If its a 73 and a tall deck then its definitely either a 366 or a 427. The heads would be peanut ports, probably the worst BBC head ever made. Being a complete engine, another clue would be the carb flange on the intake. All 366's and tall 427's came with Holleys while a 454 of the same era would've had a Qjet. Hope you luck out and find its a 454.
Said earlier by others , Use spaces to adapt standard intake to tall deck block , you can cosmetically blend spacers in so not so noticeable.
I've heard the 496" are bastard children BBC's. Don't know for sure but my son has one in his pickup. Pulls and runs great but a little tough on fuel but hell its a 496...
3999289 is a 454 low deck; should be a 2 bolt main oval port heads. Heads are good for street and low end torque. 50/50 chance it would have a steel crank. Does the fly wheel have an external weight?
3999289 72-78 454 Car & Truck 2-Bolt I've heard you might find a steel crank in a 1970 2 bolt 454, but I would be really surprised to see one in this block as original equipment. btw you will hear a lot of stories about what an engine is, what it came from, and what condition it's in, if someone is selling it. They are generally fluff....you have to know what the numbers are, and be able to inspect everything to determine it's condition.
Like I said previously. The 454 tall deck blocks are GM. Not aftermkt.. Tonawanda blocks. Regular production. GM casting numbers. I build 10-20 big blocks a year since the early 70's. I have 26 in stock right now..I won't be back to the shop till Jan 3. If this post is still around I will post some pics. My error in original post.. The one 454 tall deck is badged Yamaha Marine. Not Toyota..Geezer brain is my only excuse... Here are some things that might clear up BBC facts and/or wivestales. Easiest way to tell if tall deck, if it't together.. Every M lV has dual thermostats...Most M V's also. Not all of the tall deck cylinder heads are junk/peanut port. There are a couple of the later, large oval, 366 head castings. That if the 2.19 intake valve is installed. Make a very good 100 cc. street head that works well on 454 flat top engines. Most are gear drive camshaft 4 ring pistons .400" taller than automotive pistons Thick cylinder walls. I have run them at 4.400" bore Front timing cover from Mark IV will fit later block. Oil pan will not. Reverse rotation cam models use a different oil pump drive shaft and pump. Intake manifolds are not interchange between tall deck and automotive blocks. Spacer plates leak! Rectangle port intakes will bolt on and work on oval port heads. But not oval intake on rectangle head. Use intake gasket that fits manifold. Super/Stock drag racers did it frequently in the sixties/seventies. In the big block series, over the years, there are three different cooling paths. Determined by the lower coolant transfer holes in the deck and the head gasket restrictors. Five different series of head gasket design.. If you have a BBC that overheats for no reason. It has the wrong head gaskets in it. Early M IV heads can be used on later M V blocks but need special head gasket Oil systems are completely different from M IV and later M V-VI All of the flywheel/flex plates will bolt up to the cranks. But there are several different balance weights that can't be mixed. Motor mount hole spacing is the same as the small block Small block Chevy distrib is the same as BBC for most applications 8.1 (496) factory BBC engines have NO parts that interchange with the Mark series engines.
This is the 454 in my '37 Ford. I like the Weiand valve covers. If you squint just right you can't see the AC compressor.
Check the casting numbers on the block. One of the 454's I've got is from a 1973 RV also. It's a standard deck, 2 bolt main block, with a forged crank (wide forging line) and has the 049 oval port heads (which flow pretty decent with 2.19/1.88 valves and bowl work).
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