The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop 1941 Chevy light pickup - engine identification

I just aquired a nice, mostly original, 1941 Chevy PU. The sn on the engine bu the distributor is DBA63455 and the casting number is 839770 (head is 839401. Is this an original engine? Where and when was it made?

You answer should be in the Tech Tips section. Also there is a cast date code for block and the head. The date code is a letter A B C etc (A being January), then a number (for day of the month) then final number for the year ie O (could be 1940, or 50 etc. Good luck.

Thanks. I did see a DBA code for 1946. And sn# by my distributor is DBA6; but no letters in my engine cast#. Both the title and tag on cowl show 14DPF and title shows 1941. ANY THOUGHTS?

Casting Codes
839770 is a 1942-1947 216 block casting code
839401 is a 1941-1948 216/235 head casting code

DBA is the Engine Serial Number prefix for a 1946 3100 216 engine

Here are locations for date casting codes. These provide a confirmation of the year.

Thank you very much for this information. Looks like I have to pull the starter to get the block casting date - right? And, any thoughts on why a 1941, which has 14DPF3857 on the cowl tag and title, might have a 1946 engine? Could this really be a 46' and not a 41'?