Heads/Block I.D.?

[rich weyand]

Yup.  And by re-camming the stock engine, you can get 300 hp and 400 lbft.  Replace the mechanical fan with an electric fan (which if properly adjusted should hardly ever come on except on a hot day in stop-and-go traffic, or pulling a trailer in the mountains, or rock-climbing) and you can free up maybe 15 hp and 25 lbft.

Much over that, you are looking at different heads and maybe pistons, or machining the heads to get the compression up, etc.  You can spend a lot of money quickly going that route.

But a new cam is cheap and easy.  Comp 12-235-2 is probably the best all-around replacement cam for a stock 350 in a street machine.  If you do the cam, replace the lifters or the old lifters will eat the cam.  New springs, too, if there are over 10,000 miles on the springs.  Stock springs are fine with that cam.

[Greybeard]

You think those stock HP numbers are anemic, look up the numbers for a 454 in the last years they were installed in Monte Carlo's (1974 or 5). Those numbers are pathetic! Something like 235 hp.

[Captkaos]

in 1979 the last year you could get a 454 in a 1/2 ton they were rated at 205hp 335lb/ft the 350 was 155hp 250lb/ft.  If was significantly more than the 350.  At its peak in stock form the 454 of 1977 was 255hp 365lb/ft and the 350 was 165hp 255lb/ft, still a significant difference. 

[Greybeard]

Sometime around the late seventies they changed from determining horsepower at the crank to at the wheels didn't they? Which actually makes the numbers sound even worse given all the parasitic hp loss through the drivetrain. Maybe not, IDK.

[Captkaos]

Manufacturers started using SAE net horsepower rating in 1972.  It was rated at the crank but had all of the accessories, emissions ,exhaust system air cleaner etc just as it was installed in the car.
Prior to that they use SAE gross horsepower.  It was rated at the crank but had minimum accessories and possibly headers...  Therefore a 255hp motor of 1973 made more power than a 255hp motor of 1970...