I'm not 80 yet, but I'm sneaking up on it- - - - -I'll be 78 in late April of this year! If the rebuilder you choose wants to discuss the procedure, all it takes is a phone call. I'll be glad to walk him through the block modification. The early blocks, including 48-53 216s and 235s, have a dowel built into the upper bearing shell and a corresponding divot in the block casting. The later model 235 bearings move the locking device for the upper bearing shell to the parting line between the block and the cap so the upper bearing can be rolled out of the block without lowering the crankshaft nearly an inch. The lower bearings kept the built-in dowel pin as a locator all the way to the 1963 model year.
Hang onto that smoking, knocking 216- - - - -it can be built into a 258 cubic inch engine with a stroked 235 crankshaft with pressure-lubed rod bearings and aluminum pistons for a Buick (Land Rover) 215 V8. I'm also working on building a "216" with a roller cam and roller rocker arms that should produce around 150 HP or more, and look like it's completely original from the outside.
Jerry
