Gary Lewis

Gonna be a lot of work, but I'm anxious to see how you do it. Will it be carb'd or injected?

That's a good way to do it. Hope you made several tabs.

Good luck! I'll check in later.

Is there sentimental value in it? It's obviously going to be a lot of work and expense to put it back, but I know you have the skills. Do you have a lot of the needed parts?

Maybe you could show us a pic of your original?

Hmmm, I'll bet Ron/reamer steps up to the plate on that bracket.

I think there's another huge advantage to those mirrors - they are far enough out that they won't interfere with the vent windows, regardless of where you put them. The other mirrors have to be back far enough to clear the vent windows, which makes you have to turn your head in order to use them, which is a problem if you are old like me and your neck doesn't turn easily or if you wear glasses.

Thank you, Jim. That simplified things a lot. I've been thinking about why the link turns purple vs stays blue, and that turned out to be complex. But just looking to the right to see if you've looked at the latest post is the best way to solve the problem - or at least the problem as I understand it. Does that answer the question or need?

So a recessed plug would get both of them. Got it. But, it would leave holes on the outside. I think I'll "borrow" the plug from the back of the good one to put in the side passage on yours after it is sufficiently rid of the excess material and tapped. Other than not having the casting texture I'll bet I can make it look like it was meant to be that way.

Bill - I'll check tomorrow, but I'm pretty sure I have two good plenums. So let's swap and I'll mill the stripped one down. And, you are suggesting that I use the rear plug to seal off the side passage - right? I understand, but I think that will beg the question of why there's a hole on the side of the plenum. So why not just plug it? Ray - That 5/8" bit is there to show both the diameter as well as the angle of that passage. See how the face of the EGR mount is not perpendicular to the bit? For some reason the EGR valve sits partially facing forward rather that completely to the side. I was initially planning to make a block-off plate to seal that passage, but came to the conclusion that the whole boss is ugly and needs to go.

Wow! It really IS a truck! It really is looking good, and you are closing in on having it in paint. Well done!

Yes, the plan is to work on the "spare", but it is stored away and this one is up on the stand, so is much easier to see. But, you agree with the approach? As for the cam, it obviously needs to be part of a "package". So the question to Scott really has to start with what that package should be. I'll email him.

I haven't built a 460 - yet. So I haven't seen that adapter on a 460. Big Blue has the air/oil cooler fitting, and Huck has the notorious water/oil cooler. The Ford's I've built are Windsors and M-blocks and they haven't had the internal hex.

Doing some thinking about the path forward on the engine and wanted to bounce a few ideas/thoughts off you guys. But, before I ask, let me state how I'll use the truck - casually. Driving in town and on the highway, overlanding but nothing serious, and very little towing since I have the 2015 truck that is a tow monster. But I've been reading a number of opinions, most notably those of Scott, The Mad Porters, and he recommends: Heads: Porting the intake side of the F3TE's, which apparently are slightly better than the earlier E7 EFI heads. However, according to Scott the exhaust ports are decent but the intake ports need some work. Is it worth it for my use? Lower Plenum: It is recommended that the head flange be ported to match the heads. Cam: I have the Edelbrock Performer, which Scott called "pooh" and "little more than stock". He recommends a VooDoo cam with more lift and dwell. Should I change? Exhaust: Scott also recommends headers and large pipes. But I don't see the need. Also, I was looking at the EGR port on the upper plenum today, and realized that the boss where the EGR valve bolts on is both ugly and at an angle. So I'm thinking of milling the boss off where the red line is, below. And then tap the hole 3/8 NPT and plug it as the one on the rear is plugged. Thoughts?

Yipes!!! You got them for 1/10th that.

Keep your creep in check? Why would anyone want to do that? But, you have a good point. So, make a list of part numbers and maybe people can help you find them?

Yes, that really isn't huge advantage. And, depending on how busy it gets under Big Blue's hood with the second battery, coolant reservoir, EFI air inlet tubing/air cleaner, and power distribution box lining the driver's fender, there may not be room for that.

The Cooling Sytem/Water Pump #'s & Illustrations page shows that the 1987 4.9L's got a different water pump from the '86 and earlier 4.9's. (Notice on that page that the engine was a "300" in '83 and a "4.9L" in '84.) So, I'd guess that when they went serpentine that it did indeed go to reverse rotation. As for the alternator, the serpentine pulley would work on the 1G you probably have, and the mounting is the same. Last, unfortunately I don't have an extra York compressor. But, they are so heavy that shipping wouldn't be cheap.

I like them! They will be so much better for towing. And they'll look good in black.

I may have an extra York, and will look in a bit. But an option you didn’t mention is to convert to serpentine and use the 1987+ brackets. See illustration P-20241 here: http://www.garysgaragemahal.com/300-six-compressor-illustrations.html.

It is always good to have contingency plans, so getting the v-belt brackets was a good move in my book. As for pulleys, I'm thinking the offset will be somewhat critical, and that will vary with the amount of spacing you have from the bracket to the pump. So the pulley decision may be the last one to make. But, there probably aren't an infinite number of offsets available, so the pulley options have to be taken into account when determining the spacing. Anyway, good job on the reservoir.

That's Rocketman. And I already have one converted by him, and will have to do another as that one is now going to go into Big Blue. But my preference would be to install the correct shunt to use the ammeter with a 3G swap and then have the digital voltmeter in addition.

None of the engines I've worked on had the internal hex. Would have been nice as getting one out that has been in for 35 years takes a bit of torque and the exposed threads get ruined.

It sounds off-putting, but when you do it it isn't that big of a deal.

Reviews look good. The only issue I see is the roughness in the passage. I would do as I did on Dad's engine and clean the passage up to minimize restriction. A ball hone might work, or even a drill bit or round file.