Anybody using the Callies iron Hemi block? If so were there any problems?

Oh yeah,
Lifter holes & oil galleys are atrocious and will need much deburring
Head dowels are too close together, plan on grinding dowels to fit heads
Check threads on every hole, pipe threads will need to be tapped deeper
Grind relief in the valley where inside head nuts go for wrench clearance if it's a Hemi
#7 exhaust pushrod might need more clearance if it's a Hemi
All the .246" dowel pin holes were way too tight
Ream dowel holes to .245”
If it's a Hemi and you are going to run TTI headers, if you wait to grind for clearance on the block until you get it in the car, I'll go ahead and offer $500 for your car now. And at midnight the night you put it in you will call me to tell me to come and get it.
There might have been more, but that's all I can think of.

I did a video on Callies block prep. If you want to see it, I will look up what number it was.

Hopefully you can find a .245" reamer on ebay.
I looked through the videos for one that was specific to Callies block prep, it was a little scattered throughout the build but the lifters are the worst thing and they are in episode 5, Here's a link:
https://youtu.be/2YW0rVTbXhA

There is other Callies info in the whole build. Here is a link from the beginning:
https://youtu.be/iKkjpiraZnw

Its there a good alternative for a strictly street car? I need a new block.

I like them. I’m just saying this isn’t the old days. It will take a little time to get it right. Like everything else we buy today. We are building engines with all aftermarket parts. Just take your time and keep your eyes open. You might as well start from the beginning of that series and it will guide you through building a Callies Hemi. Every thing will be fine.

I have two, and other than the lifter bores on one were not finish reamed, no issues....

I just picked up a production 1966 block and set of heads, am going to have it baked and peened first, but initially it looks like it will clean up at 0.030. was going to try and find a rotating assembly for it. Jim.

Is it safe to assume the marketer has never, ever heard of these issues, and everything is fine as far as they know?

Somebody may have informed them but I'm sure they don't listen. Kinda like when I call them for a crankshaft and they give me a delivery date. If I want to know the delivery date on a Callies crank I go to Wal-Mart and ask the first 6 year old girl I see. She can get closer to the date than they can. If I called them about the block they would probably say their quality control is great. This is the first time we've ever heard of this, blah, blah, blah. Unlike calling Indy when Russ would just tell you he's the smartest guy in the world and you're just a dumba**. Energy and Callies should watch my build video if they want an eye opener.

Check it out fellas.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usBJ-lhUeg0&t=1916s

Shouldn't be hard to find one , you don't need to buy old used up parts for a rotating assembly.

I got that suggestion this morning too. I never get tired of watching that kinda stuff.

The manufacturer's will almost never admit or agree there is anything wrong or defective with their products. I order most everything in 50 to 100+ quantities. When we tell them, show them or prove to them with data what the issue/s are. I almost always get the response of "this is the first time we are hearing or seeing this". Or, "no one else is having these issues out in the field ".

Yes, maybe they should measure the spacing on their head dowel pins. Then they could see why the heads won't go on. But they probably can't drive the head dowels in because the holes are .244" at best and the dowels (not that I got any with mine) are .246"

Might have been too cheap to get the files from Royal Oak Boring, or maybe Royal Oak wouldn't sell the info so they just made it up as they went along?

At any rate, Sad they have good castings to work with and aren't finishing them as well as they could.

Never was 100% clear who owned the machining files before the licensing thing happened, but if the block casting is considered a licensed chrysler product then the machining specs should be also.

It's all a big mess/situation normal

I'm sure Mopar has prints to make a 426 Hemi.

Yes I'm sure they still do, but from past experience seeing them the paper prints at Mopar were almost always horrific.

Without a doubt, the worst one I ever saw was the stage3 max wedge head print.

It wouldn't surprise me at all if the 426 Hemi paper prints were equally awful or worse, but maybe they were redone around the time of the water+megablock
and are newer.

The CNC files used on the previous generation would have been the easy way to do this product.
Royal Oak boring did a nice job on the previous generation, it's too bad that wasn't passed along, as it should have been.

Oh well, I'm still working with stuff from 2008-2009... maybe one day I'll get to try the newer ones and will then have something to complain about

I had to correct a bunch of stuff on my circa 2003ish 426 crate motor , angle of the lifter bores was off , deck height too tall , the bellhousing mounting surface was not perpendicular to the crank centerline and the mainline bore had a taper in all the holes , clearance was wider on one end vs. the other ????

Oh okay, if that's how they were, then.

I'll eventually work with one of them too, but I need to get a set of main caps for it.

We will probably have to guess whether if the specs were wrong, or if the machine work itself was garbage/qc?

Seems like from 08 to 13 they were fairly decent but that was the only timeframe that thought might apply.

I wonder how many of the Bow Tie gang and the Ford crowd have this many issues with their aftermarket blocks ?

Anyone care to share ?