looking for a new or used b or rb aluminum block,whos making them now,thanx

Indy!

Whatever happened to this

Contact Tim Banning @ FHO or one of the other new KB vendors on here to see about delivery time on the new 440 blocks

All Im gonna say about the KB deal is good luck...

I agree.
vendors who have ordered numerous blocks will be taken care of by KB. Individuals will be ignored.

If you follow the KB situation from the buyout until now........ I’d say it should be pretty clear you’re not likely going to order a block through them and have it within the next 12 months.

The only truly “viable” option with a reasonable delivery schedule is Indy.

Or find something used.

I think if its anyone other than FHO the vendors still aren't getting blocks. Didnt FHO post not too long ago about expecting more blocks and soon. That was a completely different story than I got wHen I talked to the other vendors.

From what I heard no wedge blocks have been cast. Remember when the people from KB were on here promoting the block. Now nothing but crickets.

Pretty pissed. I had all the parts for LB's. But since KB wasn't doing a LB I went out and got a RB intake, rods and other misc parts to build a RB. Now it seems like I wouldn't have had to do all of that, could have saved some money.

What are the shortcomings of an Indy block? Other than what I've heard about dealing with the people at Indy
I've read about oiling issues. Is there anything else?

The machining on them stinks...

You're better off buying from Indy through a a dealer. Todd Marsh (Marsh Performance) always gets my vote. If there's any issues he can put them right or work with Indy to correct. The KB block is considered to be the ultimate but the Indy Block can work very well too. It's a lot easier to get a Indy Block at the moment.I wouldn't hesitate to use another one but I'm not the guy who goes for (or can afford) a 2000+ HP motor and chassis to match build

It's worse than you can imagine. Things you didn't even know were possible. It's been a few years since I did mine but I will try to remember some of the problems for you. I bought mine through Bob George. Great guy to deal with.

I've been working on 426 Hemi's since 1973 so this wasn't my first rodeo.

I bought the Indy head stud kit with the block. It came with bolts to go in the inside valley where the stock Hemi uses studs. No torque specs for that. So I called Russ. He said just tighten them up with a wrench. Such good info! The sleeves weren't flush with the decks so the block had to be surfaced.

So we finally get it in the car. The headers won't fit. The block is too wide. Why would somebody make the block wider? KB's have been making thousands of horsepower for 40 years but Indy thinks they need to make their block wider. Smart guys. So after taking the brand new coated TTI headers off and on 5 times and hammering on the tubes, and grinding on the main cap side bolts, I finally got them to fit. At the same time I am trying to put the starter on. No, a starter won't fit an Indy block. So I try a small Meziere starter. No, it won't fit. So I try a Mopar mini. No, it won't fit either. So I start grinding on the new Indy block. I don't want to just hog out 1/2" of material. So I take it off and on more than 5 times grinding and fitting. Cussing Indy every step of the way. If these people are going to make a block, a starter should bolt to it. Now we are ready to crank it up.

After I started it up it ran out of oil pressure after 45 seconds. At the same time oil was gushing out around the lower valve cover studs. If you have been starting 426 Hemi's for over 40 years you would know this is impossible. Isn't it? So at this point there was no alternative other than to pull the motor out of the car, find out what is wrong, and fix it.

After much phone help from Todd Marsh and Ray Barton we devised a plan to fix this thing.

The oil gushing out from the valve cover studs was because Indy drills too small of drain back holes in the block so the oil can't drain out of the heads fast enough and just piles up in the heads. Why does Russ think he is smarter than the Chrysler engineers? Russ may know wedges but my granddaughters wouldn't make a stupid mistake like that. The fix for this is to drill the block out to stock size Hemi (3/8") and then the oil will drain back. Duh. Another reason the pan ran out of oil is because there really isn't a way for oil to get out of the lifter valley, so I had to drill holes in the valley and a hole in the front china wall for oil drainback. And then put it all back together and put it in the car again.

There were more problems but I have carpel tunnel. It is painful to type. I'm not here to bash Indy, but you asked for information so I thought I should convey my experience.

If you buy an Indy block your family members should place you on suicide watch. Things will go thru your mind.

Good to know. Thank you for sharing your experience

"If you buy an Indy block your family members should place you on suicide watch. Things will go thru your mind."

I feel bad that you had to go through all that, but man that is the funniest thing I have read in a while. I have wanted a real hemi all my life, it seems as though that is not going to happen unless the offerings get better and actually have a supply of them.

Till then I guess it's gen III for me.

I just read earlier today on Facebook that the Koleno Block foundry is shutting down.

People bash indy…..BUT where else can you get blocks ??? Get an Indy Block from a reputable builder, deal with any issues and move on to the track....

My indy block has served me well so far...

and I bought direct from them.

IF you want to race a Mopar and you want a block , deal with it !!!! lol

Just like any other race part, no matter how much you pay for it, it has to be checked and fixed if required. You don't buy pistons and not check/fix the pin fit? you don't buy rods and not check the weights? you don't just put valve springs on, you degree camshafts, ETC, ECT.....

I agree that every part of an engine needs to be checked. I do hate however, the bucks you put down for a nice piece and then find out you need to spend another couple thousand to make it as advertised.

It doesn’t sound like my Indy block experience was typical....... but I had no problems at all with the one I used....... other than it had passenger car cam bearings in it that I swapped out for coated performance bearings.

I got the block “done”.
Decked, bore & hone, line hone, etc.

I measured everything, it was all fine....... so I gave it a good cleaning and put it together.

RB 542”(4.440 x 4.375), It’s been together since 2011...... was still running just fine at the Nats last weekend.

Of the aftermarket BB Mopar blocks I’ve used, it needed the least attention of any of them.

Same here. I had no trouble with mine either. Its a wedge though. I will say that the dowels for the tranny are now permanently fixed in the tranny, but that actually ended up being ok since I have a mid plate. The dowels stay in the tranny supported by the mid plate when you pull the engine. Their dowels are .500.

What he said^^
The way I look at it is if I'm stubborn enough to still be playing with Mopars, I'm gonna have to be creative to make parts work right. The oil drain back is a known issue that's pretty easy to fix. I had to make some clearance for roller lifters and the front of the crank counter weight. I did my own pushrod internal oiling but in retrospect, I would probably just pay Indy to bore the lifter galleys after buying the parts and the hours I spent making my own manifold etc... Going on 3 seasons with my junk and no complaints so far. I think it was at the door in about 3 weeks from the day I ordered it. As many others have said, work with a machine shop you can trust to do final machine work and the Indy block will get the job done.