92hatchattack

Hey guys, im really new to all this ford domestic motor stuff, but ive been doing a little resaech here and there on my car and i just have a few questions...

I have a 67 farilane 500 convertable that originaly came with a 289 in it, but an owner down the line had replaced it with a 302.

Now ill be looking to upgrade this motor, expesialy since the 302 never came in that year/model. Now i was thinking about trying to track down the 427, but after i little research i learned how rare they are, and the price tag that comes with one, and its not really an option.

So, i figured the next best thing to actualy having the 427, would be to kind of recreate it.

So, prety much my question is, can the standart 390 block be bored over to the 4.23" bore of the 427 without sacrafising reliability by thining out the walls to much???

And both the 390 and 427 has the same 3.78" stroke????

Also, when shopping for a 390 block, are there many big diffrences in the 390 blocks throughout the year that i swhould be concerned with????

Well, thanks for your time and knoledge....

---Joe

bertha66

You may also want to look into a 428 engine, same FE block and a good engine to build. They came in T-birds and Galaxies with about 345hp, and then there were to Cobrajet Mustang engines.

FFR428

The 390 cyls will not go out to 4.23 std 427. There just isn't enough meat in the cyl wall cores. Yes the 427 and 390 share the same 3.78 stroke. Bertha66 has a good idea to look for a 428. A little more cost wise than a 390 but way under a 427. 64 and earlier blocks use the 2 bolt motor mount pattern compared to the 65 and later blocks. But that's no big deal and can be easily adapted. When block shopping you want to inspect what cyl wall cores have been cast into the block. This will help tell you coreshift permitting and short of a sonic map about how thick the block is. Some 361 and 391 FT blocks were cast with 428 cyl wall cores. Very few 390's I've seen have been thick enough for a 4.13 std 428 bore. But they are out there. To inspect the cyl wall cores you need to knock out the blocks freeze plugs. Take a 17/64" drill bit shank and see if it fits snugly between the cyls. If so it's got std 390 wall cores. If a 13/64" drill bit shank fits snug it's got 428 wall cores. Pretty simple. Lots of rust and crap and buildup inside the block so be sure to clean the area being tested. Fit the bit at the top, middle and bottom of each cyl for best results. This is called the "drill bit test" invented by Dave Shoe on the net54 FE forum.

G.

92hatchattack

^^^ Thank you, thats good info, allthough, how many people with blocks let you knock out the freeze plugs and try all this before you buy the block??? And most likely, when buying a block it may be over the net if i cant find one localy to inspect.

Now can i ask, how do these FE engines respond to stroke VS bore??? Which generaly has the biggest advantage???? If i were to come across a cheap 390, how far would i be able to safley stroke it to??? Just bare with me, as i know imports... but i really want to learn these great american classic motors...

So, how many CI's could u end up with by stroking the 390???

And let me understand this, its pretty much unsafe to bore these 390 more than .03 over??? I was always under the impression that u could serious overbore these old domestics motors.... so ive learned something new at least!!!

92hatchattack

??? any opinions on how much of a stroke the 390 can take, and still be safe and reliable???

FFR428

As far as guys letting you knock out freeze plugs in blocks.....if they are advertising the block as a 428 or with thick walls they need to prove it. Any honest seller should have no problem with it. For like $10 you can buy a new set of plugs and even hand them to the seller as replacements. The 390 can take a 4.25 stroke Scat crank. Anything over 3.98 std 428 stroke you need to use big block chevy 6.7" rods. For 3.98 or 3.78 the std short FE rods will work. For overbore past .030 it is best to have the block sonic mapped for wall thickness. This way you'll know the exact thickness and safe bore limits.


G.

92hatchattack

wow, 4.25... thats pretty big. Does pistons speed and side loading become a problem when the crank starts to get this big? Will it hurt the reliability, and how limited will the revs become with say a 4.25" stroke??

Personaly, i think im leaning towards a 4.1" stroke or so...

Im still contemplating putting something like a 428 or 429 in the car, but im trying to keep some sort of originality by putting a block size in the car that was offered from the factory, which is kinda why im leaning towards the 390 still...time will tell.

I want this to be my first self build as well, so i just ordere a book "how to rebuild ford v8's" by Tom Monroe, as suggested by the members on this forum.

I sure do hope i dont get in too far over my head ... haha

92hatchattack

another question, does the 390 use 2 bolt mains or 4 bolt mains, andif 2bolt, can itbe drilled for 4 bolt main caps???

FFR428

390 came with 2 bolt mains. The FE 427 engines used crossbolts to secure the three center caps. These go through the side of the block and are a little different than your basic 4 bolt maincap. You can either use a set of oem 427 caps or Pro-gram eng sells a set of billet steel caps. If your going to be 500hp or less you really don't need the crossbolt caps. A capsaddle or girdle can be a inexpensive altenative. To crossbolt a block your looking at close to $800 for caps and machine work to install them. I invested in a capsaddle. It's really not a proven product yet but it ties the three center maincaps together. It's about half the cost to buy and install. I can email you a bunch of pics of crossbolted blocks and some of the capsaddle installed on my block if you like. This way you can compare each for yourself.

G.