Happy Thanksgiving Everybody!

Killing a few hours on doubletime here at work, I've come to realize it's time to do a heart transplant on my '84 F250HD's 351W. The engine is old and tired, no surprise for roughly 250k hard miles. One cylinder has had low compression (60ish) for years now but it was barely noticeable. The engine has been running a little rough lately, so I did a compression test last weekend and now it's got two dead cylinders. The previously bad cylinder and the adjacent one are now down around 30 PSI. Not good. I've still got to do a leakdown test to confirm the root cause (head gasket?) but I'm thinking it's time to just pull the trigger and spring for a reman engine. The engine has been using a lot of oil, with lots of blowby, so I suspect that's just normal worn rings after so many years, but I will confirm this with a leakdown test.

Any thoughts on where to get a reman engine? I'm in the Portland Oregon area, just outside the smoke from all the dumpster fires. Local pickup would be nice, but is not mandatory as most outfits will ship. (No access to a freight dock, so I'd need tailgate delivery.) Preferably, I'd like to keep downtime to a minimum, as this is my backup vehicle. Ideally I'd have a reman waiting on an engine stand next to the old engine, and I'd swap over the external bits. I think having my existing engine rebuilt would take too long, so I'm leaning towards a ready-to-go reman.

Rock Auto used to list reman engines, but now I'm not seeing them for my year. That was a great resource for comparing different options, etc. As much as I'd like to build a barn-burner engine, emissions inspections are still required here in the People's Republic of Oregon, so I can't join the "Rip out all that pollution crap" club. The inspection is just a tailpipe sniffer and as long as it passes, they never open the hood. But I do plan to keep the thermactor air injection system (passages inside the cylinder heads), stock 2bbl carb, intake manifold, etc. One of the few things I could conceivably upgrade is the camshaft, but only if the engine would still pass the tailpipe sniffer test.

Any words of wisdom? Been there, done that, will do it differently next time? If I could work around the extended timeframe, is rebuilding the existing engine a more economical option? Or is reman the way to go, and if so, what's a good source?

Curiously, the truck still runs very well on 6 cylinders. Power seems a little down at low RPM, with a slight bit of shaking. At freeway speed, you'd never know anything is wrong.

 

A few days ago I got an email from ford-trucks.com where they featured a drop in electric motor for our trucks. I think they featured a bullnose or possibly the previous generation with a new emotor. Not sure about the cost or where the batteries go but I thought it was an interesting option. I didn't read the article in detail. And being a resident of the PRO you'd probably be eligible for a discount on your next *$s latte.

According to the gubnor of the PRW you'd be doing your part to stop forest fires as well!

 

The sprawling Jasper engine remanufacturing plant is only forty miles from my home. I looked into one of theirs but backed away after reading the warranty fine print. The warranty pushes you to hand off the whole engine replacement process to a professional.

Can a DIYer get a bad engine warranted? Read the fine print and decide what you would need should the engine be defective or didn't get broken in properly.

I think you are wise to go back bone stock. It's just easier and cheaper. I went back stock on my rebuild after running into headaches trying to pep it up. I did rebuild using a roller cam to avoid the risks involved with breaking in a flat tappet cam. The used roller cam I installed was a stock grind.

If you do opt to rebuild, get a later 351 engine that is roller ready. If you find one that already has a roller cam, the cam and lifters could probably be reused.

 

Jasper is a big name, but per their website I'm not seeing any retail sales. It seems they only sell through their network of installers. You're SOL if you want to purchase one and install it yourself.

 

Yeah, I'm no expert on the variations over the years. I suppose I could build up an ideal mix of this block and those heads and a certain cam, etc. But the big hitch is I'd have no idea what I'm doing, and would hate to make some very expensive mismatch. The stock configuration has provided amazing service over the last 37 years, so that's probably what I'll do. Maybe I can find a local builder who can guarantee a certain combo will work in my application, I don't know...

 

Found this option

https://www.jegs.com/i/ATK+Engines/0...CABEgJsXPD_BwE

 

Karl, with all your knowledge, can't you find a local machine shop, have them do the machine work and rebuild yours.

That same machine shop may have a source for engines too. Ask around the auto parts stores or may be call a junkyard and see you they recommend for machine work. Maybe ask a repair shop who they use.

Oh yeah, Happy Thanksgiving.

https://www.google.com/search?q=auto...hrome&ie=UTF-8

I'm sure you must have a place like my local shop. http://eastwoodsautomachine.com/

 

I purchased a long block from POWERTRAIN PRODUCTS.
It came with a two year warranty, being a mechanic for decades I decided the warranty wouldn't help if I had a castrauphic failure.
so upon receiving my new engine I started the inspection process....
Some but not all of the items I looked at were piston to cylinder wall clearances. I plastic gauged. Three of the main bearings and. Three of the rod bearings. Cam clearance, crank end play, deck height.
I removed the heads and pulled two valves from each of the heads.
What I found was a very well rebuilt engine with all new valve train components including valves!
sealed power pistons. The engine is full of top brands and all clearances were on the money. The only thing I changed was the timing set as it had the nylon coated cam gear.
I have about 25k miles on it and about three or four years on it and couldn't be happier.

 

Found these, https://www.google.com/search?q=ford...hrome&ie=UTF-8

 

The one thing I would look for regardless of year is a roller camshaft. Modern oils just don't cut it with the old style flat tappets.

 

I just spoke with my uncle about the remanufactured engine he had installed in his old Chevrolet truck last year. He said it was not a Jasper. His mechanic recommended and sourced an engine "somewhere out west". His mechanic will not install a Jasper. He's happy with the engine he got.

 

Apparently the eighties and early nineties 5.8 blocks are not "roller ready" like the 5.0 E6SE blocks are. Look for a late '93 or later block cast with F4TE. A truck roller will come with a much better stock cam too.

 

Motortrend article on the top 10 small block crate engines includes 351w, under 5 grand:

https://www.motortrend.com/how-to/10...es-under-5000/

 

In a perfect world, I'd go that option. Then I know the engine would fit, but there are a few factors against this route:

1) Logistics: Once I pull the engine, I'd have no means to haul it to/from the machine shop. I suppose I could rent a truck or make friends with somebody who has one available, but I'm a guy and would much prefer to do just it my way and poo-poo all other options. My wife could provide more details about my typical M.O.

2) Time frame: My truck is my backup daily driver, and can't risk to have it down for too long. I definitely need it when the roads are snowy or icy, when my car might as well be a set of chrome-plated roller skates. I'm talking the old-fashioned type with metal wheels, not the fancy Linda Ronstadt album cover style.

3) The dreaded phone call from the shop, a week or two after dropping off the engine: "Yeah, um, guess what? We found a crack in the block..." Then you start the clock all over to find a suitable core.

 

don't forget murphy and always something. I'd say you'd be hard pressed to find a shop that could give a quick turnaround, with quick being relative.
Have you thought about a "good" junkyard engine? Crate is the better option but there is that and than you could play the machine shop game with your block?