The starter motor also is mounted to the after end and stb side of the bell housing which to my knowledge would also indicate "reverse" rotation.
Bo
Either RH or LH rotation will mount the starter motor onto the Flywheel Cover as you have described. This would be a fairly typical I/B starter motor installation.
I agree Ricardo that street and marine are mutually exclusive worlds. The higher duty cycle loads of marine applications are a different animal and especially with an old school flyweight style distributor and carburetor detonation is a huge dilemma.
Bo
Bo, marine load "detonation" is not exclusively due to the above mentioned items.
Compression ratio, piston design, cylinder head configuration, etc., etc, all play a role in this. Hence my suggestion of selecting a piston that offers an area that mirrors the wedge area of the cylinder head.... aka "Squish" or "Quench"! The selected
dished area volume then controls Static Compression Ratio when used with small chamber cylinder heads.
We do this NOT primarily for a horse power increse, but for much better detonation control, which leads to better performance.
I'm not a Chrysler expert by any stretch of the imagination, so perhaps read up a bit on the topic of quench effect for this engine! Perhaps a Flat Top piston works with certain 318 cylinder heads, giving the correct C/R yet while offering the Q/E. (Flat top pistons can create a q/e with the correct head gaskets)
In a SBC Marine build, this makes a tremendous difference. Since either cylinder head (318 or SBC) offers a "wedge" area, I can't help but think that this may benefit the 318/360 Marine build as well.
The fully dished piston cannot offer the q/e, and will contribute to Detonation!
There are much better alternatives, IMO!
If that's a reverse rotating engine (which I suspect it is) then tell your mechanic to.......................
Agree with Jeff! Also, the crankshaft seals will be directional for a RH build.
An unsolicited tid bit of info; make sure that whoever you have do the engine build, understands the subtle differences between an automotive build and a Marine build.
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