Ford FE engine find

In one of my last posts about engine options I was informed that my Cuda SS hull originally had a Ford FE engine. I immediately tapped all my resources and within two days I came across what what was described to me as a 390. I bought it sight unseen because $300 was a great deal in my mind. Especially since it came fully dressed, minus the distributor though. I have not been able to determine the rotation or confirm the actual displacement just yet. The engine was found at a reputable engine shop outside of Baltimore that builds all kinds of performance marine/muscle car engines. They had plans for it but the owner said he never got around to it.

Upon getting it home I pulled the plugs and found water in two cylinders. I soaked every bolt in penetrating oil and filled the combustion chambers with penetrating oil as well. I found corrosion,loose rust scale and debris inside the intake manifold. I let everything soak until this morning when I had the time to tear it down. Pulled all the accessories off, the heads, intake and everything else I could do before dark. It took about 6 hours due to a a hand full of badly corroded bolts. My neighbor came over to help out and suggested using a concoction of 1:1 ATF and acetone. That stuff worked like a charm! Two of the cylinders had a lot of scaling and rust, where I found water.

Tomorrow I'll try to get the rest of the block torn down and inspect the crank and cam. When removing the heads I noticed that one of the rods was cracked and had a significant dent.

Enjoy the pics!

Love the FE's. I have one (390)in my '68 F250. I was going to pull it and rebuild it for a winter project, but, decided to wait until next spring when the weather is warmer since I don't have a heated garage. It runs good, just need to freshen it up some.

I look forward to following this thread to follow your rebuild. Post more pictures when you can.   

I need to confirm all the info in the image below. The tops of the pistons are stock in appearance but have "040" stamped on them. Want to make sure this thing wasn't poked 40 over stock. From what I have read the 352, 390 and 427 all share the same block and heads.

I believe for the most part that the marine engines, whether 352, 360, 390 or 427 used 352 heads. There may have been some variations of higher performance engines that used different higher compression heads, but most were low compression 352 heads.

I've heard those cast iron intakes weigh 85 lbs. It looks like you have most of the parts there. If you know that a RR dizy looks like this, can you figure out the rotation by looking at the cam?


Edit, sorry that's an ebay picture. I'll email you the link.

Spent some more time today removing misc items and getting ready to remove the pistons. Letting bolts soak for a week with the ATF/Acetone mix really made a difference, it smells awful though. Once its on your skin it doesn't come out. The timing gears and chain look darn near new. All the internals are in surprisingly good shape. The rust on the crank brushes right off and the block looks freshly cleaned on the inside. I really can't make out what happened to this engine. Further inspection of the crank, cam and pistons will tell. It has been bored 40 over though, I measured the cleanest cylinder. My engine cradle came in so I bolted that up to support the block as I tinkered with it.

I spoke with an engine builder locally and he is going clean up the block and sonic check the cylinder walls and tell me just what I've got to work with. It's going to cost $170 for the service to figure out what the acutal condition is, not bad really. I'm almost considering sourcing a bare block just in case.

Is the cylinder wall between cylinders even narrower than on a 351 small block? I know the .040 over adds a bit of bore but not that much to the eye. I thought a 390 would have more beef there.

Fun project, keep the pictures coming!

Hi Cuda

Judging by the cut of the cam gear you have a normal left hand rotation engine.

Same rotation as a car engine, opposite of the typical Correct Craft engine from back then

Ken O

It will be pretty sweet if you can bring that old hulk back into service.

Just when you thought you were set, haha. I will have to check out the grooves on my crank. One more item on the list...

Sounds like a good solution to me

A 427 block would be cool. Not ruling it out but it's not likely unless I trip over one. I've been calling every salvage yard in my area and have sourced a few stock 390 blocks and even a 428 CJ. I'm going to take my block to the shop after Christmas when I have some time off work. If the block is toast I'll be pulling the trigger on something. Either way I'm going to spend about two hundred dollars to have anything I find sonic checked hot tanked. Hopefully my block is salvageable.

Gary S wrote: I'm running a lefty crank right in my Ford. My engine shop installed a speedi sleeve, no trouble since

Gary, how did they get the speedy sleeve on the crank? Isn't there a flange on it?

I'd plan on new pistons at a minimum- that will allow you to tune your compression ratio if youre after some extra hp. The ones you have being .040 over and stuck are another good reason to not re-use them... they may be junk anyways.

By all means, salvage the connecting rods and crank though... but finding a RH crank sure would make your life easier. I believe that Gary is running a smooth speedi-sleeve with a rope seal (essentially bi-directional), which apparently works just fine- but it wont have the same positive oil control as a RH crank with the wick lines.

I'd weigh the costs of magnafluxing your current block vs. sourcing a new one- like oldcuda said, your block may already be at its limit at .040 over.

I didnt see whether you had confirmed the block's displacement anywhere... have you done that yet? Bore and connecting rod length will get you there if you cant easily measure the stroke.

TRBenj wrote: I'd plan on new pistons at a minimum- that will allow you to tune your compression ratio if youre after some extra hp. The ones you have being .040 over and stuck are another good reason to not re-use them... they may be junk anyways. By all means, salvage the connecting rods and crank though... but finding a RH crank sure would make your life easier. I believe that Gary is running a smooth speedi-sleeve with a rope seal (essentially bi-directional), which apparently works just fine- but it wont have the same positive oil control as a RH crank with the wick lines. I'd weigh the costs of magnafluxing your current block vs. sourcing a new one- like oldcuda said, your block may already be at its limit at .040 over. I didnt see whether you had confirmed the block's displacement anywhere... have you done that yet? Bore and connecting rod length will get you there if you cant easily measure the stroke.

Yeah, pistons are most likely junk. Small cost when you look at the overall project. I haven't measured the cylinders or the stroke which is silly because I should have. Kind of moved on to finding misc parts and making a list of things I need. This weekend...

I have heard of this test but my concerns are primarily with any uneveness of the cylinder walls themselves that I can not get to. Couple that with pitting and built up scale inside the combustion chamber and who knows. I'd rather spend a little money to know what the block will take before diving in an finding out something has been compromised in the process of boring. I'll still owe them money if the block cracks while boring. Spend it up front or in end. I'll try this method in the garage this weekend - Thanks!