Hi truckers. Hope all is well with you. So I have a 1988 f150 with a 351w engine...is old and long in the tooth. My plans are to buy a d.s.s. level 20 block . D.s.s. says it is a 410w but I'm going to buy the scat 357cid forged balanced rotating assembly. Will this work good in this block? I will be using a lunati hyd.roller voodoo cam nm. 20350710 spects. Duration a@50 211/219 lift 0.541/0.549 lsa 112 comes on at 1600 to 5000 Will it work for torque and hp? Heads will be afr 185cc/58cc to big? Intake edelbrock performer duel plane 4150 style. Good? Fuel system fi-tech 600hp efi. I like the 600 because you can get a better tune. Fi-tech go nobody? Exhaust bassini shorty headers bassini y-pipes no cats. Flowmaster american thunder duel exhaust. I have a rebuilt all heavy duty parts c6 will be getting a broader transmission 2200 stall torque converter. Rearend. 8.8 new Dutchman alloy axel shafts. Detroit locker with new heavy duty yoke and u joints...you might think why a forged 357 and not a 408 or 393 well I would. But the oil pan on my f150 is low to the cross beam and a stroker pan won't fit. I am not sure if the 357 kit will fit either because the rods are 6.oo if that makes a difference between the stock size rods. So my question is will all this work well. Looking for torque hp and reliability. You guys have done it all and have the answers. So hep a old farther out .is it a go or no go. All help is much appreciated. Please you all have a safe holiday season. Your wife and kids need you.

 

What are your goals here? Power/torque and intended use? Budget (if you don't mind)?

Is this the block you're talking about? http://shop.dssracing.com/product_p/lvl%2020%20351w.htm
Is this not just a stock block with all the machining done? I'm not going to claim to be the guy with the answers you seek but thought I'd ask a few questions to maybe get the ball rolling. Sounds like a fun project.

Do you have a good machine shop local to you? Might save you some money over ordering parts marketed to racers.

Thanks for the well wishes. Back at you.

 

try this thread for getting to your goal of HP and torque
The Ford Windsor Small Block Engine Family Forum: Looking to build a 351 stroker

 

Well. That level 20 block from dss is supposed to be well rebuilt. I'm looking at. 030 .I have looked online for the very best reman. 351w bare block. But I can't seem to find one that is top notch. The shops where I live don't seem to be the best block rebuilders.I have a friend that will build the engine for me when I get the parts. But he can't do the block. I'm looking for very good torque and hp. I do a lot of high way driving, to the mountains to hunt, and towing.I want the most bullit proof engine. That's why I'm going to buy all forged internals. Back to blocks. I wanted a dart block but the oil pan fitment is a problem for me. So I'm back to a stock block so that pan will fit under my truck.as for cost I'm going to buy parts month by month. I planed it out and I will have all the parts and the builders cost by March 2018 I'm not in a big hurry .I just want the very best parts. The frame is completely cleaned and heavily coated so no corrosion will eat it.the rearend all rebuilt all quality parts all new shocks and springs. Front end all new rebuild. C6 trans all new rebuild heavy duty parts with trans cooler.new tires and rims. Body is straight no big dents no heavy rust . interior all good no rip this truck has served me well. And it's a truck that is used as a truck. I have done so much with this truck. I love my truck. A neighbor across the street bought a f150 with all the bells and whistles. And guess what you can't do **** with it .I went to jump in to his bed and the rails felt like it was going to bend under my grip .and it has no power. It's only for looks. My truck I haul with ,I camp with it .I get fire wood with it. I love my truck. So this guy buy a truck and after all the payments it will be 50,ooo. So if I can rebuild my truck total 20,ooo with paint then I know my truck will outlast any of these new trucks... that's why I want the very best parts. When you buy the parts one at a time you can pick the best parts even if you have to wait and save. Because you know every part in that engine is quality, not some hurry up slap togeather.I crate engine you hope will last. Well I'm getting carried away. Thank you for replying to my rant. You are a good man.

