This is driving me crazy, I was trying to slightly reshape my dipstick tube and broke it so I've been looking to replace my dipstick. It seems like every passenger side SBC dipstick I get my hands on is a different length, is there a way of figuring out the correct one? I'm pretty sure that the dipstick that was in the car is not the correct one (I'm pretty sure it's from a '90's truck or possibly an LT1 B-body, both of which put the tube in the same place and the oil level should be the same but I don't know for sure, I know that they list cross referenced parts).

Here I grabbed 3 that I have sitting around and there is probably about 2/3 difference between them (most people guess that the bottom to the top of the range is about a quart, if it is there's about 2/3 quart difference), they are being held in a vise at the height of the ridge that seats in the block, the center one is sitting a little high, so in reality the marks are slightly more off then they look in the picture. It's extremely difficult to get them to line up and to get a focused picture of them, I highlighted the range in yellow to make it more visible. The one on the left is the mystery dipstick that was in the car (it has a black plastic T handle), the one on the right is I believe one from my '83 TA (305 Crossfire engine, it has a handle that looks like a loop of steel tube like was used for most of the 60's and 70's). The one in the middle is aftermarket (the tube and the shaft is chromed, it has an aluminum handle that looks like it's pressed onto a cut-off version of the one from the '83).


Is there a good way of figuring this out or is there actually a published standard somewhere?

 

If you are in a bind, use the one that fits best and then change the oil. Make a new mark on the dipstick at the full level.
A flexible Lokar type makes it easier to remove headers just for thought.

 

I have a Lokar for sale if you need it. I opened the package but it's brand new.