Hi guys...My block is at the machine shop, being prepped for my 496 build...my plans may have to be changed now. I got a call from the shop today. He checked the mains to see if it needed to be align honed or bored. He said it's perfect, so I thought good, I just saved $150 bucks...then he told me that it is a remanufactured engine...not bad in itself, but the main bearing bores, or openings, whatever you call them, have been opened up .020.....stock is 2.937, mine are 2.957....the problem is, with a new stroker crank with normal size journals, there is no bearing available to fit :clonk: ...all the bearings that will fit my block are for undersize cranks!! He said the only option is find another block or bring in my .010 under crank from last year (the one that was in this engine before I trashed it) and he will check it for out of round and polish it...then I can go with a 468 if I want. Do you know of any other option for bearings? Does this make sense to you guys? :confused: Maybe I didnt give enough info, but I think I covered the main problem. Make sense?? John

Somewhere between Hi guys and John, nothing makes sense. Maybe a second opinion at another shop is in order!

John,
No need to get a second opinion. If the bore has been opened up for oversized OD main bearings, he is correct. It is more common than you think to repair blocks with real bad main bearing bores. I have done it a few times myself. The bearings are not available for standard journal sizes as far as I know. I will have to look in the bearing catalogs on Thursday. The other possibility is to regrind your stroker crank to .010 or .020 on the mains to fit the available bearings. That is not really a big deal though it seems a shame to do it to a new crank. Only other choice I see is to use this block for a stock motor and get another for the stroker.

Guys, I'm not about to dispute any repairs out there, but I would stick to my
original reply, that nothing there makes sense at all. Point one, why would anybody stick a thick bearing shell in main area like that, (in an engine that could see some high horsepower as a stroker) when you're talking about a block that's fairly easy to replace, we're not talkin' a hemi block here, and point two, after they grind his "new stroker" down to .010 or .020 under, whatever the case, you may be a little hard pressed to find an H-series bearing with an o'size OD. But in the event they grind the crank and they're not available make sure they grind the nice strong radius right out of the main journals. They may be available, I doubt it, but by the time you've finished this part of the job, you could have prepped a replacement block. And if the bearings are around, you'll probably have to make payments on 'em. Up here in N.Y. we try to be logical and really do right for the customer. Thanks, Gary (PUT THE BLOCK IN THE DUMPSTER)

Thanks guys...I spoke with another machine shop today, I have used this guy too in the past to do some heads for me. He verified this is correct, as Bill said. He said these larger OD mains are made basically for the remanufacturers, that do thousands of these engines all the time...and they never use a stock crank...it's always one that's been ground. I thought about grinding the new crank, but I dont want to do that. So, I guess I will get another block for my 496. For this block, I think I'll go ahead and use the crank I already have (already .010 under), along with the rods, and I'll just buy as set of pistons, and I'll build this one as a 468....still not so bad. Thanks again for the replys. John