After tearing down the 350 in my '89 Camaro (after it failed a compression check) I found it has a cracked block so I'm desperately trying to find a replacement bare or shortblock. I was just wondering if anyone has had any experience buying such a thing on ebay, or if anyone has an idea where else I might look. Looks like there are a lot of desirable used blocks on ebay, but it's hard to get sellers to tell you what the cylinders look like in terms of actual wear measurements. I need something I can just hone and build up because we no longer have any engine machine shops where I live, or anywhere close to here.

I've tried facebook marketplace, but nothing close by has shown up that I would want to buy. Unfortunately we don't even have any salvage yards close to where I live that sell good used SBC engines, so that option isn't available. I found a place in Pennsylvania that ships fully prepped bare blocks, but I'd be into one of them for well over a grand just for a block, plus another $350 to ship. Then there's Mabbco engines that has all configurations of 350 shortblocks for sale: I've read all kinds of horror stories about their workmanship and customer service.

Any input would be appreciated. Please no comments about doing an LS swap. I gave this some consideration, but have decided that I'm not jumping on that bandwagon. Seems like another nightmarish project that I don't need (I have enough of them).

 

Summit, JEGS, Local parts houses will ship you a rebuilt & guaranteed long or short block.

I'd be on high alert for any very non well know online rebuilders.
You could try placing a SBC engine wanted add on Facebook or Craigslist and have hits for days.
Ask the local machine shop if they have any abandoned projects?

Personally, if I was in need, Summit would be the solution.
If I couldn't hear an engine run from a private individual, I wouldn't spend more than you can afford to loose.

 

Yes, I bought a low milage replacement engine for my 4th gen Camaro on EBay from LKQ auto wreckers. $675 CDN delivered to my door on a skid with a 6 month warranty.
That was 4 years ago. Motor is still running strong, very satisfied with them. You can purchase from them directly online as well.

 

A point to remember here;

E Bay doesn't actually sell anything, they are a merely listing service for thousands, perhaps even tens of thousands of sellers. You could have a great experience with one seller or a miserable experience with another, but to E Bay's credit they do have a pretty solid buyer protection policy. Whenever I buy anything on E Bay I look at the number of total sales the seller has had and avoid sellers with very low total sales numbers (I like to see at least a thousand or so successful transactions) , and I look especially at the seller's ratings and avoid any that aren't at least 98% good (gotta figure at least a few buyers, like a few percent of them here or there are just whiners that aren't gonna be satisfied with anything).

I've bought everything from seats to the steering column / full dashboard and a whole lotta other parts, well over 100 Firebird part buys in all, and haven't been disappointed yet using my above guidelines

 

I buy and sell engines all the time in eBay, or I used to anyways.

What you really want is an LM7 or L33 pullout with 4l60e rwd approx 100k miles

That will get your car up to speed reliability and economy / mileage wise

And set you up for successfully the next 150k+ miles or so assuming you treat it right

i.e. OEM PCV, Paper Air filtering (down to 1 to 3uM), synthetic oil, torque management, pressure testing, open loop MAP tuning, trans-go parts, etc...

 

Where are you located? I have a good 350 block that I'm about to pull....