ok so i FINALLY got a tester...here are the #'s

(passenger side of motor)
1. 150
2. 138
3. 135
4. 130

(drive side of motor)
5. 130
6. 132
7. 134
8. 128


i dont know what the specs are for the pressure as i cant find anything about the windsor family except for whats on wikipedia...and on wiki i cant even find the compression ratio!!! so is this motor shot or is the 130's normal...or is my gut feeling that 180 is the correct PSI

 

No that's about right for that year, nominal compression ratio is only about 8.2:1 so that doesn't translate into as high a cranking pressure.

 

so if i get a rebuilt kit but instead of the OE 8.2:1 piston i get 9:1 pistons could i do that and NOT damage the motor?

 

I think you'l find the pistons are all the same the heads are where the differences are. 1975-1986 motors are "smog era" with heads that have large 68cc combustion chambers, from 1987 on all SBF heads got 62-64cc chambers which resulted in compression ratios jumping to 8.8-9:1. The good news is these late model heads are a direct replacement on the earlier motor, get a set for E7TE truck heads or F1ZE,F3ZE, and F4ZE GT40 heads.

 

i wanted to get a set of GT40 heads, but i was kinda worried a 302 head wouldnt fit on a 351 motor

 

302 and 351 heads are all identical except for the main bolt hole sizes.. 7/16" for the 5.0 and 1/2" for the 5.8. These are easily drilled out with a common drill press..I have done this myself, the holes are very close to the same size so the drill bit follows it easily, and the holes are perpendicular to the head gasket surface so you just have to position the head so it's sitting flat and level. If you don't want to risk it I'm sure a machine shop would drill them for a small charge.

 

that seems pretty easy...hopefully my friends 18 volt drill can do the job hahaha

i just need to find a set of cheap 302 heads..