FREIGHT: To get an accurate quote on freight for a BUICK 455 complete engine , A/C exhaust etc, and TH 400 trans, attached, secured via stretch wrap and / or straps and bracing on a pallet requires a 56"X56" and 30" tall, weighs 1000 lbs. All carriers require it to be drained, some carriers require full crate, which adds more wieght, time and effort. Call around, find a good company and stick with them. Save money by also loading at dock and deliver to a business with a dock. Just and engine, no accy's is about 700 lbs, can use strandard 40 x 48 pallet. You can save $$ sometimes if consignee lives in a beyond destination, perhaps a small town out of the way. Freight to a near by big city and the consignee picks up at the big city depot dock. USPS is likely the most reliable, convenient and affordable shipping on smaller goods. They have weight limits, as with most package carriers, package size is key as is weight. It gets pricy quick when the package get long. The quotes are sometimes a bit off, but I suppose it all balances out in the end. FED EX is next best, Up to weight of cyllindr heads, packed separately around 60 lbs each. Set up an account on line if you do a lot of shipping, reasonable princing and much easier to manage if doing a lot, for business? Easy to click on and get accurate quotes. Find the local FED EX Depot, near air ports usally, save a little there too not paying the fees, like in a KINKOS. Best I ahve seen for International, as you fill out all the shipping labels on line and custom forms. UPS is by far the most expensive. I never use them because of that. Greyhound does a good job for those bulky but not too heavy items. Seats, consoles, etc. Pretty reasonable, call them for pricing sheet. Obviously no door to door service, drop / pick up at bus depot.
This question reminds me of an incident. Just after I had my garage built I brought all the cars up from storage lockers. The GS455 4spd convert had the engine block for the 70GSX in the trunk. I asked the guys if they could help me lift it out since I didn't have a cherry picker or other sort of lift to do it. One of the guys was a wirey black fellow (not that color matters) and said let me try it. I was amazed. He pulled that block straight up out of the trunk and carried it about 25 feet over to the skid and set it down, where it still sits now. I don't know how much a 455 block weighs, empty, but it's not something I'd want to try to pick up myself. I'm guessing about 200 pounds. Anyone know for sure?
My back hurts just reading that! I had to put my bare block in my SUV to go have new cam bearings installed. 200 seems about right.
About 4 years ago I picked up my block from the machine shop and headed home with it in the trunk of the Riv. Being that my girlfriend at the time had two brothers (Chevy Guys) that were always around I figured someone would be able to help me get it out of the trunk. When I got home I was surprised to find that nobody was there. At the time I think I weighed about 160 lbs.:laugh: Nevertheless I managed to get it out of the trunk and carry it about 50 feet. I put it inside the front door in a foyer area we had. Worst part about it was I really thought it was going to rip my fingers off from my hands. :shock: About an hour later the two brothers came in and noticed the block sitting inside. They wanted to know how I got it inside and I gave them a calm and cool, "I brought it in by myself, why?" Neither one of them could even lift it more than an inch. I told them that Buick guys are more determined than they could even imagine. :beer Steve
The Buick 455 engine only weighs about 25 lbs. or so more than a Chev. 350 engine. These are not actual weights, but does help explain why other people in this thread have witnessed people picking up the Buick bare block single-handedly. IMO, I would rather have the extra weight in the block that Buick saved by making the main webbing so thin (scalloping). If you are paying to ship a BB Buick, don't let someone else "eyeball" a figure by using Chev. or other engines, because you know that the Buicks are lighter than the Fords, Mopars or Chev's. Ken
You guys are going to be sorry for being so young and determined when your butt hole is hanging down to your kneecaps:shock: ! Yeah, I didn't listen when someone warned me way back when, either.ou: uzzled:
What he said, take care of your back. Ya can't beat it like it owes you money, as unlike your pennie. Its not ready to go again in a few mins.
.....for posterity sake, please post a picture of your condition:bla: ? or should we say for "prostary" sakeou: ?
I knew I had this link saved somewhere. I wouldn't take it as absolute truth, but a good reference guide none the less. Oh, and a bare 455 block, without main caps, weighs around 167 pounds. Engine Weight FYI (I hope the above link will recuse me of unintentionally sending this thread to the crapperp )
