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Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: John_Kunkel] #1093385
10/15/11 12:40 AM
10/15/11 12:40 AM
Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 10,234
Someplace you aren't
S
SomeCarGuy Offline
I Live Here
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Someplace you aren't
Quote:

Quote:

There's a place where you can send a chunk of metal (ore) to be assayed for content. Wouldn't be difficult to send em 2 different minute chunks from 2 different blocks to be analyzed. No idea on the cost or even the company name but it could be found if a person wanted to get serious about this




IIRC, that's what MA did and their conclusion was "While the blocks cast after 1976 do not appear to be "thin wall" castings, they do appear to be cast from a material which is inferior to the earlier castings. It could have been this knowledge that led the MP engineers to caution racers against using the later blocks."




Now now John, these guys who haven't tested anything know that CAN'T be true. Their naked eye tests are far superior-because they say so.

Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: John_Kunkel] #1093386
10/15/11 02:16 AM
10/15/11 02:16 AM
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 31,092
Oregon
A
AndyF Offline
I Win
AndyF  Offline
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Posts: 31,092
Oregon
I wrote that MA article. What I did was cut chunks of cast iron off of different blocks and then had the material tested for hardness. We only checked hardness, not a chemical analysis.

The material in the later blocks measured softer than the early blocks. In some cases, the later blocks were quite a bit softer. Eberg talked to an engineer at Chrysler who told us that the material specification for the blocks had not changed over the years. So officially we have a mystery.

But my conclusion, based on my testing, is that the material did change over the years and that the engineer Eberg talked to was unaware of the changes. From the little bit that I know of Chrysler engineering, I wouldn't expect an engineer today to know exactly what the casting material was 45 years ago.

As for the original question about high nickel blocks, I really doubt the factory ever messed around with the casting alloy. Those are big, expensive casting lines and the production managers are not going to go to the expense of changing the alloy just so some racers can have strong blocks. It would cost $$$ to change a plant over to a different alloy so I doubt it ever happened. They might have had some small outside shop cast a few parts from a different alloy, but I doubt that the production lines were ever changed over to make race blocks.

Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: AndyF] #1093387
10/15/11 02:40 AM
10/15/11 02:40 AM
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 5,399
Aurora, Colorado
451Mopar Offline
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Aurora, Colorado
All I can say is it was alot harder to drill and tap my '68 cast date 440 for 1/2" oil pickup than my 400 block? Maybe the drill bit was just dull from doing the 400 block first?

Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: 451Mopar] #1093388
10/15/11 11:59 AM
10/15/11 11:59 AM
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,791
Big Sky Country
M
MO_PA Offline
top fuel
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top fuel
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Posts: 1,791
Big Sky Country
For what it's worth! GM supposedly cast high nickel blocks.


http://www.ehow.com/how_7636437_identify-high-nickel-block-chevy.html

Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: DPelletier] #1093389
10/15/11 12:04 PM
10/15/11 12:04 PM
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 75,103
A Banana Republic near you.
JohnRR Offline
I Win
JohnRR  Offline
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Quote:

Yeah, I know.....



There should be an Urban Myth section in the Archives where we could put some of this stuff and then we could just link it instead of typing...... Let's see, we could start out with the following;- thick/thinwall castings


- one of my personal favorites; '70 Coronet grills came from the Edsel!




Dave




They didn't ?

Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: AndyF] #1093390
10/15/11 05:09 PM
10/15/11 05:09 PM
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 26,015
Rio Linda, CA
John_Kunkel Offline
Too Many Posts
John_Kunkel  Offline
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Posts: 26,015
Rio Linda, CA
Quote:

As for the original question about high nickel blocks, I really doubt the factory ever messed around with the casting alloy. Those are big, expensive casting lines and the production managers are not going to go to the expense of changing the alloy just so some racers can have strong blocks. It would cost $$$ to change a plant over to a different alloy so I doubt it ever happened. They might have had some small outside shop cast a few parts from a different alloy, but I doubt that the production lines were ever changed over to make race blocks.




Back in the sixties my local race machine shop (M&M Speed Engineering in Sacramento) had a Hemi block that was being prepped for Chuck Poole's A-100 wheel-stander...it was sitting on the floor next to the door and everybody who came in was invited to try to lift just one end of it. I've wrestled a few Hemi blocks and I could tell a big difference in the weight of it.

