Hi Guys,

Short and Sweet - I'm at a crossroads. I'm pepping up the 360 in my 71 Ford Ranger XLT. I'm definitely wanting to make this a "pulling" truck, and not a racing truck, so everything I'm doing is geared toward the "low end".

I've been searching around, and wanting to get an Edelbrock Performer Intake to go with the Holley 600 I bought for it. But, the cheapest I've found has been in the $150 range - then there's shipping.

I've finally found a guy locally (yesterday!) who has all kinds of 60's & 70's Ford Trucks, and has some "S" Intake Manifolds, and I could probably get one pretty cheap.

I know it weighs a ton, but I'm on a tight budget. My question is this: What is the basic difference in performance going to be with the late 60's 390GT "S" Intake Manifold vs. the Edelbrock Performer? For a guy who's looking for torque, would it be pretty close?

One other thing - Down the road, I'm considering putting a "low end" type cam in this puppy. A Ford Guy recommended this one for me: Voodoo Hyd Cam Kit - Ford 352-428FE 250/256 - Lunati Power

If I intend on putting a cam like this in my truck, does that mean I should go ahead and wait and find an Edelbrock Performer, or would this cam work okay with a standard "S" Intake?

Thanks For Any Input for this Newbie,
Bob

 

S MANIFOLD is a good low end manifold , put a 2" carb spacer on it and you'll be set.
i have the Lunati 62001 cam kit in my 390 makes great tq and hp
the cam you mentioned is the 62000 almost a stock replacement cam .
in hind site if i had to choose a cam again it would be the 62002

 

The S is probably as good as the performer from what I have read, maybe better. Other than wrangling 77 pounds of pig iron down onto the engine.
To keep from duplicating that undesirable task, why not wait and do the cam and intake at the same time?
One more little trick to remember. Take a hacksaw and cut about 1/2" off the bypass pipe on the water pump, that way you can get the bypass hose on AFTER you have installed the intake.

 

I'll parrot the statement about the "S" being pretty equal to the performer, aside from weight. If you don't intend to see, or exceed 5K RPM, you won't see any real differences between them in terms of power.
That said, I'd go with whatever you can find cheapest. There's also a "T" code intake that's pretty equal to the "S", but since it was used on the later truck 390's, the old car guys don't want them, so they can often be found even cheaper than the "S".

As for trimming the water pump bypass nipple, it works ok. But, I prefer to pull the water pump off, but that's just my preference.

 

Thanks to all! If I may ask another (dumb) question -
What, specifically does the 2" Spacer do?
I really like this idea, and it will probably save me $150.

I'm in no hurry to do the Cam thing. But, thanks for the input. I will definitely check out that 62002. What is the main advantage to this one, as opposed to the 62001 that you have in your 390?

I will probably be doing the Cam & Intake/4 Barrel thing at the same time. But....If I DID go ahead and do the Intake/Spacer/4V Carb first, and then the Cam later, it would still run okay, right? I know this may sound odd, but I am on such a tight budget (time & money) that I have to plan this out, and do a little at a time.

I'll have to look into that mod that was mentioned - I didn't really grasp that, but will try to figure it out. What does cutting off the nipple do?

Thanks Gang,
You are a Huge Help!
Bob

 

The water pump and intake both have nipples for a bypass hose. The hose is just a short straight piece of heater hose, but the nipples are only about 1/4" apart. Rather difficult to get the hose on afterwards..... (understatement of the year).

The intake has to come off to replace the cam, so you would be doing that part twice, as well as buying the gaskets twice.
I would start stock piling the parts, and do it all at once. Cam/lifters, timing set, intake/carb, and just for the heck of it, a water pump since it's age is not really known and it has to come off for the cam change anyways.

 

62002 cam has a little more lift and duration , i used desktop dyno 5 and it would give me about same tq numbers and about 25 more hp and a little more lope in the idle .
62001 has very little lope , just enough to hear there's a cam

 

spacer gives you a little extra tq+hp ,also gets carb off intake so fuel doesn't boil .
just be sure to get the 4 hole spacer

 

Quite true. Plus, it's not like there is going to be any sort of hood clearance issue.......

 

Great Advice, guys. Thanks a ton.

That is my plan - to stockpile the parts, and then do it all at once (also helps with the pocketbook!).

The idea of replacing the water pump sounds smart. They aren't that expensive. I had already planned on yanking the radiator, and having it rodded out (painted nice & pretty!) when I do the intake/cam. It needs to be removed, anyway. I have a friend that has a super radiator shop.

This puppy is going to be soooo nice! You guys are all a huge part of it. This "Ford Family" is so loaded with wisdom, it's amazing. I'm learning tons, and enjoying every minute of it. Some of these things may seem simple to some of you old pros, but it means a lot to someone like me.

Happy Holidays!
Bob

 

Means a lot to me too, I'm really eager to learn! I'm glad I have such a good resource.
Hope all goes well Corkwheats!

 

i never thought of sawing off the nipple i always just removed water pump its only 4 bolts and never hurts to remove it once in a while

 

Oh, I almost forgot - Regarding the Intake, and whether to go with the "S" or an Aluminum.....I met a guy who sold me a nice Mallory Dual Point Distributor for my truck (2755301) that I had been searching for (like new: $125). He told me that when he got a chance to go look, he had an old Ford FE OEM Aluminum Intake out in his garage he may let me have. I'm still sorta salivating over that.....I'll keep y'all posted!

Stay Warm!
Bob

 

You won't need to saw off the nipple if your doing the cam too because the water pump will be off.
It is an old flat rate trick, just something to make the job easier and faster for mechanics who worked flat rate, way faster than removing the fan. accessories, water pump.

 

i like throwing out an unpopular opinion once in a while...here goes.

we're talking about a 360.
don't forget about the built-in low compression.
if i was on a budget and trying to make a "low-end puller"...a 4-barrel manifold would be about the last thing on my list.

keep what you've got- a 2 barrel setup is just fine on the low end.

if you're going to start talking about cam/intakes...you may as well just go all the way and rebuild it into a 390.