keep it around the bearings and the
lifters where we want it.
“It was good to do something a little out of the
ordinary, and it’ll be exciting when we dyno it,”
he continued. “I enjoyed having a play with the
front end and setting up the crank trigger and
dizzy and getting that to work properly. It’s good
to challenge yourself.”
As for power, the goal is somewhere
between 870 and 900hp – anywhere north
of 2hp per cubic inch, in other words. Very
healthy indeed. s154 STREET MACHINE
STORY ANDREW BROADLEY PHOTOS MATTHEW EVERINGHAMMURDER MOST FOUL
BLACK is the new black, if the
engines to come out of Warspeed are
anything to go by! Troy prides himself
on the way his projects present when
they leave his shop, and works with his
customers to achieve a look they’re happy
with. On this one, Lowe Fabrications
powdercoated a bunch of hardware,
while the billet rocker covers are bespoke
Warspeed items by Shaun’s Custom
Alloy and are anodised black. Little
touches like the Motion
Raceworks steam kit complete
the visuals.434 CI LS
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ST MARYS,
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