Story was it was a high-nickel block that came to Chuck from Garlits who got it out the back door of the factory. It was too heavy for Garlits' dragster but was ideal for the rear motor in the wheel-stander.


The INTERNET, the MISinformation superhighway
Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: John_Kunkel] #1093391
10/15/11 09:56 PM
10/15/11 09:56 PM
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 4,761
Florida
BDW Offline
master
BDW  Offline
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Joined: May 2005
Posts: 4,761
Florida
Probably not due to Nickel content, there's only 10-15% difference in the pure states compared to cast iron. So even if it was 100% nickel, only 30-50lb difference. "High" nickel content block might weigh 5 lbs more?

Maybe extra ribbing / material?

http://www.simetric.co.uk/si_metals.htm

Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: JohnRR] #1093392
10/15/11 10:39 PM
10/15/11 10:39 PM
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 15,134
Kelowna, B.C. Canada
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DPelletier Offline
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Posts: 15,134
Kelowna, B.C. Canada
Quote:

Quote:

Yeah, I know.....



There should be an Urban Myth section in the Archives where we could put some of this stuff and then we could just link it instead of typing...... Let's see, we could start out with the following;- thick/thinwall castings


- one of my personal favorites; '70 Coronet grills came from the Edsel!




Dave




They didn't ?








....no, they didn't



Dave


1970 Super Bee 440 Six Pack 1974 'Cuda 2008 Ram 3500 Diesel 2006 Ram 3500 Diesel 2004.5 Ram 2500 Diesel 2003 Ram 3500 Diesel 2006 Durango Limited [url] http://1970superbee.piczo.com [/url]
Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: AndyF] #1093393
10/16/11 11:13 AM
10/16/11 11:13 AM
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 126
wi.
R
Rosco Offline
member
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wi.
Maybe the water jacket of the block was filled?

Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: Rosco] #1093394
10/16/11 02:57 PM
10/16/11 02:57 PM
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,379
Houston,Tx.
L
Lee446 Offline
pro stock
Lee446  Offline
pro stock
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Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,379
Houston,Tx.
I can only tell my one time experience with a "high nickle" block. I had picked up a 66 440 block to build. I had it hot tanked and it came out looking almost silver looking, way more than any other Mopar block I ever saw. I took it to my friends shop to be bored and honed and he said it was the hardest to bore 440 that he had ever done and he was a 90% Mopar shop, he said it also took more effort to hone properly. What this means?, beats me! We had always heard of the high nickle blocks and attributed it to that, but your guess is as good as mine!!

Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: Lee446] #1093395
10/20/11 11:10 PM
10/20/11 11:10 PM
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 893
Tustin, CA
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pishta Offline
super stock
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Tustin, CA
Ford would do a hardness test (that little divot test, hit a punch with the same force and measure the divot, smaller the harder) And put those blocks to the side for their hi end motors. Doubt they ever changed the material, maybe just different lots or temperatures. Even them metallurgy probably started pinching pennies late in the game. Modern Chrysler stuff cast at their Mexico foundry was having QC issues too.

Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: pishta] #1093396
10/20/11 11:23 PM
10/20/11 11:23 PM
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 4,765
Q
quick77rt Offline
Parts Problem
quick77rt  Offline
Parts Problem
Q

Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 4,765
This is a HN X block NOS until just bored, this one has the HN main caps as listed in some of the older books. Yes ive seen them refered to as high tin, but mostly high nickle.

Oddly Ive two matching NOS blocks, one has the HN caps in blue and the other caps are not marked and no paint.

The blue dont last past wd40 or carb cleaner, so id say most never seen the NOS blue HN caps.

6881185-DSC07247[1].JPG (143 downloads)
Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: quick77rt ] #1093397
10/20/11 11:24 PM
10/20/11 11:24 PM
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 4,765
Q
quick77rt Offline
Parts Problem
quick77rt  Offline
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Caps

6881188-DSC07157[1].JPG (160 downloads)
Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: quick77rt ] #1093398
10/20/11 11:32 PM
10/20/11 11:32 PM
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 4,765
Q
quick77rt Offline
Parts Problem
quick77rt  Offline
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Q

Joined: Oct 2006
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As for the 360-s I use 71 72 blocks and im told they are harder to machine overall bore then 77/78 blocks....Id almost beleive a guy who does it day in day out.

Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: runner12] #1093399
10/21/11 10:57 AM
10/21/11 10:57 AM
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 3,544
Syracuse,NY
CompWedgeEngines Offline
master
CompWedgeEngines  Offline
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Posts: 3,544
Syracuse,NY
If you ever ran a cylinder hone, and bored and or honed a cross sectiom of Mopar cylinders and blocks, you may have more questions than answers.

If you took a 66 block, a 69 or 70 block, s 76 block and lets say a early " good" Megablock, you would know what i mean. There are some distinct differences tupically.


RIP Monte Smith

Your work is a reflection of yourself, autograph it with quality.

WD for Diamond Pistons,Sidewinder cylinder heads, Wiseco, K1 rods and cranks,BAM lifters, Morel lifters, Molnar Technologies, Harland Sharp, Pro Gear, Cometic, King Engine Bearings and many others.
Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: CompWedgeEngines] #1093400
10/21/11 11:07 AM
10/21/11 11:07 AM
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 8,943
Holly/MI
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Dean_Kuzluzski Offline
master
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master
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Posts: 8,943
Holly/MI
Quote:

If you ever ran a cylinder hone, and bored and or honed a cross sectiom of Mopar cylinders and blocks, you may have more questions than answers.

If you took a 66 block, a 69 or 70 block, s 76 block and lets say a early " good" Megablock, you would know what i mean. There are some distinct differences tupically.




OK, throw us a bone.........Differences?? Softness in later years??


R.I.P.- Gary "Coop" Davis 02/09/68-05/13/04
Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: John_Kunkel] #1093401
10/21/11 10:12 PM
10/21/11 10:12 PM
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 43,323
Bend,OR USA
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Cab_Burge Offline
I Win
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Posts: 43,323
Bend,OR USA
Quote:

Quote:

As for the original question about high nickel blocks, I really doubt the factory ever messed around with the casting alloy. Those are big, expensive casting lines and the production managers are not going to go to the expense of changing the alloy just so some racers can have strong blocks. It would cost $$$ to change a plant over to a different alloy so I doubt it ever happened. They might have had some small outside shop cast a few parts from a different alloy, but I doubt that the production lines were ever changed over to make race blocks.




Back in the sixties my local race machine shop (M&M Speed Engineering in Sacramento) had a Hemi block that was being prepped for Chuck Poole's A-100 wheel-stander...it was sitting on the floor next to the door and everybody who came in was invited to try to lift just one end of it. I've wrestled a few Hemi blocks and I could tell a big difference in the weight of it.

Story was it was a high-nickel block that came to Chuck from Garlits who got it out the back door of the factory. It was too heavy for Garlits' dragster but was ideal for the rear motor in the wheel-stander.


That was probally one of the after market race only top fuel blocks that Mopar made for top fuel and funny cars right when the after market aluminum blocks where coming out from Milidon and Donovan Kieth Black had a bunch of them for a long time, thicker main webs but not sure on the cylinder walls or materials I'm thinking late 1960s, maybe early 1970 and after


Mr.Cab Racing and winning with Mopars since 1964. (Old F--t, Huh)
Re: high nickel content blocks?? [Re: Cab_Burge] #1093402
10/21/11 10:40 PM
10/21/11 10:40 PM
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 4,765
Q
quick77rt Offline
Parts Problem
quick77rt  Offline
Parts Problem
Q

Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 4,765
It seems someone liked to play with the core boxes, most know the X blocks pan rails are filled on the 3 center and thick on the ends over oem amoung other things.

Check this pic out, a 340 block dated 1969 4.04 bore and more meat then a X block in some areas.

Also notice the pins on the freeze plugs.

I would guess if one went to this much trouble with this block, the material used was either as good as needed or changed to make it so.

Maybe just more meat in some areas were enough????

Look at the lower red circle, the pan rail is just not filled it starts at the edge of the bore and goes up to the rail area

6882691-@77RT.jpg (144 downloads)
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