Just a thought, could you take a 351 crankshaft, have the journals shaved to a 302 specs and get 5.4 in 347 connecting rods and 347 pistions to make a 351 stroker? I was reasoning with this beacuse you can get cranks speced and get larger bearings, such as 10 over, why not shave a larger portion off the 351 crank to give me a 3.5 in stroke. Thats only .1 taller than a 347. The strength of the crank concerns me, that and is there enough meat to shave off? Any-how, its just a thought. Ant input would be helpful.
I've heard that a 351C crank can be machined to fit. I have not seen it for myself so I am unsure how true it is. You would probably be better off buying an aftermarket crankshaft than going through the expense of all the machine work a stock crank would surely require (turning down the main journals and whittling down the counterweights).
I saw where a guy stroked a 302 to a 357. Used a 351C crank, 2 sets of Pinto (sorry T.L.) rods, and (sorry everyone) 350 Chevy pistons. The Pinto rods are actually beefier than 302's. Said the pistons stuck out about .003" above the deck but it's not a problem w/ .040" gasket.
by the time you grind half of the bottom end away, grind down a 351c crank to fit (including counterweights), pay for a pound or two of mallory metal, and find 2 sets of Pinto rods, you could have bought a 347 kit from Eagle or Flatlander and been done with it. Would I build a 347? Nope...the 351w is a MUCH stronger block/crank. Not to say a 347 is a bad motor...I've seen some real screamers. The weak link is the block. A friend of mine built one of those 357's with pinto rods, cleveland crank, etc....and yes, it screamed, and yes it broke. Took about 15 passes to break it, split the block, just like most 302 production blocks do when stressed. It ran well, probably around 550-600 HP
The guy said it cost him about $1100, he did it back before you could buy off the shelf stroker kits for 302s.
