OK. I've searched the last ten pages of posts for 302 engine information and here's what I have so far...

1968 was the first year for the 302 engine. It was introduced in mid-1969 in F-series trucks. 1970 Boss 302's are a real animal. 1974 was the last year for the heavy blocks. 1986 was the last year for carbureted 302's. 1982 was the year they switched from a 50-ounce balancer to a 28-ounce one. 302's share bellhousings with 221, 260, 289, and 351W engines and will work with most transmissions out there but not the C6's with big-block (M or FE) bellhousings.

What I want to know is about pulleys and accessories. I'm looking at a 1967 model truck. I don't know the original engine but it had a 289 at one point which was swapped for a carbureted 302. So I'm down to 68-86. The seller says he thinks early 80s, so we'll say 80-86. This tells me the engine probably has EGR, cast iron manifolds, and probably came out of an LTD, pickup, or van. So we'll go with that.

The pulleys don't line up. I'm hoping that can be fixed. Is there a way to adjust pulleys in and out? Would it be simpler to install a serpentine pulley kit in the truck? Are there serpentine belt kits available that allow me to continue to use a clutch fan or flex fan setup or will I be forced to install an electric fan of some kind?

Truck runs, just not for long since the water pump and alternator won't line up. I wonder if the water pump is off a different motor? What would cause the pulleys to not line up, maybe this thing was cobbled together from several different engines and there are some wrong parts on it? I don't mind starting from scratch if I have to.

 

I have a 1968 302 and I thought that it was the first year but a friend told me he had a 1967 302 in his 1967 Bronco. So I suppose that mabe in late 1966 Ford started putting 302s in some vehicles of model year 1967. I would check with casting numbers.

 

Since you don't mind starting from scratch I'd find a junker 5.0 car or truck with a serpentine setup and swap everything from the front cover out. Just check for clearance around the steering box and distance to the radiator. Explorer 5.0 are usually the shortest but you would need the front cover too. They have a special front cover. Vans and mustangs are pretty short too.
I picked up a whole motor with the front accessories on ebay for $60.
Serpentine is a good upgrade and it works the motor easier than v-belts do.

 

I don't think it's an 80's 302. If it was, you'd have a severe shake as the engine would be unbalanced. First you need to determine what year engine it is. Then figure what balancer is on it now and if it's correct for the engine. In 1970, Ford went from 3 bolt (pulley) balancers to 4 bolt. Generally you cannot mix up front accessory parts (brackets, waterpumps and timing covers) To get a trouble free install, all the front parts need to be from the same application. Going serpentine also has risks. Some are std rotation (waterpumps) some are reverse rotation and these use both style timing covers, depending on the year. At some point after the serpentine setup came out (1979 was the 1st year) Ford switched the port layout for the waterpump on the reverse rotation. The mid 80's to 91 Fullsize Ford/Merc/Lincolns use a std rotation W/P with a two belt serpentine system.

 

Also one other thing you posted about the bellhousing interchange, the 221,260 and early 289's have a smaller 5 bolt bellhousing that does not fit 302 blocks. The late 289, 302, 255 (early 80's abortion), 351 (W & C) and a handfull of 400's, all share the same bellhousing pattern.

 

why not just use a couple washers to space out the water pump pulley and altenater? how badly are they off alignment? i had a old chevy years back and had the same problem.. played with a couple washers.. longer bolts.. untill the belt stopped smoking and whineing.. just a thought

 

Ooh...I like this idea.

I did this before in 2002 with a hood latch on a wrecked '93 Tempo coupe that I bought on eBay for just over $200. The previous owner had replaced all the necessary body parts but didn't pull the core support straight nor did he change the hood latch. So I drove it with a bungee cord holding the hood shut for 210 miles to get it to my parent's house. Then I went to ACE hardware and bought some longer bolts, nuts, washers, and some cool little metal tubes (can't remember what they're called) which put enough space between the core support and the hood latch to allow it to catch the hood. Adjusted it just right and until you opened the hood you couldn't tell, it fit perfectly. Only way to know anything had been done to it at ALL from the outside was that the front bumper cover and hood were gray and the car was green. Sold it before I had a chance to pull those two parts and have them painted to match.

That will get me by with it until I can find an appropriate serpentine setup with a clutch fan and all. That and I need to find out what year motor and if it's reverse or not. I might not have the truck until the first week of February, depends on whether or not it's still for sale then. But everything I've heard about it sounds good.

I'll definitely make a trip to ACE and grab some washers and such. Will have to see how far off everything is. Seller tells me the accessories are all on there, they just don't line up so there are no belts on it. So hopefully I can make them line up one way or another, or just start over fresh.

Another poster mentioned reverse rotation, I bet this motor has that and THAT'S why the belts won't stay on. I'll know for sure when I get it home and I'll update this thread either way.

 

Yeah, they had 302's in other vehicles but didn't put them in the trucks until 1969 I guess. Looked at a 1967 brochure online and the only V8 available that year was a 352 Y-block.

 

Reverse rotation pumps use a smooth waterpump pulley as the back side of the belt runs it. The belt wraps around the crank & W/P pulley in an "S" fashion. The applications I know to be reverse rotation are all Mustang/Capri from 79-95, Pickups and vans from sometime in the mid 80's-97, the Explorer/Mountaineer 5.0 and the Lincoln Mark VII 5.0 from 87-91.