273 302 318 340 build

4spdragtop said
So another option.
I found a 1974 318.No heads or intake. Bore is .030 over, pistons have 4 valve reliefs. Seller sounds honest. It was in his Duster(340 car)
He didn't do the "work" on the engine but was told to only run it on 93 octane and was told it was approx 9.5 to one compression.
He is going to get measurements how deep in the hole and the bore.
It also has a "purple cam" 429/444

Opinions on this 318 vs the one I already bought (1985 date).
1985 318 I can keep/refresh and drop in my 84 Prospector.
Thanks for the input

If these are the standard 4 valve relief pistons for a 318 (the only ones I can think of that have 4 valve reliefs), they'll be down in the hole about .075-.080, and then even with 273 closed chamber heads milled down to the NHRA minimum 57 cc chambers, and a .028" head gasket, the Static CR would be 8.4 LOL. So the only way it would be 9.5 static CR would be if the block was decked a LOT, AND the head chambers were small AND the head gasket were thin. Those 4 valve reliefs add 8-10 cc's of displacement per hole by themselves.

Sorry, but this story and seller sounds fishy, or at best, just not knowledgeable; this sounds like a standard, low compression rebuilt 318 short block. I would not simply take his word for the 'down in the hole' measurement. How will he measure the piston-to-deck height.... with a wooden kindergarten ruler?