[68 TT]

Originally Posted by Libertad

I hear what your saying 68TT, I am leaning towards a 327. I am going to look at this motor with a friend of mine that knows and rebuilds motors on Thurs.

The 327 is a good engine but it loses a bit of torque vs the 350 due to the shorter stroke and the extra 23 cubic inches of the 350 is nice to have also. In a truck you need all the torque you can get.

The small journal crank is not as desirable as the large journal crank but it will work OK for a mild daily driver truck. There is a reason Chevy switched to the large journal crank in 68, it is more durable.

For a basic freshen up with no machine work it will cost exactly the same amount of money to assemble as a 350 so no big deal there.

It will take at least $300 just to put it all back together so right there you are at the $500 mark.

If you go with the 327 make sure you get in writing his agreement to take the engine back if the block does not pass inspection at the machine shop.

Just because there is no ridge doesn't mean the cylinder walls are true and the deck is flat. Make sure you take it in and get a machine shop to inspect and hot tank the block before you assemble it. This way if it is cracked or out of tolerance you will know soon enough to be able to return it and not have spent much money and time putting it together. Having to fully machine the block turns into a domino effect of the you might as well syndrome. All the sudden you have spent $600 on machine work and still have to buy new pistons.

If it has been sitting for any length of time you will probably have to bore the block to clean up the pitting in the cylinder walls.

327 pistons are getting harder to find and run a bit more money than a 350.

Personally I would look for a complete running 350 engine for the money it would take to put that one together and all the unknowns that come with buying a pile of 42+ year old engine parts. That $600 complete engine with a 100 day warranty doesn't sound so bad when you look at what it will cost to put the 327 together.