Awesome information and again great pictures. When you're done with your car don't hesitate to come and do the same for mine. Obviously I'm kidding, thanks for the information.
Woo Hoo, I got new tires for the front. She's on the ground. I'll post pictures and info tomorrow when I can get a good picture.
When I bought this car, I wanted to make it a hot rod like I would have made my first one if I'd have had the money. This meant a quick engine, stick shift and big fat tires. I've now gotten the 302/5 speed taken care of, so on to the tires. I have 235/60/15's on 8 inch Cragars on the rear. The rear end is out of a 98 blazer with disc brakes, 4 inches narrower than the stock rear end so I can get the tires on & off. The front disc brakes are from a 72 LTD. I recently bought some 15x8 Cragars for the front thinking I would put some 225/60/15/s on the front. I couldn't find any tires, let alone TA Radials in that size, so I pulled a wheel off my truck to check fit, also 235/60/15 on an 8 inch wheel and found it fit and cleared everything on the Vicky. So, I've got 235/60/15/s all around. That's the hot rod look. I need to see if the front springs settle with use. They are lowering springs, I didn't know about Arrowstar springs when I bought them. Here's a shot with the engine in. I'm not sure about the t-bolts on the valve covers (kind of looks like a mini-forrest on there). If I don't like them after I get the carb & dist in, I will replace them with ****on head bolts.
thanks clustrfck, I don't know what the booster is from, I got it on CL, the master cylinder is from Cl***ic Performance Products (CPP). It can be used with either disc/drum or disc/disc and has a built in proportioning valve. Here's a link to the M/C. http://www.cl***icperform.com/NewProducts/MCPV-1/MCPV-1.htm Before I added the booster, the M/C mounted to the firewall using two of the stock mounting holes. After I added the booster, I had to make a bracket for it and the bracket mounts to all four stock holes. I also bought a heim joint and made a connector to attach the brake pedal to the brake rod. I'll try and post pictures of that tomorrow.
I love the stance you have with that TA BFGs & Cragar wheel combo. Always liked the Cragars on this body style. Yeah that rear clearance is an issue I'm trying to deal with too. I put 225-70s on 6" steel wheels and it's a struggle to get them on/off. They look okay but yours it best IMO. That booster looks similar to the one I got for my '56, I was told it's Nissan but don't know make/year/model. Got my booster/MC setup off ebay.
Looks Bad ***! We both love the old Cragar BF Ta's I think you went with the perfect ones for your car.
I'm bringing this discussion out and dusting it off because I have some questions about the motor mounts for my 351W (part# 2329). I went to install them and had to drill the wholes out of one a little forward so that it would fit right. Yesterday I went to put washers on the bolts, so I was doing one bolt at a time to make it what I thought was and easy job. On the drivers side motor mount, I took out the rear motor mount bolt and the engine shifted toward the drivers side. The p***enger side mount was the one that I had to drill out so it would only make sense that the other one would have a slight problem too, but no one ever mentioned any fit problems. I decided that this car had taken me one step forward and two steps back too many times. I'm not a good dancer, so I ripped the engine out to figure this out. I fear that the frame may be slightly bent but I was just wondering if the other guys with a 351W have had this issue and if it is normal for misalignment?
54HR, I'm using the 351 also, but the stock engine mounts that are welded to the crossmember were removed by someone else and a different style of mounts welded in. I'll try and get a picture posted of them. You shouldn't have any mis-alignment problems like you described if the mounts are square to the frame. Otherwise I would think it would put the mounts in a bind and prematurely wear them out along with the trans mount. I'm using the stock insulators that bolt to the block which use a thru-bolt. The mounts on the frame are tubes welded to some flat steel plates shaped to fit around the big tube crossmember.The bolt tubes are about 3 1/2" long. Pictures will be in my photobucket soon. Mark
The misalignment seems to be the norm,if you look again at the pictures above the solution is to open the frame mount to a long slot that should solve the problem.You have to remember there was no computer accuracy in 1954 working conditions were not as comfortable it could have been Friday afternoon and the production crew is thinking "Payday $ and beer"
FUnny thing is Jeff thats what I think too. Actually I did check the frame and its confirmed that my car has definitely been hit before. The frame is slightly bent causing a misalignment for the engine in the mounts. I drilled the holes that mount to the engine and I'm using lock washers to stabilize the bolts better. Hopefully I can get this right and that engine will sit fine. I will see if there is a place around here that can straighten the frame since we do have computers now that can make things more perfect. The operator may still want beer I guess. I took some more pictures and I will post them a little later to show the slight distortion in the frame. Well, you may not be able to see the distortion, but I will try to point it out.
When I mounted mine, I had to space the engine 3/4 inch to the right to get everything to line up. Here's what I used to do that. If you look at my pics on page 2 you can see the description on what I used.
This has me thinking?? my '54 was originally a 223 with overdrive,since I have had folks asking about doing these SBF swaps a lot of the time only a slight elongation of the mounting holes was needed when a 223 was replaced (like in my case),is it possible the cars that had Y-blocks also have the frame mounts slightly offset?
