Looks like i'm going to have to rebuild my 351w in my 60 f-100. Not sure yet what is exactly wrong but people i've talked to seem to thimk i have a warped head. So i thinl i will do a top end rebuild. And maybe if the cards are in the hand i will put some performance parts. This is my first ford small block so i don't know all that much about whats out there for them and what to look out for. So if anyone can help me i would greatly appreciate it. THANX GUYS FOR YOUR HELP!
Consider aftermarket heads. Not that the production heads are completely horrible, but by the time a machinist squares them all away (valves, springs, machine work, etc.) you are probably at least half way to the cost of some cast-iron (or even aluminum) aftermarket pieces that are better in every way. The better heads are not less expensive, but have very good value when measured in hp or ft-lb per dollar spent.
Guy I know had a 351W in a 90 something PU and when he went from stock heads to aluminum it was like he put a different motor in it from my experiences sbfs love aftermarket heads
Redoing/replacing the heads on a high milage engine might cause blow by of the rings. Aluminum is a much better conductor of heat than iron. Heat is power. This parasitic loss of heat is believed to be the eqv. of a loss of 1 comp. point. If 2 aftermarket heads were exactly the same exept the material, the iron one will result in more powervs the al. one.
Hey!!!! Do you guys think I should just pull it and tear th ewhole thing down and start over with the engine and ******? Because what i'm am afraid of is i didn't put the thing in there and i have no clue what they did with it. It's a drive train out of a 78 t-bird. So i don't even know exactly what ****** it is behind the 351w
That would be my choice. That way you know what shape the bearings & rings are in, what cam is in it, ect. If it was an early 70s T-bird the ****** would be a FMX, by the late 70s Ford was desparate for MPG/CAFE results, so it could be a C-4.
My vote is for yank the engine out and at least freshin it up, rings and bearings, yes cam bearings also. They are the most over looked, and are where sbf looses alot of oil pressure. The whole re-build kit is less than $200. Thats cheap piece-of mind that it is in good shape. Most of those T-birds had FMX ******'s, no worries FMX's are tough dependable ******s. Just stick a new front seal in it while the motor is out of the way. Every one is right sbf needs help in the head flow area. The D3 and D5 casting 351w heads are the best flowing stock sbf design. I have a set that I had 2.02 Chevy valves installed and bowl cut the runners & ported, then machined for screw in studs w/ Chevy 1.6 rockers. But for the same money I could have had aftermarket heads..WELL worth it.... Another head option is the GT40P head, they came on late model 5.0 Ford Explorer's. They are the best flowing sbf ( except 351c/boss). They are prob a 50 or so HP bolt-on. The down side is that because of the angled plug design special headers are needed. There are several companies makin them now. Good luck.
The GT40P "explorer" heads will be a little small for a high performance 351, but matched with the right cam and a good intake would make a great torquey daily driver that would pull like crazy to 45-5k or so - just what you would want for a pickup. Also - to whaty george said about iron's making power - that's why most aftermarket aluminum heads have smaller chambers than stock heads did... they bump the compression up to account for this loss - but then again you'll be gettng a head that will make a 50HP or so improvement right out of the box and match that to a good intake/cam and you'll be seeing a lot more so it's really not a fair comparison between most designs... Personally If you had any oil consumption or if the cylinder walls look at all worn when the heads were off I'd pull the engine and do a complete re-build on it. If the cylinder walls look good then just have the heads milled to flatten them back out and replace the valve stem seals. Around here if I pull the springs and valves I can get the heads surfaced for $20 or so each and the valvestem seals come in the headset (gasket set) if the valves were sealing and there wasn't a compression issue I'd just clean and hand lap them back in (kits are $10 if you don't have one) and re-***emble - you should be done for right around $100 with everything. If you're looking for an excuse to do some performance upgrades -then it's easier to justify now and ignore the above advice... The best "deal" out there from a big company is probably northern auto parts 351W "street performance kit" - http://www.naparts.com/ProductModelDetail.cfm?ProductModelId=1682 - there are other kits out there with lesser brand parts or from small suppliers for a little less money... The only downside is that it uses the 302 firing order, but that's not a problem unless you wire the plugs like a 351 and try and run it
before we spend all of your money, let us know about how much you can afford to spend...you could be looking at $2500 or so by the time you're done.
you can get gt-40 heads (non-P version) that works w/ standard headers. a company called panhandle performance will match a cam to roush 180 or 200 heads (made by world) and they say it's good for 350 hp on an otherwise stock engine. they quoted me about 1300 for that setup a couple years ago... i think they do some porting on the heads for that too...
I built this very combo in a 95 F-150, with a set of Mac headers 4 yr ago. It was the troquey-est small block I've ever built. I miss that motor....Mabe I should have negoiated visitation rights before I sold it to My Ex-brother-in-law.........I now have a PowerStroke!!!
Thats alot of info THANX alot!!!!! I haven't got the chance to dig in yet cuz it al went south at about 10 an the 4th and i got a babby due any second so ill let u now what i find when i pull the cap, plugs, and valve covers. THANX again you guys are awsome!!
That's an excellent ballpark figure when you factor in all of the parts, materials, tools and machine work neccessary to completely rebuild a typical V8 at home these days. Just as something else to consider here...you can get a fresh Ford 351W "truck engine" through JEGS for $2700. It's a new crate motor that even comes with an aluminum 4v intake manifold. It's desgined as a drop-in replacement for earlier carbureted 351W engines and is compatable with today's fuel. You can also upgrade it to a roller cam if desired, as the block is cast to accept the components, although the engine is shipped with a mild hydraulic flat-tappet cam and lifters. Not trying to talk you out of rebuilding your current motor...but if you're looking towards a complete rebuild, and you already suspect things such as parts warpage...you could easily spend more than $2700 doing a thorough rebuild on your existing engine. By time you tear down your motor, send the block, crank, etc out for machine work, buy all your parts, buy new heads and go through the ***embly proceedure, you'll find out just how quickly the cash will fly outta your wallet! Don't forget that you'll need things like an engine stand, good torque wrench, piston ring compressor, micrometers, and other specialized tools to do the job if you don't already have them, or at least have access to them. If you're going to rebuild more engines in the future, it could be worth it to buy all that stuff, along with ***embly lube, sealers, Loc-***e, etc...or you may take a second look at that crate motor deal! Just food for thought!
THANX FAT HACH MY DAD AND WERE JUST TALKING ABOUT JUST THAT. i think i'm going to check the crate motor out THANX AGIAN
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