Hey guys just bought a 79 chev truck that supposedly has a 454 chev.crate motor in it with less then 10 k on it.I already bought the cow and own it.It is very strong and I want to put it in my 57 chev.I'm wondering how to know what animal I have like where the block ID #s are and what to look for on the heads also.Any help would be megga cool.thanks.
look for a block casting number and casting date code on the back of the block, above the bellhousing area, should be a long number sequence for the casting number, and a letter followed by 2 to 4 numbers for the date code. Also look at the p*** side block deck surface, right in front of the head, for one or two stamped number sequences. And look on the block just above the timing chain area, beind the top of the water pump, for stamped numbers. Post what you find and we'll see what it might be.
There's a big difference in the flavors of BBC. Also, was it a crate motor, or a re-man? Hopefully you hit the lottery and ended up with a hot motor for cheap, but more than likely it's simply a peanut head 2 bolt deal... Not that the peanut motor is a bad thing, as they can be worked into killer low torque stump pullers with ease. Let us know what you find out!
The above photo shows where the casting numbers and the engine ID number/VIN code is. Check here for the engine number/VIN codes ... http://www.nastyz28.com/chevy-engine-code-stampings.php Like this ...
First thing thank you guys for your time and help.This truck that this engine is in is a mile high.So I'm trying to write down #'s as I'm bouncing up and down on a trampolene and so far I have some #'s off the dech on the p***.side and they go like TL13**A5 can you help an old brother out.
that's a weird looking number! should be the letter T (for Tonawanda, where all the big blocks were made) then 4 numbers then 3 letters (although there could be a number or two in there). If it's a replacement engine or a crate motor then the letter code might be hard to find info on. The block casting number and date could would be a big help. Since you dind't find a partial VIN on the block deck, it's likely it is a crate motor.
if its a peanut port head motor just buy some new heads and a cam to match your combo. bigblocks dont need much to kill school busses/farm tractors.
Billbrown thanks for the info it figures I should have known he was full of it when he said it had 14 bolt mains and was rated at close to five thousand H.P. damn I bought another boat anchor
it's hard to go wrong with a running big-block! the brackets and pulleys are almost worth whatever you paid for it. try piecing together a matching set, you'll see what i mean....
If you want fenderwell headers Speedway has them but be ready to go with a straight axle because the drivers side tire will hit the tubes.Also CCI's rack&pinion setup won't work with their own big block headers. I amgoing thru this **** right now.57 210 489 stroker M22 9 inch detriot locker 'gl*** tilt front end tunnel ram,blah blah
Update I've researched this engine all day and now I know what animal I've bought and it's a 454 HO crate motor 425 hp so I'm happy ! Before I bought the beast (now remember this engine is in a 79 chevy long bed 4x4 with 35in.monster tires we're talking some tonage) the owner got it out in the street and floored it and he smoked them big balonnys down the road and I thought if he can do that in this boat what will it do in my 57.It has a turbo 400 trans.I drove it and manually shifted it around 5 grand and it barked the tires in 2nd so I might have got lucky.. thanks
all big blocks were made at the Tonawanda plant? ahhhhhh i dont think so. better go look at letters on your stash of big blocks.
must be a good time for finding BBC's - just brought home a '73 suburban with 454, edelbrock single plane, holley, msd wires, supposed rebuilt t400 w/ deep B&M pan, three angle valve job with roller rockers, comp cams (think he said 260) cam, hyper. pistons...anxious to dig in and research what I've got. Question: what single plane intakes did edelbrock make for the bbc?
I have seen several big blocks that were "hencho in mexico" - and that's not a bad thing. they seem to hold up very well, and the metal used in the casting process (according to my engine builder) is of much better quality than the late 70's through 80's stuff. he said they will make his boring bar howl just like the old high nickel content blocks. they have been know to have some funky numerics, too. we got a crate s.b.c. from "down south" about a year ago, and the casting numbers didn't jive with anything in 99 percent of the databases we typically use for identification. there were some pretty obvious "tells"- 2 dipstick holes, all of the places You could put a starter bolt were present, it said "made in Mexico" on the bellhousing land, etc,etc. good little motors, all in all.
heres what I've found so far: edelbrock streetmaster 2-0 heads are 336781 comp cams pushrod guideplates havent gotten a number off the block yet I'm guessing the intake is an old one, were they any good?
Must be, I just grabbed a running one for $200 for an unknown project. I guess I need to build a rolling ch***is or something.
They're fine for a mild performance engine. Especially if you don't have a grand or so for aftermarket heads.
The 781 is an awesome head. Unless you are spinnig huge rpm's (6500+) a set of rectangle port heads are pointless. you cannt use all the cfm they flow and are overkill. A light port job and you have a killer set of bbc heads that will work awesome in a street/strip car. Make sure you use an oval port intake on them too. guys will say you can use a rectangle intake on them, but fuel gets caught on the edges of the mismatched ports and can cause surges of rpm and sometimes a lean condition too. lean is not good unless you are talking about women.....hot naked women....uhhhhmmmmmmmmmm.
BBCs are getting cheaper around here anyway....probably due to gas prices? Dude you're gonna love that big block....the low end torque makes them a lot of fun on the street. I miss my old 454.....but I don't miss filling it up with gas....
With the right gearing the 425hp 454HO can get decent/good mileage. I've hit 19.6 on the highway with the one in my cpe. Running a 700R4 and 3.42 gears. Makes it nice when doing a long distance run. Right now I'm down in Tampa with it. If all I was getting was 10-13 mpg I might not have come down, as the difference with todays gas prices would have added a lot to the gas bill
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