When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Hi C3 experts. Looking to purchase a 68 L71, I found a beautiful car but no documentation. Can you tell if the engine pad Letter R looks correct or not.
thank you
T 1 2 1 8 1 slightly higher separated more R the number 1 is very close than balance of the vin 1 8 S 4 etc take a look below
thanks
the letters are old. i don't thnk you can fake rust pitting in the bottom of the R like that. when these guys were stamping these cars, they were worried about getting the correct numbers stamped. and about lunch. they weren't the least bit worried about what Bloomngton or NCRS would think about the spacing between the letters for the engine code in 54 years. they could have had a problem with the R on the gang stamp at the engine plant and had to stamp the letter separately. i assume the vin matches? what does that stamp look like? and casting date codes. how well do they line up with that december 18 date and date on trim tag and the vin number's approx date? and they also used I for the 1 in the 18th. my opinion is legit stamp.
Last edited by derekderek; Sep 1, 2021 at 07:06 AM.
By far no expert here however whenever I see a BB stamp with the build portion so low on the pad it makes me think it was stamped with the head on. BB engines were stamped with the head off (or so I was told).
I think it was opposite for SB engines.
all the numbers are in the right range and seems legit
thanks very much
Originally Posted by derekderek
the letters are old. i don't thnk you can fake rust pitting in the bottom of the R like that. when these guys were stamping these cars, they were worried about getting the correct numbers stamped. and about lunch. they weren't the least bit worried about what Bloomngton or NCRS would think about the spacing between the letters for the engine code in 54 years. they could have had a problem with the R on the gang stamp at the engine plant and had to stamp the letter separately. i assume the vin matches? what does that stamp look like? and casting date codes. how well do they line up with that december 18 date and date on trim tag and the vin number's approx date? and they also used I for the 1 in the 18th. my opinion is legit stamp.
It's pretty common to find 66-68 427's with a suffix code beginning in "I", to have the following letter out of line or at an angle to the rest of the stamping. I always assumed that this was because it was only the last digit that needed to be changed in the gang holder, as they switched from a 427/400 4 speed (IM), to a 427/390 auto (IQ), to a 427/435 4 speed (IR), and so on.
I'd be more concerned about not being able to see any broach marks on the pad, and as Avalonjohn said, the position of the stamping in relationship to the head, then the position of the "R". I'm not saying that it is a restamp, it may just be that the pitting has obscured the broach marks, and there was no factory spec as to the exact position of the engine stamp. It's just that broach marks, and typical factory configuration of the stamping, always need to be considered when determining the legitimacy of an engine stamping.
2025 C3 ('68-'73) of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
2024 C3 of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
2023 C3 of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
Originally Posted by RYTOCOR
Hi C3 experts. Looking to purchase a 68 L71, I found a beautiful car but no documentation. Can you tell if the engine pad Letter R looks correct or not.
thank you
T 1 2 1 8 1 slightly higher separated more R the number 1 is very close than balance of the vin 1 8 S 4 etc take a look below
thanks
Hard to really tell from that unclear pic & angle, it looks like the "R" in question appears larger, deeper & on an angle. The font looks correct. If anything looks suspect to me from that pic it would be the 1st - 3 numbers / letters. The proximity to the vin does not bother me at all. I do like the back round continuity that matches all throughout the pad except around the 1st three so based on what I can see, i'm still going with looks "LEGIT"
Last edited by 427SIXPACK; Sep 1, 2021 at 10:36 AM.
I personally like the upside-down 8 in the Tonawanda date code. Looked at an 71 LT-1 recently that had the first letter of the vin stamping backward from the factory.
Looks legit to me. The primary stamp is cocked so that the letters at the right of the gang stamp drove in deeper than those on the left. But, they are all 'progressive' in depth from left to right. Very hard to do that with individual stamps. Broach marks...."smoatch marks". For those who know NOTHING about how a broach/broach bar {for shaving a surface flat] works, they should not be advising on how that surface should look. Too much "dogma" and not enough real knowledge out there....
[Thanks so much without documentation (except a tank sheet in peace’s in a plastic bag) this is good news really appreciate your knowledge and sincere response.
RYTOCOR
SAVE THE WAVE 👋
QUOTE=7T1vette;1603972220]Looks legit to me. The primary stamp is cocked so that the letters at the right of the gang stamp drove in deeper than those on the left. But, they are all 'progressive' in depth from left to right. Very hard to do that with individual stamps. Broach marks...."smoatch marks". For those who know NOTHING about how a broach/broach bar {for shaving a surface flat] works, they should not be advising on how that surface should look. Too much "dogma" and not enough real knowledge out there.... [/QUOTE]
Thanks everyone really appreciate your help and comments . Long story but I’m off that car and back looking for a 67 documented L 79’. Coupe or perhaps a big block but most likely a BB will be out of price range.
C3 L71 pad #
