Can you tell / decode

[Croc1990]

The intake is a 1970 casting number 3965577 and it' a 4 barrel quadrajet on it

 

[hatzie]

The plot thickens. That could mean it's a 300HP CNR 350 and the factory stamped the R upside down. The P is stamped deeper than the other letters. Wonder why someone would bother with stamping the lower HP engine ID letter on the block.

 

[Croc1990]

The p looks like it was stamped on top of the r. It is deeper though. The truck had a fair bit of nut to it before the massive oil leak (which turns out wasnt the intake likely the oil pan or main seal) I don' have gaskets for the valve covers right now so I'm reluctant to pull them off right now to look at the head cast number.

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[Honky Kong jr]

The plot thickens. That could mean it's a 300HP CNR 350 and the factory stamped the R upside down. The P is stamped deeper than the other letters. Wonder why someone would bother with stamping the lower HP engine ID letter on the block.

Maybe the ran out of low hp ones and grabbed the higher up to get the thing built before break time. Somewhere on some other forum a debate is going on about an engine stap that has an R stamped over a P lol

 

[idahovette]

Maybe some body wanted to screw with NHRA or AHRA or whoever tech inspectors on race day by changing the letter???

 

[bucket]

Maybe it's just coincidence that the P is stamped deeper? And the low po block was an extra that ended up getting screwed together as the 300 hp version? And the R was just stamped on there half assed? It would explain why it got a 4 bbl.

What are the date codes on the block and intake?

And now I'm super curious what heads are on it. Does it run ok on 87 or does it tend to ping if the timing's not set back?

 

[Croc1990]

I'l look for them tonight after the kids are in bed. I don' really know how good it ran I didn't really get to drive it that much before the oil leak got bad. Well besides the nightmare of bringing it home. Long story short between filling up the transfer case with next to no tools with a broken thumb to the dead alternator (truck would run 15 min tops then die have to boost it with cables for 40 min then get another 10 min. Rinse repeat) a 1.5 hour trip turned into 9 hour trip. What and where do the date codes look Like?

 

[bucket]

The date codes should be a letter, followed by two digits, and a single digit at the end. There's usually a screw head in the casting at each end of the date code. The letter represents the month, the two digits are the day and the single digit represents the year.

The block usually has the date somewhere in the rear, like the casting number. The intake should have it somewhere visible.

 

[78C10BigTen]

It only helps ID things one way.
A lot of the smallblocks that were bolted to auto transmissions were drilled and tapped for the ball stud.
If it didn't have the ball stud hole machined it definitely came from an auto trans vehicle but if it is machined it doesn't tell you what you want to know.

That's why I said it's not definitive...

Im curious on this ball stud....where is this drilled and tapped? This whole thread has me wanting to go research my casting number now. Its not a factory engine but i do still have the numbers matching 350 from it.

 

[bucket]

Im curious on this ball stud....where is this drilled and tapped? This whole thread has me wanting to go research my casting number now. Its not a factory engine but i do still have the numbers matching 350 from it.

Just above the oil filter area.

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[78C10BigTen]

Just above the oil filter area.

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Ill have to have a look tomorrow

 

[Croc1990]

I can' find date code back of block just the 3970010 with gm on top and there' what looks like M in a box with a six beside it and on the passenger side there a clock dial thing.
Intake date looks like A280

 

[bucket]

I can' find date code back of block just the 3970010 with gm on top and there' what looks like M in a box with a six beside it and on the passenger side there a clock dial thing.
Intake date looks like A280

That would be Jan 28th of '70.

 

[hatzie]

The intake would be correct for a CNR 350 300HP engine from a B-Body.
3965577 1970, 350, 4bbl iron Qjet, B F X, 300HP or 350HP.
A280 = January 28, 1970.

3970010 = 1969-1980, 350, 2 bolt or 4 bolt. The higher output CNR stamping probably means it's a 4 bolt main but you won't really know til you pull the pan off.
On the clock dial thing...
From Nasty Z28: "On some Saginaw blocks, intakes and exhausts a "clock" was cast into the block. The clock is a circle of 10 dots, one dot for each hour of a shift (usually 10 hour shifts). An arrow points to the beginning of the shift an another dot outside the circle indicates what time of day the cast part was made."

The P overstamp is a weird one. I bet there's a story behind that one. I'd be interested to know what heads are on it and what cam and pistons were used.

If you can get a look at the end of the heads behind the accessories or with a mirror on the firewall end you'll see Casting ID or Casting Mark along the bottom edge against the block.
http://www.crankshaftcoalition.com/wiki/SBC_cylinder_head_identification

 

[Croc1990]

I'll run out and check quick

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