Hello fellow H.A.M.B. members, I'm a younger guy working on my first Y-Block project. Recently purchased a 1956 Victoria, she's a great cruiser, but the hot rodder in me needs something a little more exciting. I'd like to get a 312 built to swap in place of the tired 292. I'm interested in using the Holley Sniper EFI conversion, and Petronix set up for the distributor. Besides that, I'm pretty open minded when it comes to the build. Looking to get some advice on where to start: Is there a certain year/model 312 that is better to start with for a performance build? Aftermarket intake, or a certain stock intake? (-B intake?) Good cam for power, and some at***ude at idle? Headers or manifolds? Any Y-Block builders you would recommend near NC? Any tricks or tips for building a more powerful/reliable Y-Block? I appreciate any help I can get! Until then, here are a couple of shots of what I'm working with!
Hi Eric, If all you did was add EFI, pertronix, and headers/dual exh that would wake up the engine all by itself. Cams-don’t know about. I ***ume you are on the Y Block forever forum as Ted Eaton posts there or you can call Tim McMaster out in Ca. Best I can help you with. Great looking car. mike
Agree with Mike. I'd add John Mummert to the list. Check out http://ford-y-block.com/ for engine parts. He has a kit to convert your 292 block to 312 cubes. Also, a couple of links that are a wealth of info. http://y-blocksforever.com/ and http://yblockguy.com/ All those site have links to more info than you can imagine.. Dave
Kudos from me for keeping the Y Block in your 56, I know other guys use other power plants and they are most ***uredly more cost-effective and more bang for the buck. I just like the nostalgic sound of the Y with gl*** packs. On the 312 - the fellas are giving you sound advice by recommending Tim McMaster, Ted Eaton, and John Mummert. All three of them I have spoke with personally and have either swapped parts with them or helped out in some way. Not only are they very helpful to the next generation but they are extremely knowledgeable. I would suggest you start with a 292 block and bore it out to 312 std (or more, depending on how the sonic check of the cylinders turns out). Early 292 blocks have plenty of meat usually to bore, but you may find the holes for the main cap bolts not quite deep enough. These can be drilled and tapped of course. You will find that 312 blocks are not that plentiful and when you do find one there is the threat of cracked main webs. Find a good 312 crankshaft and have the mains turned down to std 292 size. You can go all out if you have loads of dough and get Mummert's aluminum heads but the best bang for the buck will the ECZ-G heads that Ford started casting in 1957. Almost the same with finding a 4 barrel intake - the "B" intake is what you want unless you want to spend more than twice as much to get an aluminum unit from either Blue Thunder or Mummert. Isky makes some good cams off the shelf but then again, Mummert will have a good selection as well. Depending on your transmission and rear end ratio (if stock) then you may not want to go any wilder than an E-4. As far as headers are concerned, for the 55/56 Ford p***enger cars there are not many options because of the design of the steering gear and how tight the block is to some of the component under the hood. Several log style units exist but these do not flow too well and in most cases you would do just as well or better to get a set of 57 Ford Y Block exhaust manifolds. (1957 was Ford's peak year for Y block performance) Ted Eaton's website - eatonbalancing.com has a very good article on performance specs for various headers and manifolds, just bear in mind that a number of them are not necessarily for the 55/56 Ford p***enger cars. The only builder that I know anywhere near you would be Felt's Machine in Suffolk, VA. But that is 3 hours or so away, not sure you want to travel that far. Felt's did some block work for me, ground a very nice crank, and also machined a set of heads. They have built quite a few Y blocks. As far as tips and tricks - you need to get on the Y Blocks Forever website forum. Loads of information over there. But do not rule out purchasing this handy book... Ford Y Block Book Picture by danman55 posted Feb 18, 2021 at 12:58 PM and this one too... Y Blocks can make great power and this book do***ents that fact. IMG_6347 by danman55 posted Feb 18, 2021 at 12:58 PM I purchased my first car back in 1989 when I was 16 and have always loved the 55/56 Ford styling and the Y Block V8. IMG_0305 by danman55 posted Feb 27, 2019 at 4:11 PM
I started at 15 in 1986 with a 1955 Mainline Tudor Sedan, very basic lacking amenities which in some cases was a product of what the car had been through over the years, for example brakefluid that wasn't tainted with rust, the bottom half of the front crossmember or a working trunk lock. In other cases the missing amenities was a product of the car as built, such as a clock, a radio, sun visors, or a heater. I did all the work to remedy these shortcomings and upgrade trim to a correct Fairlane Club Sedan trim with two-tone waterfall blue over banner blue (the Mainline original color). I know the trim well so I like seeing if I can catch conversions.. On the sedans the original two tone between the belt and roof drip rail should actually match the lower color and the roof should match the upper, but I did that opposite myself because my original banner blue on the roof was faded - and I understand alot of dealer two-tone paint jobs did it that way.
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