302 head questions

[pyro4fun]

I have a 302 that i was given i know the block is from 1968.
I pulled the valve covers off to get some numbers off of it and this is what i found.

both say 302 A3B
the passenger side has 4M12
the driver side has 4M3

Is there another place to find numbers on the heads?

Are these good heads if i get them ported and polished?

All help is appreciated

 

[baddad457]

The casting numbers are on the bottom side of the intake port runners. You could possibly have 1974, 1984 or 1994 heads 4M12 & 4M3 are the date codes. 4 is the year of the decade they were cast, M is the letter code for December, 3 & 12 are the days of the month they were cast. The actual decade is determined by the casting number prefix. If that's what you're going by in saying the block is a 68 block, you're wrong. Date code is the only sure way to date the block. Date code is next to the casting number, it'll be the same number/letter/number combo as you've found on the heads.

 

[red85]

C=1960's, D=1970's, E=1980's and so on. I have a set of E7TE heads. They are a 1987 casting. The casting number doesn't necessarily indicate the year of manufacture, it shows the year of the casting design.

 

[pyro4fun]

OK thanks, im just a little confused because the casting # on my block says it a 1968. (C80E-6015A)
Ill look for the head casting numbers soon.

 

[baddad457]

C8OE blocks were produced for several years after 1968. Production would have started on these in late 1967, at the beginning of the 1968 model year. This applies for nearly all Ford parts. Just because the casting or engineering numbers indicate it's that year's part, doesn't mean that's the year it was made. Take for example the E7TE cylinder heads, these were produced for about ten years, from late 1987 until the end of the use of the 302 and 351's in trucks and vans in 1997. Same thing with the C8OE connecting rods used in 302's, these were produced from late 1967 until about 1991. The casting or engineering number prefix only indicates the decade that the actual year of production in the date code in most cases.(with the exception of the above parts I listed as examples)

 

[EdgeKrusher4x4]

The casting number you are looking for is under the intake ports on those heads, You can remove the intake ports and view them with a mirror. If you're lucky you can do it without removing the pushrods. Hopefully for you they are also 68ish, there's a good chance they are close chambered if they are. Keep in mind that if you have any kind of emissions compliance on the vehicle you are planning on putting it on, they do not have ports for the smog pump if they are the same year as that block.

 

[baddad457]

There were 68 302 equipped with Thermactor air injection systems.