i just disassembled my .030 454 this afternoon... down to just the bare block...

i was wondering, how do you tell if the pistons are cast or forged? i always thought that it was cast if you could see the casting and flash...

i dont know much about this engine except that it was bored .030... this is stamped on the pistons... bought it from a friend who knows very little about engines...

 

scrub the carbon off and see if you can read any codes off the top. This is what I did with my BBC. Turns out I have .030 over Federal Mogal hyperuetectic pistons with special coatings on the skirt.

As for visually, I'm not too sure. I know about casting lines on cranks and such, but haven't really heard anything about pistons. I'm kinda curious myself.

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85 Berlinetta Iroc exterior Lg4 305 best e.t 14.4 street tires naturally aspirated....installing/ rebuilding 450-475 HP 454....YAHOOO!!!

 

Forgings are denser (heavier).
Turn the piston over and look at the metal coloration on the bottom side of the dome and insides of the skirts. You will see some faint swirl coloration patterns in the metal with most forgings.

 

the pistons are fairly clean, the only codes or numbers i can find are B - 576... i tried looking in jegs to see if this matched any of their part numbers but it doesnt...

where do i look this up at?

 

If there are no casting lines, or flash, then it's forged. Pistons are really easy to tell. Just look in the underside.

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'82 Firebird, dead stock, 9 bolt disc rear, over 200,000 miles and still going strong, more to come...
http://www.spinfrenzy.com/stingerssx...easures.html#4

 

look on top of the piston..in the center of the piston if your see some sort of swirl or circle then they are forged