VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1937-1945 Engine number

I am looking at a 1937 Master and there is some question about the year of the motor. The number that is stamped on the block is 1761110. That seems to be later than 1937 but I'm not sure. Can someone tell me what year that motor is?

The original engine number on a 1937 block was stamped onto a raised oblong pad next to the fuel pump. From 1938 and up it is stamped onto a horizontal surface behind the distributor. From the mid 1950's and prior there will be three letters preceeding a group of numbers. Those letters ID the origin of the block. There should also be some raised numbers in the casting down below the dip stick. The raised numbers will be like 839400 or 3835309.....

The numbers that I found were on the horizontal surface by the fuel pump. I did not see any letters to indicate the origin.

The stamped number is a sequential engine serial number. The sequences cover several years and repeat so identifying a specific year for earlier engines (before the preceding letters) also depends on the casting number. That 6 or 7 digit number is raised on the block as Gene wrote above. In addition there will be a coded casting date. It uses a letter to indicate month (Jan. = A, Feb. = B, etc.) a space then one or two numbers (day of the month) another space and a final digit (last digit of the year). Most engines for a given model year started in production in September and ended August or September of the model year. With all those numbers and codes we should be able to determine the production year and model year for the engine block.

There's an extensive description on web page <http://home.znet.com/c1937/Cast.htm>.
37 blocks made in USA have casting numbers under distributor. Canada and all other countries had casting numbers behind starter on block. Casting number for USA = 838101, Canada = 1788201.
The only letters used in 1937 were R for Right Hand Drive Chevys. All Holden bodied Chevys have an R in the stamped serial number. The letter T was used on utility Trucks. (NOT light commercial such as pickups.) All 164 Chevys with Flxible bodies have T in serial numbers. They didn't use other letters till early 1950s.
When you find the date casting, it appears to be bolted to the block with a dome or flat head screw. This tells what shift made the block. A dome and flat would indicate it was made on the swing shift.
Lou