MrLightning said:
That one in Philly (the 1970 Olds 350 Rocket) looks nice. I sent him an email and we will see what happens. Thanks for helping me look!
Thoughts on buying a used engine
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That one in Philly (the 1970 Olds 350 Rocket) looks nice. I sent him an email and we will see what happens. Thanks for helping me look!
They make inexpensive trans adapters to bolt a BOP trans to a Chevy which would work fine for mild builds but being on a budget I would stick with an Olds engine just for ease of swapping if you put in a Chevy you have to change the engine mounts and you would need all the pulleys and accessory brackets for the Chevy and if you still have AC you would need the longer hose set up for Chevy. It would not be a simple R & R like an Olds would be.
I also vote for sticking to Olds power. That one in Philly looks like a good candidate. The others, although they may sound cheap, don't overlook the cost of building them. Between machine work, heads rebuilt, new bearings, pistons, etc.
I think the more complete the engine, the better.
I think the more complete the engine, the better.
Longroof79 said:
Good call - I've sent an email through Craigs List to the guy with the 70 olds 350 in Philly. Hopefully I'll hear something back. I sent a copy of the post over to the people in the car club and they love the idea. Keeping my fingers crossed, now the hard part is coordinating a trip out there to get it. We have a van to bring it back in, but it's not mine. And we do have a stand for it which is good.
Well, good luck man. I hope it works out for you. If it's still available, I'm sure the price is negotiable. Although, If the engine is properly built, it's easily worth it. I'd much rather see an Olds engine in your car than a Chevy. That's just me.
Longroof79 said:
Well I did not hear back from either of the two motors I responded to on Craig's List - the one in Philly and another one locally in Howell by me. Time to start looking around again.
Last time I was in the market for an engine I stumbled across a fella who was very open and honestly thought he had a rebuilt engine. He bought it off an acquaintance, stuffed it in the corner for a couple years then put it up for sale. Anyway I brought cash and told him I wanted to pop the oil pan off or a cylinder head and if it was indeed new I would buy it, the price was too good to be true. I laid the cash on his bench as he proceeded to take a cylinder head off for inspection. Turned out it had sand papered cylinder walls, deep ridge and standard bore of course. He had no problem when I scooped up my cash. Next day it was listed as not rebuilt in his add. You might get lucky and find a nice guy like that if you look around but they are far and few between.
I think whatever you buy, you have to regard as a core. Unless, of course there's receipts indicating otherwise- machine shop charges, parts, etc,
Even the last Olds 350 engine that the guy posted for sale with trans +optional Edelbrock manifold. I would most certainly tear that one down for a freshening up.
Even the last Olds 350 engine that the guy posted for sale with trans +optional Edelbrock manifold. I would most certainly tear that one down for a freshening up.
I won't buy a used engine unless I can see and hear it run. I've been burned a few times and there's just too many dishonest people trying to make a buck in my opinion. I can't speak for other parts of the country, but around here it's either junk or people think they're sitting on a gold mine. It seems like good deals are far and few anymore.
I heard back from the guy with the Chevy 350 about 30 minutes from my house. It's about 20 years old and he never used the Corvette it is in, and so he estimates 2000 miles on it (It also sat for 7 or so years). I asked about receipts and bringing my mechanic to see it but I have yet to hear back, I'm assuming he has nothing to prove what was done. I am back to leaning on rebuilding my existing 307 - at least I know what I am starting with. Unless something great comes along I think that may be the way to go - I don't want to get burned.
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