I just bought a sbc 327. Block #3914660. Front of block #18j295174 and t0617hn. F15-8. I know it's a 68 block. Please let me know the rest. Thanks.
The partial vin..starting 18J..means it was installed in a car made at the Janesville WI plant. They built full size there..Impalas etc. HN is a 327-275 horse, 10:1 compression, with powerglide trans...according to the one website I looked at. The F158 means the block was cast June 15th of 68. The T0617HN means it was assembled June 17th at the Tonawanda Engine plant.
Those look to be a cast copy of the 327 11-1 pistons. Piston to wall clearance can be tighter running those.
Just out of curiosity, what are you planning to do to the engine. Just wondering how "nasty" you plan to make it? Are you going to stay in the lower 300 Cu In range or what? If it is a 68 it is a large journal crank. Being already .020 overbore. it is approximately 329 Cu In. The 327 block with 4" bore can make basically what you have, a 350, 377 and on. If you bore it another .010, you can install a 350 crank making it a 355 and with a 3.75" crank you can me it a 383. The thing about the small block once you get the heads on it might be anything and know one can ever know unless you tell them. That piston you posted the picture is a high performance piston with approximately 11:1 CR with the correct heads. If the bore is still in good shape with a good set of heads and cam the engine could pull around 375 HP. And with the with the correct carburetor and manifold, up to 400 or more HP? I admit that might be stretching it a bit but if the funds are available is is not out of reach.
I have a running set of #3917291 heads, date is J 10 7. With a weird stealth dual plane and 750 Holley double pump. Turbo 400 with 2,800 stall and 56 Chevy rear end with 4.11 posi. In a 38 Plymouth coupe gasser.
Good heads, one year only casting, last of the true looking "fueler" head casting, used on late 67/68 production, as with the "461" and "462" castings before them the "291" were machined for low hp and high hp engines (1.94 and 2.02 intake valve diameters). These are NOS 2.02's on my Nova 327 engine.
400hp out of a 327 is not stretching it. My avatar does 403hp at the crank out of a 327. Nothing too fancy - set of Dart iron heads that have been flowed well, roller rockers, a Howard cam and 10.5:1 on pump gas. The rest is pretty much as Chev intended. It's sedate enough that the kids learned to drive in it, but will still pull a 14.3s quarter mile with a 3400rpm convertor and 3.08 rear. I strongly suspect that most of the magic is in those Dart heads. Cheers, Harv
yeah the heads are where the magic is. I have a basically stock 1970 LT-1 350 short block in my 33 pickup. My grandfather drag raced it with the stock 2.02 heads for 2 seasons then we stock World Products/Dart heads on it and it was like bolting another engine in the pickup.
well the first question to think about when your talking swapping cranks is where do you want the power? 327s are more of a high rpm motor vs low end torque like a 350 or 383 (personally you couldn’t give me a 383). You could also swap to a 302 (283) crank and really make a high rpm small block. They all used the same 4” bore block. A 30 over 327 is a 331 and those are little screamers with a set of 2.02s and with either a factory L79 cam or the Z/28s stock solid lifter 30/30 cam. Chevy offered a 140 off road cam but it’s basically a race cam for a Z/28 with the cross ram. It’s not very streetable. I have both a 30/30 cam in one 327 and a L79 cam in another 327 and both are great. The 30/30 motor is a little more temperamental and cold blooded.
Send me all of the parts in the picture. 327, bellhousing and transmission. I'll break it all in for you and send it right back, in about 5 years...
My cam in it know is a MC 1612. Its at the machine shop now. If you look up you will see all my info. Thanks.
I have a very similar engine in the 57. Same bottom end big hydraulic cam and 461 heads. Offy intake with 3 Rochester 2g. Muncie and 3.36 (currently). It will melt the tires right off the rims! Excellent motor! I would like a solid cam though, the sound is wicked
The Jalopy Journal
