Inliners International Forums General Discussion Engines Block casting numbers (gaahh!!!)

Hey guys,
Ok so my name is Ken and I live in Oakland CA. I just signed up today and I was hoping to reach out to you all for some assistance in identifying a block casting #. Here is the situation:

A friend gave me a Chevy Inline 6 engine complete. It was pulled out of a 63 SS Nova BUT he thought it was a 250 not a 194. The Leo Santucci book lists as a 250 block # 3994258. The engine I have shows a block # of 3994257, so only the last number is different. I know it is not a 292 because the sideplate height is only around 5" so we can eliminate the 292 as a possibility.

Soo>>> the quesiton is: is block casting 3994257 a 194, 230 or a 250 block please and thank you! Once I have this answer, I intend to get a cam, head, intake, and exhaust combo and built it up to go into a daily driver 63 Nova hardtop. If you could assist me in figuring out what I am working with, that would be very much appreciated.

Gratzi Padres,
KJY63Nova

63 Hardtop and Ragtop Chevy 2
67 Fairlane Ranchero

Hi Ken,
Look up Ryan9815, he's on the board here. He is doing the same thing as you with his 63 Nova. He's also here in California.
I'm Chris, near Sacramento.

This is from:


http://www.thedirtforum.com/ubb/Archives/Archive-000001/HTML/20040201-20-000279.html

Lots of Chevy casting numbers and descriptions here!

1967-72
250 CI
4.1 Litre
3.875 cyl bore
L-6
7" from Rear Dipstick
2 Bolt Starter.
3850817
3854036
3877178
3994257 <-
3927763
3895052
3876802
3621


Here's one of the comments I found while searching.

"Help.. am trying to assist a friend in decoding other GM 6 cyl casting numbers. He has an engine out of a 1968 Pontiac Beaumont ( like Chevelle) which has the block casting number 3994257 . We have looked at a number of sites online but have not found anything. Can anyone confirm that 1) it is a Canadian engine.
2) what the displacement is. 3) what the year is... It is attached to a Powerglide Tranny."

From:http://corvaircenter.com/phorum/read.php?1,111125,111291

In the forum under "Other Chevy 6 Casting Numbers "

Maybe it's from a Poncho,from north of the border. That would be Cool.

Good luck with your project!

The 194 has a real small bore size, it measures 3-9/16", a 230 and 250 are both 3-7/8", so it should be fairly easy to tell the difference, even with a tape measure or ruler.

YOU GUYS ROCK. Thanks much for the answers. I called Clifford and he said he goes to you guys or the Santucci book for ID issues such as this. Yeah,duh, I guess I should have just measured the bore but I figured there must be SOME Inliner who has run up on this issue before. Anyway, much thanks to Chris and CNC Guy for kind assistance. Now the fun part: ripping into my newfound 250 to see how bad or good it looks in there.

Thanks again!

We'd like to see some pics of your project and progress every once in a while, so keep us posted. And welcome to Inliners!