'66 SMALL BLOCK DOUBLE STAMP ENGING PAD

[Rob A.]

I'm waiting to get pictures of the engine stamp pad area on a car I'm interested in. In the mean time, I've been told it looks like some of the numbers in the vin# portion appears to have been "double" stamped". Would the factory have restamped it over the original stamping, or grinded it down and then restamped it? I'll have more to go on when I receive the pictures, but thought I'd post this for discussion. ('66 350HP engine, no other options)

[Rich G.]

Re: '66 SMALL BLOCK DOUBLE STAMP ENGING PAD

Rob

I'll be interested in what comments you get. I have a 68 427 which looks like a "grind out" on the vin area. I had the car judged once, and the comments were that it did happen at the factory, but also it would be a cheap way to make a replacement motor look original, assuming the restorer knew it did sometimes happen at the factory. The results of that discussion were inconclusive and I never asked about here, so I'm glad you have.

I have the no reason to think this grind out was done by anyone other than GM, based upon the known history of this car, but on the other hand, I wasn't there every moment of its life.

I remain curious.

Rich Giannotti

[Wayne W.]

Re: '66 SMALL BLOCK DOUBLE STAMP ENGING PAD

I have seen at least one example ( not Corvette ) that was stamped three times. One stamp was for the previous vehicle, a corrected one on top of that, and an extra stamp of the correct number.

[Duke W.]

Re: '66 SMALL BLOCK DOUBLE STAMP ENGING PAD

FWIW at this years Cosworth Vega Owners' Assc. national Roundup, I was judging chairman and observed one apparently original block with the VIN derivative stamped twice. (The VIN derivative is stamped on the bellhousing flange of the block.) They were upside down relative to each other, both clearly legible - same font and similar strike force - as if they were struck in quick sequence - left me and all the judges scratching our heads!

Only thing I can figure is that the stamping instructions (which don't appear to be in the AIM) may have required it to be oriented a certain way, but the first strike was "upside down" so the operator restruck it "right side up".

Maybe it was a Monday or Friday - at least they both matched.

John H. - got any insight on this. CVs where stamped on the bell housing flange because the stamp pad on the right side of the block that was used for 140 engines would be virtually impossible to see with all the EFI hardware.

Duke

[G B.]

Stamping problems

I've seen several Corvette over-stamps and grind-outs that I'm convinced were done at St. Louis.

The re-strikes I've checked were done on top of each other. They were done when the first stamp had an incorrect character (usually the last digit of the VIN) or the first strike was too light.

The grind-outs were odd in that the next stamp was put right on top of the uneven surface that had been ground down. Obviously no attempt had been made to grind on the whole pad.

These cars were all unrestored and owned by long time owners who weren't interested in fooling anyone. Some didn't know where to find the stampings.

[Richard S.]

Re: '66 SMALL BLOCK DOUBLE STAMP ENGING PAD

Rob,
Al Grenning has a catalog/pictures of many VIN's for certain years that show certain factory practices. You might want to E-mail him the VIN. number and he will help you if he can.

[Patrick T.]

Re: '66 SMALL BLOCK DOUBLE STAMP ENGING PAD

Here is my '67 pad, which is original. Notice by the #1 at the left there appears to be a light #6 stamped. I've had comments on this, it could be a #6 I guess or it could be a scratch. Anyway Al Grenning told me the pad is real. PT

[Rob A.]

Re: '66 SMALL BLOCK DOUBLE STAMP ENGING PAD

Thanks for the picture. I'm trying to figure out how to post one of the car I'm interested in that was emailed to me. I'll keep trying today, I'm really interested in what everyone thinks of it. So far, I put it in my personal webspace that cox cable provides me, but can't figure out how to pull it out and post it here.

[John H.]

Re: '66 SMALL BLOCK DOUBLE STAMP ENGING PAD

Rob -

Go to your webspace, get the URL of the image (www.blahblahblah), and copy-and-paste it into the "optional image URL" box below the space you type in when you compose a post, click on "Preview Message" to make sure it links and shows up, then click on "Post Message".

[John H.]

Re: '66 SMALL BLOCK DOUBLE STAMP ENGING PAD

The Enginering-published procedure for correcting a bungled VIN derivative stamping in Chevrolet assembly plants, which was supposed to be monitored by the plant's Inspection Department, was to "X" out the entire bungled stamping (all characters - XXXXXXXX), and to re-stamp the correct VIN derivative just above the "X-out". Sometimes this was done, sometimes it wasn't; I ran production on and off for twenty years in several Chevrolet assembly plants, and never saw a grinder used on the engine dress line, although they were used occasionally at the engine plants. Almost nobody in the plant paid any attention to the VIN stamp on the engine and transmission other than the guy who stamped it and the inspector on the end of the engine dress line whose job it was to check it against the Chassis Broadcast Sheet taped to the engine hook; it just wasn't that important in the overall scheme of things, where people were focused on looking for wrong, loose, or missing parts, not stamped numbers buried under accessory drive components.

[Gary J.]

I have ....

A '66 big block car that has a strike over from an IL to IM. The reason for this is it is a California smog car with K19, and A/C. The car has been judged and there were no problems. In February I will have owned the car for 20 years.

Gary
#3503

[Michael H.]

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[Michael H.]

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[Kevin M.]

Re: Engine # Scan For Rob Axel

Looks like he forgot to load the VIN, stamped it loaded the VIN and stamped it again. Pad looks good to me.

Kevin

[Patrick T.]

Re: Engine # Scan For Rob Axel

I thought the numbers on the right were stamped at Flint and the VIN numbers on the left were stamped at St. Louis. PT