[bwl101]

I just got my grandfather's 1972 C10 that had been sitting at a family members house for years! Trying to find a motor to get it back on the road. Got it cleaned up a little bit and got new tires on it. I'm trying to find an older 350 SBC to get it back on the road on a budget.

 

[bwl101]

Anyone have a line on a used or rebuilt 350 that isn't very expensive?

 

[BlkGS]

That looks like a perfect truck for an Lq4 swap...

 

[DCast]

Any carbed 327, 350 or even a 454 will bolt to the same motor mounts and bell housing. Just go to a wrecking yard.

 

[theheder]

I just got my grandfather's 1972 C10 that had been sitting at a family members house for years! Trying to find a motor to get it back on the road. Got it cleaned up a little bit and got new tires on it. I'm trying to find an older 350 SBC to get it back on the road on a budget. View attachment 102996 View attachment 102997 View attachment 102998 View attachment 102999 View attachment 103000

Not sure if you have heard of GM Heritage (Part of Chevy Legends program) but they have a bunch of great stuff for older trucks.

GM Heritage

GM Heritage is the official resource from General Motors for vintage classic car and truck parts, documentation, brochures, vehicle history, and information.

www.gmheritage.com

Good luck with this project! I can't wait to see it done!

 

[bwl101]

That looks like a perfect truck for an Lq4 swap...

Would love to, just a small budget right now and just trying to get it back on the road for now.

 

[bwl101]

Any carbed 327, 350 or even a 454 will bolt to the same motor mounts and bell housing. Just go to a wrecking yard.

True, it's a TH400 trans in it. Only issue is finding one that has a mechanical fuel pump opening with the rod and a cam that will make it function. Also one that is functioning at a reasonable cost. For a new crate 350 like I would need they want $3k plus a core charge of $400-$600. Or the usual one on social media of ran when I pulled it 4 years ago for over $1k lol. Didn't know if someone on here had one laying around the shop or garage or something that would work.

 

[DCast]

You can always go with an electric fuel pump.

 

[dethmachine]

I’ve got a built running 355 (.30 over 350) I just pulled out of my truck. Built a roller 383 to replace it. Motor has 103k on it. Selling it complete from oil pan to breather element. It’s drop in and ready to go. I’m in Tn, may be a haul for you to get here. Asking $1200 for it. Got pics and video of it running before I pulled it.

 

[BlkGS]

Can't you yank a 5.3 or 6.0 from a junkyard with a trans and pcm for like 400 bucks anymore? Or did everyone buy all those up and jack up prices?

 

[DCast]

The work involved to convert over to a ECM controlled motor is a pain is the ass. Just get a simple carbed motor and rebuild it and put it in, I have done two of these in the past. I did a 72 C20 complete restore and a 67 K10 complete restore. They are easy to do compared to todays computor controlled engines.

 

[Holm]

Love it. C10’s are getting ridiculously priced now days too.
Hit CL or marketplace. I’ve scored good deals on sbc stuff from circle track guys.

 

[bwl101]

Not sure if you have heard of GM Heritage (Part of Chevy Legends program) but they have a bunch of great stuff for older trucks.

GM Heritage

GM Heritage is the official resource from General Motors for vintage classic car and truck parts, documentation, brochures, vehicle history, and information.

www.gmheritage.com

Good luck with this project! I can't wait to see it done!

That's a cool site, thanks for the info!

 

[bwl101]

I’ve got a built running 355 (.30 over 350) I just pulled out of my truck. Built a roller 383 to replace it. Motor has 103k on it. Selling it complete from oil pan to breather element. It’s drop in and ready to go. I’m in Tn, may be a haul for you to get here. Asking $1200 for it. Got pics and video of it running before I pulled it.

May be an option for me if a couple leads I have don't work out. It have a mechanical fuel pump or did you have to run it on an electrical fuel pump?

 

[bwl101]

The work involved to convert over to a ECM controlled motor is a pain is the ass. Just get a simple carbed motor and rebuild it and put it in, I have done two of these in the past. I did a 72 C20 complete restore and a 67 K10 complete restore. They are easy to do compared to todays computor controlled engines.

I wanted to do the 5.3 LS swap route, but you're right! So much crap to have to change over, new trans, new diff and new driveshaft. Would be cool, but would just become a very expensive build and don't have the money for it right now.

 

[bwl101]

Can't you yank a 5.3 or 6.0 from a junkyard with a trans and pcm for like 400 bucks anymore? Or did everyone buy all those up and jack up prices?

See above post, the real issue is finding SBC 350s. Apparently they have all been bought up and when you used to order crate 350s from Jeg's there wasn't a core charge. Now it's $450! Not to mention the price of a base pan to intake crate 350 is almost $3K! The older 350 block stuff has become expensive and not easy to find!

 

[89ls1rs]

it isnt really hard to put a 5.3 instead, you can find them all over cheap. get one with the trans, no need to change the diff.

 

[dethmachine]

May be an option for me if a couple leads I have don't work out. It have a mechanical fuel pump or did you have to run it on an electrical fuel pump?

Sorry I just seen the reply. Motor came out of my 90 model short bed. It currently was running an electronic fuel pump but will run a mechanical with no issues. You would just have to change out the intake for a carbureted intake instead of the throttle body one that is currently on the motor. The intake and heads are the original ones from the truck when it was new. The block is actually a 77 model.

 

[dethmachine]

Here is a pic of it right before I pulled it. I would also let the fan shroud, radiator, and engine stand go with it as well.

 

[bwl101]

Been a while since I updated this on this site! This is the very short version, but this is the link to my build thread if you want to see all the work that has been done over the last year!

Bringing my Grandfather's 1972 Longbed Stepside C10 back to life - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

Bringing my Grandfather's 1972 Longbed Stepside C10 back to life 67-72 Chevrolet & GMC Pickups Projects and Builds

67-72chevytrucks.com

Ended up getting it pretty much finished for now. Got a used 305 (one with black valve covers) to put in it, and it lasted for about 100 miles then #8 lost compression. Instead of fooling with a motor that I didn't know the history of, decided to go with a reman crate 350 (after install with orange valve covers). Fortunately the trans only needed a small amount of work to seal it up and some ATF to get it running right and it drives good so that saved me the money I needed for the crate motor. Cleaned up the paint and replaced the bed wood. I'm so glad to have my grandfather's truck back on the road!