351w head selection
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Tuned
Joined: Jun 2008
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From: sc
351w head selection
guys i'm currently driving my 84 long bed f150. it has a mildly built 351w in it. it's been bored 40 over, gt40 heads, 1406 carb & a performer intake. i want to get better heads this spring to get more power. this is not a full race truck it's my daily driver & it will have to haul some loads. what would be the best heads to get in the 400+ hp range??? my cam specs are similar to this 268/280 dur--509/512 lift the cam card got misplaced during the build. what rocker arm ratio would be good as well? oh the tranny is a C4 with 3.73 gears 27 inch tall tires..
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Tuned
Joined: Jun 2008
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From: sc
i was thinking the rhs or afr 200 cfm heads aluminun of course for heat transfer but i wasn't sure if these cfm's would make good truck power in the low rpm range. i do have a friend building a 347 for his truck with the TW 225 cfm's & it's a daily driver as well..
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Joined: Mar 2005
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From: Earth
AFR185 would be my first choice if money was no object. Otherwise just shop around on cl for whatever used aluminum heads you can find for a decent price and take them to a shop for a valve job and clean up. Maybe throw a few bills at them for some porting work as well.
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Joined: Mar 2005
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From: Earth
Oy vey, you're choking the engine pretty badly with those Mustang manifolds. Upgrade to some long tube headers and duals before you even think about new heads.
That Performer intake is holding you back as well. The RPM intake is a much better piece, or the Weiand Stealth.
Are you using the stock distributor? If so get it recurved to match your combo. It's amazing how much difference the right timing curve will make.
That Performer intake is holding you back as well. The RPM intake is a much better piece, or the Weiand Stealth.
Are you using the stock distributor? If so get it recurved to match your combo. It's amazing how much difference the right timing curve will make.
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I wouldn't pull your hole motor down. Just make improvements to the one you have.
I second what the Baron said and would add that a converter would help in accelerating the vehicle better.
I second what the Baron said and would add that a converter would help in accelerating the vehicle better.
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Tuned
Joined: Jun 2008
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From: sc
good info guys. i was looking at a new distributor as well but i was unsure which would be best. is it that big a difference between the RPM & preformer? what about the 600 cfm eddy carb? is it too small or good enough? those headers where on it just to have an exhaust on it.. what stall converter should i use??
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Joined: Mar 2005
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From: Earth
The stock Duraspark distributor/module works pretty well, especially if you can find a local shop with a distributor machine to do a recurve.
The RPM manifold (along with the Stealth) is probably the best dual plane going. It will make a huge difference where your cam would run best (2,500+ rpm). That 1406 should be fine, but you might pick up a few hp at high rpm with a bigger carb.
The RPM manifold (along with the Stealth) is probably the best dual plane going. It will make a huge difference where your cam would run best (2,500+ rpm). That 1406 should be fine, but you might pick up a few hp at high rpm with a bigger carb.
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Tuned
Joined: Jun 2008
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From: sc
ok! good points & i wish i'd known about the intake before i got this one. i'll check with the local shops here for the recurve as well. now about those GT40 heads what else should i do to them??? i would like to port them myself so i might go buy a junk head to play with!!
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I built my 351 W very similar to this and I am using World Products Windsor Sr. heads. They are supposed to be the best performing cast iron heads for a small block Ford. They are around $500 a piece so they ain't too terrible on cost. And for the distributor I am using the high performance Proform one-wire. It has a blue cap and is fashioned identical to the GM distributors with the coil on top of the cap. This eliminates the need for the round coil mounted somewhere in the engine bay and eliminates a few more wires from the engine bay (which is always a good thing). I am also using Proform roller rockers 1.6 ratio.
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From: Ottawa, Ontario
That's too much head for a street driven truck engine IMO, something in the 180-185cc range will produce better low rpm power. My suggestions would include the RHS and Dart iron heads which are tops in the bang-for-the-buck category, and the TFS, AFR, and Ford aluminum heads of the same size.
Everybody's definition of a "daily driver" is different. This will most likely end up being a screamer of a motor with a powerband that only starts at 3000rpm, with a matching high stall converter the truck will certainly be fast but it's gonna be really hard on gas so I doubt it'll see much commuter use once it's on the road.
Everybody's definition of a "daily driver" is different. This will most likely end up being a screamer of a motor with a powerband that only starts at 3000rpm, with a matching high stall converter the truck will certainly be fast but it's gonna be really hard on gas so I doubt it'll see much commuter use once it's on the road.