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Two bolt mains?

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Old Mar 13, 2011 | 08:19 PM
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Default Two bolt mains?

I pulled the oil pan off my numbers matching small block. It has two bolt mains. I thought that all Corvette small blocks were four bolt mains.


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Old Mar 13, 2011 | 08:24 PM
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My numbers matching L-48 is 2 bolt.
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Old Mar 13, 2011 | 08:26 PM
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Mine is also an L-48
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Old Mar 13, 2011 | 09:01 PM
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The vast majority of SBCs are two bolt.
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Old Mar 13, 2011 | 09:07 PM
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L82 4 bolt main.
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Old Mar 13, 2011 | 09:09 PM
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The L48 was certainly not Corvette specific. It is the same motor you can get in an Impala or any other Chevrolet. It is just a standard 4 barrel carb motor nothing special at all.
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Old Mar 13, 2011 | 09:16 PM
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My block number is V0605 ZBA. I thought ZBA indicated L82 but it has 2 bolt mains. So it must not be an L82.
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Old Mar 13, 2011 | 09:38 PM
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the 2 bolt main will cause you no problems and will take lots of HP
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Old Mar 13, 2011 | 09:39 PM
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i have my 74 L48 for 20 years the number on the pad are gone.. all number match except the pad..alt,distributor,carb, tranny, intake, eveything correct, but its a 4 bolt main....it a 10 block
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Old Mar 13, 2011 | 09:51 PM
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Originally Posted by flaco1801
i have my 74 L48 for 20 years the number on the pad are gone.. all number match except the pad..alt,distributor,carb, tranny, intake, eveything correct, but its a 4 bolt main....it a 10 block
I have never heard of a 4-bolt L48 engine. If the numbers on the block pad are missing there is no way of verifying that the engine is original. All of the ancillary parts could be correct for the period but that doesn't mean that the block wasn't replaced.



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Old Mar 13, 2011 | 09:57 PM
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They could also substitute a 4 bolt for a 2 bolt if they ran out of 2 bolts for any number of reasons. 2 bolts with ARP studs will handle upwards of 500HP, personally I wouldn't go much higher than about 400HP, I made ~300RWHP with a warmed over L48 with factory main bolts, caps and crank and rods
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Old Mar 13, 2011 | 10:06 PM
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Originally Posted by MotorHead
They could also substitute a 4 bolt for a 2 bolt if they ran out of 2 bolts for any number of reasons. 2 bolts with ARP studs will handle upwards of 500HP, personally I wouldn't go much higher than about 400HP, I made ~300RWHP with a warmed over L48 with factory main bolts, caps and crank and rods
Possible, but without a block stamping there is no way of knowing for sure.



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Old Mar 14, 2011 | 12:09 AM
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even the heads on the motor are correct... i always wondered why the numbers were gone and the 4 bolts...and the rest of the number match...why just upgrade the mains?
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Old Mar 14, 2011 | 07:38 AM
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Originally Posted by flaco1801
even the heads on the motor are correct... i always wondered why the numbers were gone and the 4 bolts...and the rest of the number match...why just upgrade the mains?
The block may have been trashed for any number of reasons and replaced using original accessories, spun main bearing, frozen and cracked, broken ring scored cylinder.
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Old Mar 14, 2011 | 09:07 AM
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Originally Posted by flaco1801
i have my 74 L48 for 20 years the number on the pad are gone.. all number match except the pad..alt,distributor,carb, tranny, intake, eveything correct, but its a 4 bolt main....it a 10 block
What is the casting date of the block, and the trim tag date for the body?
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Old Mar 14, 2011 | 06:02 PM
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Not being a mechanic or ever claimed to be...... so what is two bolt main.......four bolt main and just what is the importance? How does one tell if he /she has a 2 or 4 bolt main. Thanks for the explanation.
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Old Mar 14, 2011 | 06:19 PM
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An engine block with "2-bolt mains" has 2 bolts on each main bearing cap. An engine block with "4-bolt mains" has 4 bolts on each main bearing cap. 4-bolt mains are stronger than 2-bolt mains.
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Old Mar 14, 2011 | 07:20 PM
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Back in the day, before the General offered 4-bolt mains in a small block Chevrolet, a lot of 2-bolt blocks became 4-bolt blocks overnight with the help of a competent machinist.


It was also not unusual to spin those old 2-bolts over 7000 rpm's from time to time either.

Good luck... GUSTO
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Old Mar 14, 2011 | 07:51 PM
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Originally Posted by GUSTO14
Back in the day, before the General offered 4-bolt mains in a small block Chevrolet, a lot of 2-bolt blocks became 4-bolt blocks overnight with the help of a competent machinist.


It was also not unusual to spin those old 2-bolts over 7000 rpm's from time to time either.

Good luck... GUSTO
but those are splayed caps and not typical of factory 4 bolt blocks
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Old Mar 14, 2011 | 08:25 PM
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Four bolt mains for Gen 1 small blocks mean the 3 center mains have 4 bolt and the front and rear are 2 bolt,

You start getting into some serious stuff when you get all 5 mains 4 bolts and the center 3 splayed as well as being made of billet steel. The Motown 400ci block I have has this and will accept a 4 inch stroke crank with no clearancing



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