Courtesy of Hemming Motor News. Thought I'd pass along a good source of info regarding GM Bellhousings. Seems to be a topic that pops up frequently. If anyone wants this in pdf form PM me. gatz
One of the belhousings that have become hard to find (at least reasonably priced) is from the 64-67 Chevy II, contrary to advertisers calling them V8 belhousings, these were used on all engines in the 64-67 Chevy II's, 4cyl, 6cyl , and V8. The distinguishing feature is the 7:00 opening for the clutch throwout fork where (most) all others have a 9:00 opening. The Chevy II belhousings will only accommodate a 10&1/2" flywheel (153 tooth), many people think this limits clutch choices but keep in mind this same setup is what was put behind the factory 327/350 HP engines. As with their original application; these can be a real problem solver for other cars with space limitations. GM casting #3849309 There is a 62/63 version that looks nearly identical but it will only accept the first generation transmissions with the smaller dia bearing retainer, this includes the late 63 Corvette Muncie 4speed.
DDDenny, thanks for the pic/part number. I'll keep an eye out for these at work as people still bring in aluminum bellhousings to the scrapyard I work at.
True, the 327/350 horse L-79 used the 10 1/2” clutch but actually the L-88 427 used a 10 1/2” also. I have one in my coupe using the L-88 15# nodular iron 153 tooth flywheel and clutch assembly. Bigger is not necessarily better in regards to clutch assemblies.
The Jalopy Journal
