Ed, don't get me wrong, I am not questioning your ability to do the job. I have been over on
http://www.v8buick.com/index.php for over 18 years now. I have seen a lot of mistakes made rebuilding Buick engines. You asked for Buick specific products. The best place, hands down is, TA Performance. You will find EVERYTHING you need there. Not the cheapest but the best no doubt. You can download a copy of their latest catalog,
Your Leader in High Performance and Restoration Buick Automotive Parts and Accessories!
www.taperformance.com
Chevies and Fords are not Buicks. As long as you realize that and build the engine according to the way Buick built them, you'll be fine. Bearing clearances and oil pump clearances are really important in a Buick engine. If you build it with Chevy clearances, you will not have enough oil at the back of the block. Seen plenty of #7 and 8 rod bearings scorched because of this. Depending on how much power you will be making, the oil mods described in this thread are really worth doing.
400/430/455 Block ID, Prep and Oiling mods Compliments of Jim Weise @ www.v8buick.com 10-8-2010 For a while now, folks have been asking me to finish the page I did on this topic, on my website, but I figured a thread here would be
www.diyauto.com
Another thing is Pistons. The Pistons you will find out there will end up anywhere from .040 to .090 in the hole. That can really drop compression as well as make the motor more detonation prone. If you want a reliable engine that will run on pump gas, you'll want the pistons at 0 deck. That means Pistons with a different compression height. We have Piston options today that didn't exist years ago. Yes, custom pistons are more expensive, but not as bad as you might think. You can customize compression height and dish/valve relief ccs to get the static compression right where you want it for the cam you intend to run. Autotec and Diamond have customize-able pistons. Give Jim Weise a call over at Trishield Performance. He can tell you more.
Buick Performance Specialists
www.trishieldperformance.com
There are also Molnar and Eagle rods for stroker builds. With a 455, 470 and 482 cubic inches are possible.
We also have Hydraulic roller cams now.
Most of the Power Potential in these motors is in the heads. Aluminum heads out of the box outflow even the best ported iron heads. With a set of TA heads with entry level porting, 10:1 static compression, and a cam with intake duration of 230* @ .050, it will be hard NOT to make well over 500 HP and 550 TQ.
I know all this is expensive and may not be in your budget, but there are lots of possibilities for the Big Block Buick that didn't exist in the past. Buy once, Cry once.
I also encourage you to join over at V8buick. There is a lot of specific knowledge over there that will help you make the most of your build.