I'm not sure if the pictures accurately depict the slight offset in the frame. Both pictures were taken while I was standing on the bumper, so the drivers side will be on the right as you look at them. The p***enger side is what seems to be offset as if the car was hit on that side from the front. This would explain the slight tweak that my bumper has too. The only way that I could tell there was an actual problem with the frame was when I took the engine out and looked at the mounting for the upper control arms. I didn't get a chance to measure exact offset yesterday but I will next weekend when I get a chance to work on the car again.
im in the process of installing a 5,0 and t=5 can i use the double hump pan or use the front sump pan just starting on my project any help is welcomed if i had a good y- block and overdrive i would go that way. thanks
Dixiecat to install a 5.0 in a '54-59 you need a front sump pan and pickup.Here is a good source for oil pans http://www.kmjent.com/cart/home.php?cat=20164538 the oil pump pickup is a Melling 68-S available at Autozone for $10.99 always change the oil pump drive shaft when doing the swap part# Melling IS-68 $5.99 or a H.D. unit is available from http://www.kmjent.com/cart/product.php?productid=686
I have come across a new problem, I finally got the steering back in my car, and I was attempting to hook everything up when I realized the column shift for my automatic won't go past neutral. The piece that comes off the column shift for the transmission selector rod is hitting the headers at the neutral position. I also have the problem of the selector rod not being able to fit either since the headers are completely in the way. Any ideas or suggestions of how to get past this problem would be great. So far I have thought of using a ballpeen hammer on the header to make the clearance but I'm not sure how much exhaust flow will be affected or if I will put a hole in the metal. I have also thought about maybe jacking the motor up and tightening them down in a different position since I lowered the engine with the new motor mounts anyway.
I guess that a picture would have been nice with my last post. I forgot to post it at the time I suppose, but better late than never. The problem has been solved at this point by heating up the unruly pipe to red hot and using a hammer to bang it in a little. I will try to post pictures of how this looks tomorrow when I go back to the shop and continue the rear suspension. Uploaded with ImageShack.us
Well, Jeff brought this post up again as reference to the 351W swap. A year has p***ed since I posted the picture of the headers I had installed. Heating up the headers and hammering down the pipe did help with movement of the column shift however, it didn't help with proper movement of the automatic shifting rod. The rod was unable to meet wit the column shift due to the 3" collector. I have since taken the entire car down to the frame and I'm on the process of stripping all the paint. The plan now is to us a set of block hugger headers that I had purchased years ago. The center collector runs straight down and hits the engine mounting bracket on the crossmember. The plan is now to cut the header down pipe at an angle and reverse the piece so that it will take on the proper angle to accommodate the spacing needed for proper flow within the space. I write more if this actually works. It may take some time before I can get this done so please bare with me. This is a picture of the Hugger Header Uploaded with ImageShack.us
54 Would the headers fit other than the shift rod interference? If so, what was the part number? Thanks
The HEDMAN 88400 is shown as an early Mustang 289-302 header which has smaller primaries which would fit a 351W,HEDMAN shows an early Mustang header for a 351W swap but they have larger primaries = less clearance.
I can see where the 302 would be a (comparatively) "easy" fit. I have put a 351W in my 55, with 4r70w transmission (using Anchor mounts 2725/6, shimmed up about 3/4" and slight mod to cross member holes) But I am now having one he** of a time with headers due to the increased engine width/height. I went with the Ranchero/351W headers (Hedman 88650) and made some substantial modifications. Thought I had all the challenges addressed (A-arm clearance, steering box, head bolts, trans flange/bolts, firewall). Drove the car and things started smoking - the paint and undercoating on the firewall/floorboard. The collector winds up too close (5/8") and the sharp downward collector angle creates a heat buildup point, that even header wrap could not mitigate. Just driving 1/4 mile (with warmed up engine) the lower firewall was about 200 degrees. I could modify the p***enger side again for clearance, but not the driver's side due to the way the #7 pipe goes over #8 (would leave inadequate clearance for the rear plug wire) (See 54Hotrods picture above). So I am back to square no. 1 -- start over. If I can't find something to fit or to fit with some adjustment, may have to try building my own with one of the kits or find a custom builder. Don't mind going to a smaller (1 1/2) tube (these are 1 5/8") if I must to to get the clearance, but don't want to be too restrictive. The engine was custom built (450 ++ hp & 500 + lb torque), so need good flow. I know I can't be the 1st to have this challenge and welcome input/advice from someone who has been there before.
My 1st effort (below) was not successful. One pipe on this side is too close for my liking to the starter and the collector is to close to the firewall and floor pan. I either need to seriously modify the header or start over. On this side I avoided the box, but the collector and #7 pipe are almost against the firewall. The header is already a Frankenstein due to so many modifications (cuts/welds). This is the project.
It definitely seems that there are clearance issues with a 351W that are not experienced with the 302. I've also considered the DIY kit to make my own custom headers but I still haven't really tried to re-work the hugger headers that I do have. I'm more interested in going slow and getting it right with the way I want it to look and perform. Br***pike- its been several years since I purchased the headers but I'm pretty sure from looking at the picture on Summit's site that they are Headman's part# 88650. I have yet to start the engine with these headers, but I definitely understand what FordFairlane55 is saying when he said the headers are too close to the firewall. After reading that post, it seems like a good thing that I've decided to change them out anyway. It may take months before any real update to this problem happens for me, but there are several other things on my plate right now.
Thanks, Looks like the 312 will get the first chance when I get the car back on the road. Keep us posted on the 351 headers though. I' still welding in body panels!!! If this gets solved who knows....
Unfortunately, I think the easiest way to get around this header problem would be to swap a 302. That however is not an option for me since I don't have one but I have purchase several upgrade parts for the 351W. I'll continue on my quest of getting things to work and cursing at the limited space the wider heads create. I don't anticipate the problem being rectified soon since I am going to a school on the east coast for the military in April and won't be back until the summer is over.
The Jalopy Journal
