Lifter Bore

I have a 340-8 and a 340-1 blocks here. I will get pics when I get a chance and show the difference. I have been comparing them since they have been making 340's. I have seen many side by side over the years and only telling what I have seen. I was just at a sprint car race and was looking at a mopar car. The block was a 340-1. I was talking to the engine builder and mentioned the block having a 340-1. He just smiled and nodded. I am only telling you what I have seen not read in a book. The first core would have had to pass quality after that they just went through the daily revisions to get them done.

I worked in a foundry. The first pour was watched and done with care before lunch. Once the green hats went to the office the gloves came off. That was the problem with union work quality always faded toward the end of the shift.

The same system was implied at the machine shop. The first piece out of the mold was the first to get machined and checked for quality. After that the parts would just get stacked and assumed they held the same tolerance.

You don't have to agree with the theory. The original block for my Duster is a piece of **** 340-8. The distributor hole was not even machined correctly. The cam bore and the crank tunnel were to close causing chain slop. after square decking it the lifter bores are not square to the deck. I can make a list of poor quality from the factory on the block. I look because its mine and I learned from experience over the years. If I was building it to race and if it wasn't the #No block. I would sell it to one of the don't care builders that roam the web.