Alum or steel flywheel?

[BIG D's SS]

I am going to replace my flywheel and was wondering which one to go with. I have heard good and bad about aluminum. WHat do you think? I have a spec 3 clutch and mostly stock, but intend to upgrade.

[sscrazy]

Well this should bring up a debate on this thread! anyway this is what I have heard about aluminum vs. steel. aluminum seems to rev up faster than steel because its lighter, but the down side is there is less momentum once you are in your powerban. Stell flywheels rev up a little slower because they are heavier, but once you are in your power band the momentum is there to keep the engine spinning. I hope this makes sense to you..

[BIG D's SS]

I've heard that about the whole momentum part. I don't want to spend the money on aluminum when I could have saved money and went with the steel. I want to spend the money one time and be happy. I have the spec 3 clutch and it is still good. Why can't you resurface a stock gm flywheel? More info on which one is the best.

[BIG D's SS]

Bump!

['99 SLP#24]

I resurfaced my GM flywheel, I was told as long as it hadn't been done before you can get away with doing it once or maybe twice. I haven't had any problems since I did mine!

[LAST ONE]

Split the difference between stock and a superlight aluminum wheel by going with an SLP steel flywheel thats about 8 lbs lighten than stock.

[Rhino21149]

I built a C5R 427 in which money was very nearly no object. I bought all the best and did it right even if it took two years. I live in Nascar country and found a credible builder (one Daytona 500 winner in his resume in the mid 90s) who agreed to do my engine and advised me to go with a stockflywheel.

With his advice and others, I went with a new, but stock flywheel. Probably could have resurfaced the old one but the whole philosophy here was not to cut corners and so I just got a new stock one. Point was that the lighter weight was not really important. Now, I had a very very light crank (Crowler, under cut and the over balanced), Crowler rods, machine and matched, and custom pistons by CP that were incredibly light, so there was not much reciprocating mass in the engine, and I needed some mass, but still.

REgardless, and that may have something to do with it, I went with the stock flywheel. I am very happy I did. The car idles smoothly and is easy to shift in low RPM which is a problem with light flywheels. And at full throttle it revs up as fast as anything I have seen, so the flywheel wieght is not an issue.

the point is, this engine revs like nothing I've ever seen. A lighter flyhweel would have been no use to me. I think a lot of LS engines are like this: so much rev acceleration that the last thing you need is a lighter flywheel.

[bww3588]

The car idles smoothly and is easy to shift in low RPM which is a problem with light flywheels.

or cars with no power. i.e: 4 banger S-10. it takes forever to drop RPM's with the A/C on, so downshiftin does no good. i know of this all to well. thats why im selling it and buying a 01 Camaro SS. same gas milage more power.

[Stu's '00 Z]

i got the aluminum flywheel with my spec stage 3, stock car(not for long), and i love it. some say that it kills ur 60' time but it didnt affect mine at all...plus the car revs quite a bit faster...wish i hadnt have got a spec tho....i hate the chatter...