Mopar engine cradles

mag162

Active Member
Joined
Sep 26, 2017
Messages
316
Reaction score
134
Location
New York
im gonna need an engine cradle for my 383 soon. Saw some on jegs and summit but they didn’t have great reviews.
Is there a better source?
 
I think I got mine at Macini’s and it’s nice.
 
I've built a couple. One was 1x1 steel tubing and angle iron with casters. The other was just a wooden cradle that fit around the oil pan and the engine just say on the pan rails. No casters, just for transporting and storage.

Depending on what you need, could you just buy an engine stand?
 
I built a robust cradle from scrap 4"x4"x10' forklift skid beams and some of the 3/4" thick planks. One can construct a sturdy cradle from wood, use a tire, which I have for the 383 short block I snagged this summer, or a purpose built one from sundry suppliers. I usually think of a cradle as something one will want to RUN an engine on before dropping it into a car.

I plan to buy a good engine stand to start work on the two motors I've got, as my cradle is meant for RUNNING the motor, not necessarily building on it. I will bolt up the radiator, some instruments, a gas tank and battery to the cradle too when the time comes to do so....
 
Here’s the one they’re currently offering.
Mancini Racing Engine Dolly w/Swivel Casters
Similar to the one I got from them years ago.
I also have a homemade one that came with a project car but the casters suck and it’s hard to move around. The one from Mancini’s rolls around like butter.
 
Here’s mine made with scrap 4x4’s I had in the yard and four cheap home depot casters.

C8AB631B-2368-4CB5-B454-E4F871C91784.jpeg
 
The Mancini dolly looks quite good, but for my environment, useless until something is done about the casters. I have caliche' and sand here, not pavement, and need at least 8 inch solid rubber tires to move anything around. Once I have the engine/block in position, then I can work. I'm nowhere near ready for that, though dismantling the 383 Commando shortblock I bought is going to be done 'ere years' end God willing....
 
Back
Top