So you’re thinking ‘ol skool traditional? Nothing works better than a 392 (58N – originally a 4bbl., 345 horse), especially one that was built by Joe Reath, with heads done by Keith Black, and the cam handled by Ed Iskedarian. The engine was original to a Mandella flatbottom that a guy owned for 30 years. He wasn’t the original owner, but bought it from the original owner when the boat was a couple of years old. He decided 20 years ago to have the engine built, and when it was done he took it out about 4 times (he estimates less than 20 hours on the engine). The engine pulled so hard it motivated him to tear the entire hull apart to redo everything. He spent untold thousands on having the floors redone and flo-coated. He had a new Casale split case replace the old top loader, and the list goes on and on. Time also went on and on and the project took a back seat to life’s other demands and he finally made the decision to part with it knowing he would never see it to completion. Anybody reading this knows finding a nice early hemi core involves kissing a lot of frogs, and they tend to be a little spendy when you do find one. Add in the cost of rebuilding it right, and it usually results in a broken budget. This one is priced reasonably – cheap, no, but it is more than fair. The price is $7,500 with all the marine hardware. I’d love to see this find its way back into a flatty, but if that’s not what you had in mind, you can take the engine less the marine items (exhaust logs, flywheel and driveline adapter, front cover/mount, neovane pump, and rear mount) for $6,500. You would be hard pressed to build one for less, and this is ready to drop in and go (other than the AFB’s – they were rebuilt, but with the length of time they have been sitting I’d throw new gaskets in them). I can strap this to a pallet and shipping usually runs about $500 or less in the lower 48. Send me a PM if you have any interest. Thanks!
Bump this up for the weekend! Have a lot of interest in the marine hardware so it could be sold at any time. In any case, the boat stuff will be removed next week to be cleaned photographed for auction, so the pricing will reflect the basic engine only after it's gone. I have new in the box BBC water pump adapters and a spin-on oil filter adapter to replace the remote filter on it now. Also will include a good thermostat housing/water crossover, so the only thing left to source for a car application is a front cover and a new water pump.
Bump it again! FINAL PRICE DROP - $6500 as shown with all the marine equipment, and $5,500 without. Any lower and I'll have to find something to drop it in.
The Jalopy Journal