 

Hi. Bentwire..Thank you for getting back to me.I see you have the same truck as me .except for the 4x4. How is you build going? What is your engine build? I hope all is going good. Did you get your build info from that thread? I will read up on it...aren't our trucks good we love our trucks. The new trucks are crap no power, all computers, to much to go wrong. You can't work on them. The metal is weak . I love our old trucks. And the c6 is a strong reliable transmission. What kind of rear end do you have? I love my Detroit locker. When I put sand bags in my bed I have massive traction. My complete drive train is rebuilt and my frame and under neath is completely coated heavily. No worries about rust. I worked back words I started with the reared and worked my way to the front end. All new. Even the steering box. Now to the engine it will take time I will buy only top quality parts .no Chinese crap if at all possible. The last thing I will do is paint and bodywork the interior is all good. Just clean the rug. Well thank you so much for letting me rant.please tell me any thoughts on parts that will make my baby the best. May you and your family have a safe and wonderful life

 

The 351W is a sturdy block and you can build the block to upwards of 700hp a girdle on the mains is recommended but this engine is one of the best builders you can do, I have an extra 351w block I am having bored out to 4.30 and intend on sticking a 408 rotating assembly in it,, this will give me all the HP and torque I will ever need and probably be around 500-600 HP, I am just building this engine to keep in the shop incase I find a 1965 Falcon I want to hot rod,,, my main build I am working on now is a pretty much stock 351w with Cobra GT40 heads 3 degree valve grind and Beehive springs with crane roller rockers. being as the stock cam is trash I will be retrofitting a Roller cam with Hydraulic roller lifters. what I am learning is the 351w is by its own right a very powerful little demon if you can get past its breathing issues,,,, to much head flow and you destroy low end torque which you will want towing a trailer or climbing that monster mountain.. I am still waiting to make my cam selection and collecting my parts to do the MAF conversion so semi stock motor can run healthy and be more fuel efficient ( gas isn't going to keep staying below $2.00 a gallon long) I have always built carbureted 351w and always just added a mild cam and a single plane aluminum offenhouser with a quadrajet 4 lunger and Hooker headers, back in those days I didn't know anything about heads except Big vales were good LOL not so much now days on producing torque at the bottom end 0-4000rpm.. what I have learned is the E7 Heads are a waste of time and money.. the 351w likes to breath so good flow is more important than CC spending your money on excellent heads is a better option than a long rod Old school build in my opinion!!!!. I like your ideas and your thought process makes great since we used to put 400 rods in the 351 with chevy pistons and get tighter clearance on the wall to prevent blowby and keep that power where we wanted it,, deep dish pistons were key also so the explosion of gas happened on the piston instead of the head chamber which speed up the stroke..... for less money than your spending on your build you can go with a 4 inch stroke a 4.30 bore and have yourself a Torque monster with decent mileage if you go EFI which is more efficient than Carbureted engines and you can do that actually pretty cheap, at a pick your part yard.. Mass Air Flow and fuel injection has really turned my world to a exciting learning experience. I am very happy that 351w blocks are a dime a dozen in my area and can be had pretty cheap there are a ton of Chevy guys here so the ford parts are cheap, they are sturdy and well designed and with a girdle on the mains will keep those creeping or walking rod main caps at bay literally zero failure compared to the old thinking that four bolt mains is the only way to go. I am very excited to read about your build and am subscribing to your thread so I can learn how your build is working out. I live in Kansas near Oklahoma and have a lot of 351w parts. I wish there was more I could learn about the stock EFI intakes as they appear to have enough material to hog the heck out of and port till the cows come home aftermarket intakes are very high dollar for the truck set up. but then again they are designed for low end torque with long runners and dual throttle bodies,, as for the A9P computer I want to run with my build they are so rare and not generally sitting in the scrap yard.... I like you love my old F150 it feels like a real truck and not a vibrating bear can on wheels... It is a pleasure reading your post and I will follow your post and see if there is some build tricks we can swap...... I am glad your taking the time to post here these guys know their stuff and I spend as much time as I can reading here keep up the great post

 

I recently built a 351w with the same use in mind for my 96' F150. It's a mild 351w. Estimated around 280-300hp and closer to 400lb ft. No dyno runs but there is a chassis dyno about 4 blocks from home. I used roller cam/lifters and 1.7 ratio roller rockers, GT40P heads, 351w lower intake ported to match a 302 upper plenum (poor man's performance boost), and long tube headers. I think it's going to eat my old E4OD for lunch, and I live at 7200' above sea level (~20% drop in power from thin air). I'm very happy with its torque, RPM range, and even fuel economy. I can't wait to drive it near sea level.

