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So I'm in the process of building a very budget minded 390. I have a ton of FE parts laying around so this won't be too hard. I'm planning on the following combo:
Stock 360 Block (low miles, no ridge at top of cylinders) $0
Stock 360 pistons $0
Stock 390 crank $0
Stock 390 Rods $0
Low mile C8AE-H heads $0
.027" MLS head gaskets (trying to get the compression up) $88
Stock 4 bbl intake $0
650 CFM Edlebrock Carb $5
No manifolds or homebuilt zoomie headers $0
Rebuild kit $250
So for $338 I have a decent 390 longblock without a cam - which I need some help with.
The engine is going in this:
Obviously I don't need a peak performance engine for this project as it only started life as 30 horsepower and might not live with 400 horsepower and just as much torque - but it does need to sound good.
I want a cam with a nasty lopey idle. That's about the only requirement. No vacuum accessories, stall speed, or the like to worry about. The sooner it starts making power the better, but again, the first priority is idle quality (or lack thereof I guess).
Any suggestions of a cam that has what I am looking for?
Comp Cams has a Dual Energy 275DEH hydraulic that has a choppy idle but only has .515-.541 lift so a spring change without a lot of head work makes it a lower cost to install. It's not a huge cam but will make a little noise.
If your wanting a radical sounding cam their going to have a high valve lift that will require several dollars in head work to make them work, but they will sound good.
I've found FE's like a split duration cam with 8-12 degrees more exhaust duration than intake.
MLS gaskets require a certain finish on the block and heads.
Also not the best way to bring up compression if the piston is down in the hole, it'd only be a good way to increase detonation.
What about one of Comp's Thumpr line cams? They seem to be oriented toward what I want - not too radical of a cam but a nasty idle...
How much lift can I stand on stock heads with springs?
My book was to old for the Thumpr series so had to go to their web site, looks like this would be a good choice for your app, plenty of sound but not a high revving race cam.
Personally I think the ***** Thumpr 287TH7 will get you the sound you want but still have decent drivability, you could have take off and low speed driving issues with the larger Big ***** Thumpr and the Thumpr may not be as lumpy as you'd like.
You'll need some type of exhaust pipe coming off the heads to prevent possible valve warpage, turned up zoomies a couple feet tall would be cool or some type of turned up puller style headers, not sure if anyone makes them for a FE.
We tested several valve springs back in the day from Ford, GM and Chrysler and found that no stock springs where able to handle more than .500 lift and most started to coil bind above .495 lift.
Any time you get a aftermarket cam, get the recommended springs to go with it, it adds to the cost but is cheaper than what all the rework will cost later.
My book was to old for the Thumpr series so had to go to their web site, looks like this would be a good choice for your app, plenty of sound but not a high revving race cam.
Personally I think the ***** Thumpr 287TH7 will get you the sound you want but still have decent drivability, you could have take off and low speed driving issues with the larger Big ***** Thumpr and the Thumpr may not be as lumpy as you'd like.
You'll need some type of exhaust pipe coming off the heads to prevent possible valve warpage, turned up zoomies a couple feet tall would be cool or some type of turned up puller style headers, not sure if anyone makes them for a FE.
We tested several valve springs back in the day from Ford, GM and Chrysler and found that no stock springs where able to handle more than .500 lift and most started to coil bind above .495 lift.
Any time you get a aftermarket cam, get the recommended springs to go with it, it adds to the cost but is cheaper than what all the rework will cost later.
The ***** Thumpr with .519/.503 lift should work fine with just new springs, right? No machine work needed on the heads? Stock rockers fine with shims under the pedestals if needed?
So if I use the 360 pistons with the 390 crank and rods, I will have around 9.6:1 compression. If I use the 360 pistons and rods with the 390 crank, I will have around 10.7:1 compression.
Which would work better with the ***** thumpr or big ***** thumpr?
The long rods are a little weaker than the short ones, so they say. Also, I think you end up out of the hole too far with the long rod. Go proven set up.
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