Engine dilemma

I dropped my engine ( sbc/305) and after a few days the guys calls me back and tells me some not so good news...I was prepared.. He told me ,and he doesnt know why,but the block has been bored 11 thousandths over.I asked him why would someone do that..? He said he doesnt know.I asked him if I can run over sized rings but he said I will get a hell of a lot piston slop.Now at only 1 thousandth difference will it make that much difference.?He also said the I need a crankshaft too.. which I knew because when I took it apart it looked toasted..A few guys I talked to said that the 305 doesnt make ANY horsepower until you REALLY start spending the high dollars and I should look for something different.My comeback is.."I aint pulling stumps with it.." I just wanna to cruise with it...Not looking to set a land speed record...Should I have it bored or not..?

Either have it bored over or look for a better block.

I personally would try to find a better one. Its lots cheaper to have a crank polished than having it replaced.

I bought a roller cam 305 for $100 on Craigslist. It measures 9 thousanths over. I assume it is just worn that much as it has standard pistons in it. Could be that yours is simply worn 2 thousandths more than mine. Like 35Master says, you can scrounge a small block with a good crank that should only need a polish for little money.

I'll just add that a 305's can run plenty good without throwing a ton of money at them, especially for a cruiser.

I have to add my 2cents here.. I've been told that a 305 isn't worth a hoot and don't get one they won't last long. I have one in my daily driver pick-up and it's got 275,000 trouble free miles on it! It doesn't have a lot of speed but it pulls my work trailer with a 3,000 lb tractor on it without any problems. Still doesn't burn or leak any oil either. I just hope my next truck has half as much life as this one. As gastrick said, 305's run pretty good without throwing a lot of money in em. As a criuser, you can't go wrong....CR

No real difference between the 305 and 350 except for 45 more cubes. I've just felt that while you were going to the trouble of building an engine and spending money, why not shoot for the extra cubes/hp while you are at it. I've driven boats that had a 305 in them, and then the identical boat with a 350. The extra cubes really make a difference, especially torque-wise. We also found that usually the 350 gets better fuel milage because it loafs along while the 305 is working harder.

But either way you should scrap that block and and get one with a stock bore to start out with. The 350 in my T was fine after only a hone, no overbore needed. With as many sbc as they made you should have no trouble finding a good one cheap.

Don