Finally bought one. Casting #328578, F1210XTA code. '73 or '83. +0.030 with crosshatching and no ridge, and the head's been redone. I gave $375 with the clutch, bellhousing, starter, saginaw three speed, and a junk 250 for parts, for those that are curious. More than I really wanted to pay, but 292's are pretty unusual and it looked pretty promising so I went for it.
It had ran really rich before, and the PO bent pushrods lifting it, so I decided to tear it down and freshen it up. Good thing I did, rings were still good but it ate three cam lobes and lifters, and the cam bearings were beat to hell (ham-fisted install). Also the other bearings didn't seem to like the metal going through them and needed to be replaced. The -0.020 journals were still good, though.
-But, here's the really interesting part. I took off the oil pan and found a thirteenth pushrod! Didn't even match the others. I also found a spare crank key and part of the crank gear that someone had broken off. And while not a functional problem, the crank counterweights had been beaten with a hammer and deformed. It also has some casting "tumors", for lack of a better word, in the main webbing, really unusual. Also the crank key looked like it had rolled in the keyway somewhat.
And, as always,
pictures Don't ya love "rebuilt" engines you didn't put together?
