Mmild hop up routes for a '64 Thunderbird 390?

[OldSub]

I've been a GM guy all my life and know almost nothing about Fords.  That might be slightly overstated because in the early 80's I worked as a truck mechanic on a small fleet of Ford trucks but I remember little about them and nothing about hot rodding them.

A friend has asked me what he can do to improve performance as he rebuilds the original 390 in his '64 Thunderbird.

His son has suggested swapping a 427 crankshaft into it.  I've no idea if that is a realistic strategy or not, nor any idea what it would take to do it.

Are there some good ideas I should offer him?

My own answer was a little simpler.  I say replace the 390 with a 460...

[wayne petty]

there are dozens of ways to swap cranks around different FE blocks to come up with various displacements..

and a whole bunch of new parts...

one thing... be sure they plan on spending the time to check the valve clearance with the lifters EMPTY and bottomed out..  i will have to find the gap...  its over 0.080 as i recall..   with the cam on the base circle.. this is all done before the start while its on the engine stand..

there are various lengths of push rods available to do the job.. its vital that the valve stem heights be measured before taking the valves out of the heads.. but after taking off the springs..

there are a bunch of FE forums... some well written books.. and tons of online articles on building them..  

new blocks.. new heads.. intakes.. and a bunch of other parts are still available..

some bowl porting..  a street cam selection.. careful carb work.. converting to electronic ignition.. quailty fasteners for the exhaust manifolds to the heads with antiseize.. not going crazy with the compression ratio upping..   will make it really nice to drive..

i think that duel system master cylinders are available.. for that still..  the brake lines need to be done with the engine out. to get them really right..

i don't remember what years tbird had a weird throttle relay belcrank on the back of the left head or bolted to the bellhousing bolts. for the throttle and kick down linkage..   i see to recall having to replace bushings on that also...

the worst part.. the surge tank..   really needs to be silver soldered instead of regular lead solder..  not many radiator shops will use low melting temp silver solder as they only know rigid stick silver solder..

[chimp koose]

look into aftermarket heads. They are often less expensive than rebuilding originals and offer a good power increase.Also try a gapless ring set like total seal sells. While they are more expensive they offer a real power increase in lower rpm range.The rings also contribute to cleaner oil as you will get less fuel contamination in the oil.

[wayne petty]

a few links

http://www.shelbyengines.com/

http://www.shelbyengines.com/FE-Engines.html

http://www.enginebuildermag.com/Content/Site302/SpecialIssue/11_01_2006/1539FordFEpdf_00000002088.pdf

there are 5 parts to this..

http://www.precisionenginetech.com/project-engine-builds/2009/07/13/project-ford-fe-part-1/


and some from main line magazines..

http://www.musclemustangfastfords.com/sch/02/fe/articles/index.html?SearchSource=Group


do to the cooling system design on these... please get them to invest the 10 bucks or so.. in hylomar for the head gaskets.. to prevent any leaks.. and any accidental overheating damage..

[enjenjo]

Check the alignment of the oil holes in the block, with the oil holes in the main bearings. Older ones were generally pretty good, but some of the later ones were way off. Grind the holes in the block to match the bearing holes.

Make sure you have the right timing chain set, early and late are different, but will interchange, but gears, chain, fuel pump eccentric and all have to match as a set.Also make sure the oil pump pressure relief valve is working right. they tend to get sticky, and over pressurize the system, blowing  out the oil filter.

[tomslik]

myself, i'd start looking for a CJ428 shortblock and a good aluminum intake and (nowadays) aluminum heads.
just the shear weight reduction of the intake should be worth .5 second;)
i wouldn't pass up a regular 428 but the CJ's had a different block (beefier in the main webs)


or just stick the aluminum stuff on the 390 and talk to a cam mfgr and the converter guys and see what they recommend...

3310 holley would be a good choice, too.(don't forget the kickdown lever when you order it)
i wouldn't use an edelbrock carb on a bet...

[kb426]

The 427crank is the same stroke as the 390. If he can afford it, the Edelbrock heads are a good improvement. Mild cam, exhaust improvement, recurved ignition, adequate fuel delivery are normal steps. The 428 crank is longer stroke. Great improvement but if you rod it alot, the bottom of the block is going to come off.

[OldSub]

Thank you everyone your responses are very helpful!

We sat down at Starbucks late this afternoon (we ARE in Seattle after all) and talked a bit about his options.  

I showed him this thread and emailed him the link and maybe he'll actually join up too.  He is a web savvy tech guy but hasn't yet gotten involved in the online rodding community.