I recently purchased a 1977 ford f250 and it had a 360 in it. We pulled the engine and the heads were cracked and the engine was shot so I decided we should buy a new one. Well now I want an engine that will give me a lot of torque and horsepower at low rpms for pulling and I am looking for suggestions

 

You open to diesels? 6bt or dt444?

 

First of all, welcome to FTE!

I originally bought my '74 without an engine, and had a 429 thunderjet laying around - the rest is history

I don't know what your fabricating skills are, or what you have access to.

If you want to swap in a big block like I did, then it is going to take some decent skills and the equipment to do it.
Don't completely write off the FE engines yet, either. There are a lot of guys here that wouldn't trade their FE's for any other engine on the planet. A warmed over 390 is nothing to sneeze at, nor is a 428 FE. You said your truck originally had a 360, so any other FE will fall right into its place.
If you want to go up to a big block, you will need to either locate a big block auto trans, or figure out what to do with a manual trans (you didn't specify what you have). They make swap kits for a 429/460, but they are costly.
If you have a manual and decide you want a big block, I have all the information you need. Just PM me and I will send you more pages to read than you know what to do with.

I would strongly suggest looking for a 390 and warming it over. I had one found for my truck for $10, yes $10.. It was sold when I called the guy. That is when I decided mine was getting the thunderjet.

 

I am open to the idea of a Diesel engine. My truck currently has a 4 speed manual tranny and I am looking for a big block engine that will be able to pull a heavy load because I am interested in using my truck to pull at fairs.

 

Built 460 is the only way to go, if your wanting to drag a sled

 

If its a daily drive/tow rig my nod would be to a diesel conversion. Better towing MPG, better MPG period than a big block. Not knocking big blocks I would like to have one but probably wouldn't be my daily driver either more a play truck. Lots of searching to do wither way you choose. Good luck on your project.

 

Consider the 6bt 12valve cummins.. A great engine for these old trucks, although that swap is so common I didn't even consider it..

 

Will a built 460 with performance upgrades give me high torque ratings at low rpms?

 

A stock 460 will give you high torque at low RPM...

 

I think that is the direction I am going to head in, I was previously looking at those and I just wanted to make sure I was not going to spend money on something not worth it, thanks for the help

 

"and I am looking for suggestions" ,390 stock or stroker,,all things remain the same (drive shafts,engine mounts,ujoints,radiators, original fe,,,,460 so many things change and continue to change(engine mounts,ujoints.wheel hop,drive shafts,radiators.t/c ujoints.flywheels pilot bearings,bell housings,,,just trying to save you alot of aggravation,unless your really into it. equipped with tons of brand new equipment!

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Which did you decide? Many ideas were thrown out here. I would still suggest the 390 FE. It will drop right into place, and still give you some pretty decent power. Plus, you will be spending your money in the engine, making more power, whereas I spent my money adapting the big block into my truck. Basically it comes down to how much money you have to spend, and where you want to spend it.

 

What kind of MPG do those motors get big ugly, 390, 460? I know probably not your main concern, but I am curious what one of the mildly built renditions of those motors make mpg and horsepower wise. Thanks in advance for any information.

 

If you want torque...460 is the way to go. It is costly though. No way around that.

 

MPG is a moot point.. Sorry to say it so bluntly, but its the truth.

Neither is going to give you good MPG's, but both will give you a decent service life, and gobs of power while doing it.

I expect that my 429 probably gets on average about 8 MPG, could do better on longer trips. A 390 with comparative power is going to get roughly the same MPG, although some people claim some fairly respectable numbers on stock motors. Like I said, a 390 with comparative power is going to be roughly the same.

Its not about the MILES per gallon, but rather the SMILES per gallon A big block gets a lot of smiles

Power-wise, my 429 is a 1968 model (high compression!) It makes about 360 hp, and 480 ft/lbs (at 2800 RPM! )