New member from Mill Creek WA

[ArdWrknTrk]

Those valve covers cause a stirring.....

[Gary Lewis]

Back in the mid eighties I had a 77 f250 highboy. It had a tired 351m. I got a 68 tbird engine in trade for some work I did and that was an easy swap into the truck. That engine powered that truck effortlessly. I always liked the 385 series engine, it really was one of Fords better ideas. I've always liked the bullnose styling. That's why I bought this truck. I didn't realize how much different the chassis is compared to the previous generation. When I bought this, my thought was to put a big block in it and a Dana 60 front end. The 400 thats in it now runs so good, plugs are clean and it has nice steady 16in of vacuum at idle but it doesn't have the torque like a 429 or 460. Maybe a set of closed chamber heads and headers with dual exhaust would wake it up.

Anyway, I will probably just put a remote filter on it. I am going to retire in 3 years and most likely move to either Arizona or New Mexico, and build a huge garage so I can have room to work. Then I will restore it to my liking. In the meantime, I just want to keep it as a nice drivable truck.

By the way, the reason I like 429's so much is because the first one I had was a 70 torino cobra with the drag pack. The second one was a 69 Boss 429 that had the engine built by holmon&moody20190313_151549.jpg

A 429 built by Holman and Moody sounds ferocious! My brother had a Cobalt trihull with a Holman & Moody-built 351W. When he finally found a prop that wouldn't just cavitate when he hit the throttle it would take the rope away from any skier. It was by far the strongest out-of-the-hole setup we've ever encountered.

On the 400, a friend of my put a straight-up timing chain and a 4bbl intake and carb on his 1981 400 and said it was like having two engines. Twice as much power. I'm not saying it'll be as good as a 460, but a 400 can be very strong.

I recently "got" a guy on a Bullnose Facebook page that was calling 400's slugs and anchors. He made the statement that they won't put out nearly as much power as a 460. I explained that my "slug" put out 400 HP and 500 lb-ft of torque on the dyno, and Scotty Johnson said the 460 he built for me would be at 360-370 and 500 if put on the dyno. The guy asked how much I have in the 400, and I told him it doesn't matter as he said they won't put out as much power.

Later we discussed it without the derogatory terms and I was quick to admit that it costs more to get the same power from a 400 as a 460. But that is mainly due to the limited aftermarket support for the 400, not the capabilities of the engine. The 400 has a slightly longer stroke than the 460 so can make very good torque. And with people like Tim Meyer specializing in them, and even Scotty getting into building them, they can be made into a power house.

[Machspeed]

You've had some nice cars, my friend! That Torino cobra is awesome. I've always loved the lines of that car. But, a Boss 429 is hard to top! Your car black or Black Jade? You still have it or sold?

I've had a handful of Mustangs in my years. Below are two of my favorites. The Canary Yellow Mach on the left was a 428 CJ with a C6. I actually sold that car to buy my truck. The car on the right was my first car.... Gulfstream Aqua 351 2V auto equipped car. I still have it and am doing a bit of a resto mod to it. I've got a 408 stroker motor built for it and it is on a rotisserie now. I've got to get back at it soon. I'd like to drive this car again before I pass this life.

[cjstaci]

You've had some nice cars, my friend! That Torino cobra is awesome. I've always loved the lines of that car. But, a Boss 429 is hard to top! Your car black or Black Jade? You still have it or sold?

I've had a handful of Mustangs in my years. Below are two of my favorites. The Canary Yellow Mach on the left was a 428 CJ with a C6. I actually sold that car to buy my truck. The car on the right was my first car.... Gulfstream Aqua 351 2V auto equipped car. I still have it and am doing a bit of a resto mod to it. I've got a 408 stroker motor built for it and it is on a rotisserie now. I've got to get back at it soon. I'd like to drive this car again before I pass this life.

I was 17 when I bought the torino. Didn't even know what I was getting, other than it looked cool and had a big block with a 4 speed. I was 18 when I got the boss 429. The original owner spun a bearing drag racing so in 1972 he took it to holmon &moody and told them to build it. They put the nascar rods pistons and valves in it, headers,deep pan, and a very healthy solid cam then a bill for $4500. That was too much for him so he sold it. I bought it from the second owner who had another Boss 429 in a car show where I met him. I paid 6800 in 1978. It was an amazing car to drive but it was not street friendly. It took race gas, got about 80 miles to a tank, it would start running hot under 30 mph, the plugs would load up if it idled too much, but from 3000 to 7000 rpm it would put one hell of a smile on your face. Unfortunately I sold both of the cars in the 1980's. Still kicking myself for it.

Looking at your mustang's, both fine examples. Love both colors, wish I could have a dozen of these cars. Mid sixties to the very early 70's had some great looking cars.

