Ok before I start I know very little about motors so if I get names or terms mixed up bare with me. Ill try to give you the shortest version of the story as possible.

Bought a 1976 F100 with a 360 for $1400. Engine was knocking a little and after talking to 3 different mechanics and feedback from the forums everyone thought it was a rocker arm or lifter which wasnt supposed to be a big deal. So I took it to a highly referred local mechanic to get that fixed plus a bunch of little stuff. Turns out the motor was done. The rocker arms i think it was, were bent into "J"s and the cam itself was messed up. So we decided to rebuild it and move on.

Once into the motor we saw that it had been rebuilt before and bored .40. Everything looked good so we proceeded. After having the truck for way way longer than we had talked about I got it back. The first hour of driving it, it started the same knock as before the rebuild, and had less power than it did before the rebuild. Turns out it had a bad cam. The "lobes" were worn way down on 3 of them which in turn ruined 3 of the lifters. The cam and lifters were made by Comp. So the mechanic said he would fix it for free.

After having the truck for a couple more weeks, he fixed everything, drove the truck a lot supposedly, and assured me we had it figured out. Well two mornings in a row the truck will barely start and tries to flood out. After you get it running it runs good but continues to stay idled up. No big deal I figure, choke/carb adjustments needed. Well this morning the truck starts a loud whine/yelling, which also happened when I had a bad cam. Twice since then it has not wanted to start even after it has been driven...also happened when the cam was bad before....

Can anybody tell me if there is something that this mechanic is missing? Am I just having s***house luck? The power is better than before but still not what I was expecting after 4 months and $4000. He was claiming it would be 280hp and close to 600 ft/lbs. It has a granny 4 speed and seems to "lug" in 4th. Am I expecting to much?

This is my dream truck and I am just wanting it to be perfect. But after 4 months and $7500 dollars total spent on truck, repairs, and add-ons i am really starting to get aggravated. Sorry to be so long winded just felt like I needed to give plenty of back story.....Thanks for yalls help in advance

***also after he rebuilt it the first time the oil filter blew out or something from too much oil pressure, and he has had other problems as well throughout the rebuild

 

First off, for $4000, you could have a hell of a good 390. Second, anyone that builds an engine to make 600ft lbs and 280hp is a moron, which is what I'm inclined to think of your mechanic at this point. I can only suggest that you either learn how to do the build work yourself or find someone that has experience with an FE locally. I certainly would suggest you don't throw anymore money into a highly overbored 360 engine.

 

well $4000 included motor work plus a bunch of odds and ends...brakes, front end. wiring issues etc etc. the hp and ft/lbs were his guestimates(he looked up a stock motor and said it was like 200hp and close to 400ft/lbs, and thats what he based his guesstimates off of).....and i asked about just making it into a 390 and he said was that there was no need....

he also kept stock 2bbl carb which ive also heard is a no no....i really dont want to spend more money on it with someone else, since he is warrantying everything but i am second guessin him as well....

 

This is might be hard to believe, but consider its the motor oil causing your lifter/cam wiping out. Todays motor oils have reduced zinc, phosphorous, and sulfer to protect the cat. converter. Mondern engines use rollor lifters and rockers which the oil is designed for. The oil does not have sufficient wear barriers for non roller lifters (which I can assume you have). When this started, alot of machine shops saw that the cam and lifters were being wiped out when the blocks had non roller lifters. It became a he-said she-said issue. The machine shops blamed the parts. Manufacturers blamed improper break in. I wrench for a living, and did some reading on the subject. Even talked with my local engine builder. He said you have to use an oil designed for the older engine, esp during break in. He mentioned Joe Gibbs break in oil. Do a google search on the matter. On my truck, the engine was already broken in when the older oil was phased out. I use only synthetic to guard against the problem. Sorry for the long winded reply, but its something to seriously consider.

One last thing.. you might want to consider learning all you can about your truck and gaining some mechanical knowledge and ability with it. Even if you watch some friends work on their cars, youll get a feel for whats going on. These old rigs are excellent Detroit irons that stand the test of time. They do need some love to keep them going though. If you have to pay to have it looked at every time, its going to get quite expensive.

 

Respectfully, yes. Your "mechanic" sure as heck is missing something..... a brain! 600 ft.lb of torque? He's on crack... and "rebuilding it the first time", that shouldda been a sign he doesn't know WTF he is doing.

Did you actually look at the block, parts, and cam? Or was this totally over the phone that he told you about the engine's condition?

Was this a complete rebuild or just selected parts? It should not be knocking. Period.

Tell him that he is going to fix it without any more money out of your pocket.

 

Was lifter preload checked ? Was good ZDDP based oil used ? You can't use "off the shelve" oil in a flat tappet motor anymore or the cam lobes will wipe right off.

 

Is this guy using proper break-in procedure? high zinc oil? and ZDDP additive? seems he keeps wiping cams.

 

i do know he said that he had to add zinc to it because todays oils suck. not sure of what he put in it but he did put something in it.

also, he did show me the parts before, during, and after rebuild...showed me the cam and lifters after they messed up etc...

truck seems to be running good now other than auto choke and carb issues but it does squeak/squeal occasionally. i cant tell if its the cam makin the noise like last time or if it is something on the belts....it has only beenreal bad that one time and now its kinda intermittent and occasional.....

sorry it took so long to respond, been at the hunting camp