Nothing wrong with wanting to do things right. Take your time, read a lot. Your goals dictate your parts choices. I learned a ton from Mustang builds and Bronco guys, as well as this forum.

I too really like my old ford, but I can't say I think the new trucks are crap. Just insanely expensive and loaded with gadgets I'm not interested in. Modern turbo engines are awesome pulling a trailer at altitude.

Btw, I am nearly certain you can't bore the stock 351w to 4.300" there just isn't enough iron around the bores. I think you mean 4.030", which is a standard overbore. Only do that if your block needs it to get rid of out-of-round or taper. A 357 from a 0.030" overbore isn't going to make more power than a standard bore 351w. Add stroke and you're in business though. If my pockets were deep (they're not) I'd have gone 408w for sure.

Be aware that F4TE blocks (roller lifter ready) are crack prone at the #2 and #4 cam bearing bores. Its likely fine with a mild power level but really scrutinize the block if you're planning on big power.

I would say do not trust anyone to get this right for you. I hate to say that but it could save you. Have machine work done? Measure parts yourself and use plastigage to double or triple check the machinist. Everyone makes a mistake eventually. Pistons listed as 0.030" over? Measure them. Rings came pre-gapped? Check every one of them in the bore.

Have fun!

 

to make the 408 you have to go .30 overbore along with a 4 inch stroke there are 2 or three ways to get there,, i do not use roller ready blocks i prefer to use tied or linked rollers not a fan of the web style retro rollers, I absolutely trust my machinist, I have known him for 53 years and his reputation is nation wide and yes i always check my parts for fitment

I like the GT40 Iron Heads, on the flow bench they flow a bit better than the aluminum P heads, the GT40 heads are as cheap as it gets for a performance upgrade, i run the Crane Gold series 1.6 rollers , i cant imagine anyone not checking ring gap i use my ring compressor to get the ring square in the hole and check my gaps that way, i can say I never seen a problem yet with quality built parts these business do not stay in the top of the line by selling misrepresented materials however with all the south of the border workers importing parts you definitely need to judge if your getting what your paying for,,,,, I definitely do not know everything an make mistakes myself but I do trust others that are experienced that is why I am here on this form to learn from those that have experience.

 

. 4.030 bore when you bore 30 thousandths 4.30 is damn near the bore of a 460 at 4.360 and a 3.85 stroke.

​​​​​​​so your 4.3 bore with 4 inch stroke come out at 467 inches. I think you mean 4.030 x 4.00.

 

4.030 or .030 overbore with 4 inch stroke to get to a 408 do some reading I did miss type that in my post and yes you are correct that is what I mean sorry to give out bad info

 

yes that is what I ment

 

Yeah I knew what you meant And I figured you did too, but sometimes newbies don't and I was trying to clear it up for them. All good

 

Well I just found out that dss has a low profile stroker oil pan that will fit my f150.. so I'm going with the scat balanced forged 393 stroker rotating assembly.....It will work well with the dss block....with the afr 185cc/58cc heads it will be 9.5 compression...with the lunati hyd.roller camshaft, morel linkbar lifters,crower stainless steel 1.6 full roller rockers,edelbrock performer dual plane 4150 style intake, fi-tech 600hp efi,bassini shorty headers, bassini y-pipes no cats, flowmaster american thunder stainless steel exhaust, my baby will be good to go and outlive me. This combo should give me good torque and hp. I hope

 

just checking back to see how your build is going what cam did you chose you going 1.6 or 1.7 rockers??? what are you doing for exhaust