In regards to the 351m/400, there's no reason they can't be made to run. Starting in 1972 when the manufacturers dropped the compression ratios to approximately 8:1, engines lost a lot power, plus retarded cam and ignition timing made it worse. Easy to call any engine a boat anchor under those conditions. You can make any engine run strong with the right combination of parts. People that say you can't just don't know what to do.

As far as my truck is concerned, I will probably do some minor mods to increase performance but my garage is just to cramped for space to do any major work. I will save that for when I retire and get a big enough shop.

[ArdWrknTrk]

I was 17 when I bought the torino. Didn't even know what I was getting, other than it looked cool and had a big block with a 4 speed. I was 18 when I got the boss 429. The original owner spun a bearing drag racing so in 1972 he took it to holmon &moody and told them to build it. They put the nascar rods pistons and valves in it, headers,deep pan, and a very healthy solid cam then a bill for $4500. That was too much for him so he sold it. I bought it from the second owner who had another Boss 429 in a car show where I met him. I paid 6800 in 1978. It was an amazing car to drive but it was not street friendly. It took race gas, got about 80 miles to a tank, it would start running hot under 30 mph, the plugs would load up if it idled too much, but from 3000 to 7000 rpm it would put one hell of a smile on your face. Unfortunately I sold both of the cars in the 1980's. Still kicking myself for it.

Looking at your mustang's, both fine examples. Love both colors, wish I could have a dozen of these cars. Mid sixties to the very early 70's had some great looking cars.

In regards to the 351m/400, there's no reason they can't be made to run. Starting in 1972 when the manufacturers dropped the compression ratios to approximately 8:1, engines lost a lot power, plus retarded cam and ignition timing made it worse. Easy to call any engine a boat anchor under those conditions. You can make any engine run strong with the right combination of parts. People that say you can't just don't know what to do.

As far as my truck is concerned, I will probably do some minor mods to increase performance but my garage is just to cramped for space to do any major work. I will save that for when I retire and get a big enough shop.

That H&M engine sounds like a BEAST.

335's can certainly be built to run.

I have a friend who's owned a few Pantera's

They were quite something (at the time) for a car you could buy at a Mercury dealership.

[Gary Lewis]

That H&M engine sounds like a BEAST.

335's can certainly be built to run.

I have a friend who's owned a few Pantera's

They were quite something (at the time) for a car you could buy at a Mercury dealership.

A number of Panteras today run Tim Meyer engines. He has a new aluminum block Cleveland with way over 400 cubes that they like due to the light weight and that it’ll bolt in.

[cjstaci]

A number of Panteras today run Tim Meyer engines. He has a new aluminum block Cleveland with way over 400 cubes that they like due to the light weight and that it’ll bolt in.

The Cleveland eng was a terror when it came out, in fact the 1971 Boss 351 recorded one of best quarter mile times of the era for a factory stock car. Ford knew how to make stuff run at the track. Unfortunately, when they put engines in street cars with huge ports and valves, like the boss 302, 351 4v, 429 cj and Boss 429, they didn't live up to expectations because too small of camshaft, retarded timing, etc, all in the name of emission controls and warranties. Put the right parts on any of these engines and they were proven winners. There's a 71 mustang on you tube belonging to a guy named Steve Ash. It's a twin turbo big block making over 3000 hp. There's two videos of it, one driving on the street and the other running a 7.3 quarter at close to 200mph.

It just goes to show, anything is possible.

 

[ArdWrknTrk]

A number of Panteras today run Tim Meyer engines. He has a new aluminum block Cleveland with way over 400 cubes that they like due to the light weight and that it’ll bolt in.

I guess Tim can say "The Boss is BACK!!!!"

[Gary Lewis]

I guess Tim can say "The Boss is BACK!!!!"

Close:

[ArdWrknTrk]

The Cleveland eng was a terror when it came out, in fact the 1971 Boss 351 recorded one of best quarter mile times of the era for a factory stock car. Ford knew how to make stuff run at the track. Unfortunately, when they put engines in street cars with huge ports and valves, like the boss 302, 351 4v, 429 cj and Boss 429, they didn't live up to expectations because too small of camshaft, retarded timing, etc, all in the name of emission controls and warranties. Put the right parts on any of these engines and they were proven winners. There's a 71 mustang on you tube belonging to a guy named Steve Ash. It's a twin turbo big block making over 3000 hp. There's two videos of it, one driving on the street and the other running a 7.3 quarter at close to 200mph.

It just goes to show, anything is possible.

It's trivial to swap a cam and timing set.

A lot of these performance engines were solid lifter too....

JK has some incredible 'Boss Nine' engines out there right now. 💪

Good to see he took the ball and ran with it! 😉

First On Race Day!