ok.. so i have had this truck for about a year.. started leaking.. and come to find out.. its a 53.. who figured. so i pulled the engine.. got it welded, reinstalled it.. ran good for about 2 months.. cracked again.. so i kind of babied it for a few months. and now im going to just replace the block. its a good crack to.. i would say every bit of 10-12 inches.. so what i was wondering is, what is the difference between a long block/short block, and where i might find one at a resionable price. im currentley deployed in kuwait, so i have some time before geting back home and gettin' it torn apart. thanks...

 

What kind of welding did you do? I realize you are asking about a new block, and I'm sure there will be guys along to help, but I'm curious about how you tried to weld it and why it failed. 10-12 inches is bigger than usual for the "53" block.

Thanks for your service.

 

i took it to a diesel shop where they weld heavy machinery and they did it, but it has deffinatley overheated a few times. so i was wanting to replace things while i have the eng torn apart.. and possibly upgrade while i was at it.

 

Long block comes with the head, pistons, rods, valves, crank installed no oil pan valve cover, exhaust etc. The short block is crank, pistons, and rods already installed. This is my understanding.