Poly to LA block swap questions

Farmall1938 said

OK- I heard from Bob Asay that the pre 1962 (mine is a 1960) poly blocks have a different bell housing pattern.... so today I went to a friends house who is a MOPAR nut. He had a bell housing for a 318/340/360 and it indeed looks different then mine. Now my question is, would it be possible to either find a bell housing that fits my tranny (4 spd 1960 D600 truck tranny) that will fit the 318/340/360, or would it be possible to make an adapter for the bell housing, and a spacer for the flywheel ? I think I'd rather find the right bell housing, as it would be simpler to put together, but I do have access to a decent lathe, if I need it.

Any suggestions ???? Thanks.
Ryan

Click to expand...

Talk about a can of worms. If it was me I would find a good 318 and make the adapter and spacer. When I worked for Ma Bell we had a 72 D700 bucket truck with a 318. We mostly used it for towing because you hardly noticed 10,000 pounds of trailer and cable behind it. Power is not an issue with the 318 and a 360 would require you to find an externally balanced flywheel of the right diameter in addition to the proper bellhousing. With the adapter and spacer you could use your current flywheel, clutch, bellhousing and starter. Look for a 72 318 because they have the forged crank and hardened valve seats. You can probably make the parts you need before you find a bellhousing. Just my $.02. Good luck with your project.