Hey, I'm new on the forum and I was just looking for some input on which engine I should build for my spare pickup? And any tips and tricks for easy power or reliability... or both.

I'm swapping a good body into my 73 highboy leaving me with a spare fair condition body and everything to build a kinda beater/tow pig/shop truck. I just need to choose which one to go with. I have two spare 390's and a spare 400. They're all in roughly the same condition and will run as is but I'm gonna go through whichever I choose anyway. I'm not looking to dump a ton of money into them but I'm not opposed to spending where it counts.

 

Since you have two 390s, I'd go that route primarily on the basis of the advantage of extra parts.

 

I would also say, what engine is in the truck you are planning to use it in? If it is an FE, then build an FE and you wont have any issues with engine perches or transmission. If you currently have a 335 series, then I would build the 400.

 

I'd repair only, & not do a rebuild for a beater/tow pig/shop truck. What is the chassis for this beater/tow pig/shop truck from?

 

I kinda was thinking the same being that I have two 390's.

When I bought the donor that's getting built with leftovers at auction it had the 400 in it but was originally a 390 truck. It's also not a big deal for me to move and make mounts.

The chassis is a 75 F250 2wd. Not a highboy body, I know, but it's just body mount work. Not a big deal. I was going to put a 75 F250 extracab cab on the highboy but decided to body swap that onto an OBS chassis.

When I say build up I'm just talking giving it a once over and doing gaskets, maybe dingle-ball honing if I think it needs it. Both 390's already have 4 barrels and headers, the only thing I was kinda thinking about was adding a bit more camshaft and compression if I wanna have a little more fun with it. Also, by tow pig I mean loading up an old truck bed trailer with scrap or doing dump runs. I have built 95 7.5l for vehicle, livestock, and rv hauling, I just don't always wanna have to be driving it for dump and scrap runs. I like the idea of having a 2wd regular cab basic pickup for "farm truck" duties... and laying a little rubber once in a while.

I appreciate the input.
​​​​​