Hello everyone, my 352 blew a head gasket at 211k. it still runs, just rough & smoky, its a water leak into cylinder # 4. i don't have the time or $ to rebuild it now & i don't want to do a head gasket replacement & valve job on such a high mileage motor either. So I'm gonna buy a rebuilt 390, its from a company with a 1.7% warranty rate & 7 year 70k mile warranty. the 390 has an RV cam & badger pistons with slightly higher compression. its in a 1965 F250 with a manual transmission. Any tips on the swap? i was thinking remove the radiator, hood, water pump & (all other accessories) & the intake manifold cause it apparently weighs 150lb. then unbolt the bell & pull her out. sound good? any ideas/precautions/tips? thanks guys
Just like any engine swap. Getting the hood, rad, and front sheet metal out of the way always makes things a ton easier. The cast iron intake only weighs about 88 lbs... It will still cause you to grow a 3rd nut if you try to pick it off over a big set of fenders, so lift with your legs, not your back.....Or maybe just use an engine hoist.....better than having to ask your buddy to help stuff you intestines back in.
I wonder how many aluminum FE intakes have been sold mainly because the owner got tired of horsing that hunk of iron.... Leave the intake on, get one of those carb pad lifting points and yard it out with a cherry picker lift. You might need to bump the main jet sizes in the carb up one or two sizes. If you have any exhaust leaks around the manifolds on the 352, it will pay to have the manifolds surfaced for flatness to prevent future leaks, and use some high-temp sealer on all flanges (permatex 'copper'). Plan on replacing most if not all the exhaust manifold to head bolts if they've never been out. Check the valve rockers/shafts for wear. New oil pump/drive shaft if not furnished. New clutch pilot bearing in the end of the crank, maybe a new clutch. This is a real straightforward swap as these are pretty much identical motors...
I agree with Crazy Steve on the using the cherry picker to lift the intake off even if the engine is on a stand. It works well to put it back on too. I think the last one I was involved in we used the chain hoist to set the manifold back down on the engine as it was a lot easier to get it right that way than fight the weight even when we had plenty of hands and strong backs available.
alrighty, sounds pretty straight forward to me. and my whole clutch & pilot bearing is brand new, only 3000 miles on it. should i really replace the the pilot bearing with only 3k? and where could i find a carb pad lifting point?
I bought a carb pad lifting plate at a local tool seller, but I am sure if you cannot find one Summit, Jegs or Speedway would have it. Pilot bearings are cheap and trans/clutch is a pain to remove, replace it while it is easy to do so.
Exhaust manifold to heads bolt have usually broke when I tried to remove them. If they don't leak now leave them alone. If you have to relpace the exhaust manifold gasket soak a few days with penetrating oil and mabe use a torch to heat and oil or parafin wax a few times, work them back and forth a few times.
extra manifold holes. I think there are couple blind 1/2 Nc bolt holes in the truck manifold that had eye rings when they left the engine plant, and after the engine was installed in the frame they were removed and returned to the engine plant ( I worked at a ford assembly plant for 15 years. I bought a factory liftine bar for $ 1 at the factory garage sale when they closed operations.
I meant leave the intake on and pull the whole motor at once, don't screw around pulling it in the truck. Same for reinstall; install the intake, then drop the assembled motor back in. Use one of these.... http://www.summitracing.com/parts/sum-g1015-1/overview/ This is a cheapy, there's more elaborate ones out there, or your local 'cheap tool place' may have one. I've pulled FE motors with a similar one of these before, works great... Got a welder, some flat plate and some time, you can make your own...
Ok I'll replace the pilot bearing & clutch disk, & i'll just get gaskets for the exhaust manifolds. I have a gasket on the drives side because it leaked so bad & broke off 4 bolts in the head doing so. but thats fixed now, i think ill just get another set of gaskets, that fixed it up just fine before. does anybody know the name of the clutch pivot point thing that bolts up to the front of of the bell housing/back of the block? and its it a pain to work with during a swap?
i got the 352 out, i did dent use a lift pad, cause i did dent want to run into town, bout 30 min drive. so i removed the intake & hooked a chain through 2 of the intake bolts front passenger & back driver side. came out easy
Sounds good Kale- hopefully it works out good. I believe you were asking for the name "z-bar" in your other post about the clutch pivot thing.
The first time you take an intake off a FE you will get introduced to that little freaken ##$%%^%^ pain in the butt hose that connects to the water pump. After many tries and loads of experimenting the best most easy method of replacing/installing that little pain in the butt length of hose is to don't worry about it and install the manifold like that hose doesn't exist. Take a length of hose longer than necessary and hold it along side where it goes then butt one end at the water pump housing and mark with something where the pipe of pipe coming out of the intake STARTS (the end away from the manifold). When the intake is re-installed and torqued down then take that length of hose with the marked part and slide it all the way onto the water pump side until it butts against the pump housing. Then looking at the mark you made cut the new hose about 1/2 -5/8 LONGER than the mark. Using your fingers if possible work the open end of the new hose down into the space between the two pipe ends. You may have to use a chunk of wood to help manipulate the open section of the hose down so it slips over the manifold nipple. If after loads of tries and a lot of bad words you still can't work that in cut just a bit more off the hose and try again eventually it will go. Once it is in place slide it so there is equal distance on either side of the opening between pipes and install two new screw type clamps that you can open all the way until the end comes loose so you can slide it onto the hose and tighten both. Or some people have had luck cutting the hose the same way but then grab to new section with a finger in each hole (down boys) and pinch the hose to make the hose a "U" shape then quickly (your fingers will get tired very soon) with the closed part of the "U" facing upwards work the open ends of the "U" down between the two pipe ends and let go and hopefully the two ends will spring open and onto the two pipes..... Either way you will join the club of "Haters of that FE intake hose club"
Make sure the motor mounts are the same fir your application! May need to reuse your old ones, or buy new ones. Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
ok thanks guys, u removed the water pump before the intake so it did dent give me trouble, but ill definatley use your advice for reinstallation. and thanks, the Z-bar was no problem, but to reinstall it, should i pack the thing with grease before i do?
The Jalopy Journal
