1986 460 questions
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Senior User
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1986 460 questions
I have a few questions. What kind of hp/torque numbers does my non-catalyst 86 460 have? It is all stock, and has a 4 barrel carb. When i work full time again in the summer i would like to eliminate the air pumps and emissions ****, and do a carb/intake on it and possibly headers. Would this make a big difference without doin the heads also, because im not getting into the heads. Is it worth the time and money to just do a carb an intake? Thanks, Jesse
Junior User
Joined: Mar 2007
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From: Pinedale Wyoming
any time you get rid of emmisions and do the mods you suggest you gain hp. mileage, and reliability. you can use your old intake, change the carb to a 750 cfm install headers. plug the egr valve, remove the vacum advance, set timing to 42 deg. @3000 rpm if the idle timing isnt where you like it, recurve the dist. to where the thing idles the best. get rid of all hoses and vac. lines. you only need 3 vac. lines. brakes, heater, trans. if 4 spd w/o ac. you only need 1. thats a fact.
Post Fiend
Joined: Mar 2004
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From: Union, Washington
Originally Posted by Troy Bredthauer
any time you get rid of emmisions and do the mods you suggest you gain hp. mileage, and reliability. you can use your old intake, change the carb to a 750 cfm install headers. plug the egr valve, remove the vacum advance, set timing to 42 deg. @3000 rpm if the idle timing isnt where you like it, recurve the dist. to where the thing idles the best. get rid of all hoses and vac. lines. you only need 3 vac. lines. brakes, heater, trans. if 4 spd w/o ac. you only need 1. thats a fact.
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Joined: Mar 2007
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Originally Posted by Bear 45/70
So whats the point of the bigger carb? Since the stock cam runs out before 5000 rpms and 750 is overkill and hurts gas mileage with no horsepower benefit. A 600 carb like is on the engine without the emmissions curcuits in it would be a much better choice. Your advise on the timing and dist. mods will get him a blown motor for sure. Removing the vacuum advance just hurts gas mileage with no horsepower gain. I hope you did all these mods you recommend on your own truck, because you are badly inform.
Postmaster
Joined: Apr 2002
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From: Coal country
I did an '86 460 for very similar reasons.
You really do not need an intake, the stock one performs quite well for any standard use. The carb is probably worn out, but the stock Holley is sufficient for your needs.
If money is a bit tight, the best use of your limited resources woiuld be to replace the camshaft and timing gears. Use a so-called "RV cam, and timing gears from a '70 460. Those will really wake up the engine.
Headers and all will certainly help out, but I would start there.
Change the cam and gears, then get a new intake and carb. Do those first.
If you have money left, then go for a new exhasuet system with headers and larger pipes.
Good luck, and let us know whow this works out.
By the way, FTE is the best place place to get information and share ideas. We do strive to keep it family friendly. Please do not wite anything you don't want your mother or your 6 year old daughter to read. Thanks, and we'll see you on the boards!
You really do not need an intake, the stock one performs quite well for any standard use. The carb is probably worn out, but the stock Holley is sufficient for your needs.
If money is a bit tight, the best use of your limited resources woiuld be to replace the camshaft and timing gears. Use a so-called "RV cam, and timing gears from a '70 460. Those will really wake up the engine.
Headers and all will certainly help out, but I would start there.
Change the cam and gears, then get a new intake and carb. Do those first.
If you have money left, then go for a new exhasuet system with headers and larger pipes.
Good luck, and let us know whow this works out.
By the way, FTE is the best place place to get information and share ideas. We do strive to keep it family friendly. Please do not wite anything you don't want your mother or your 6 year old daughter to read. Thanks, and we'll see you on the boards!
Post Fiend
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 6,056
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From: Union, Washington
Originally Posted by faststang94
the only thing i agree with is the 750 carb. thats about all your going to want with a stock setup and i know they can take that 750 if tuned properly and make some power. This is from experience as well im not just saying it so u can go throw on one there then say oh it runs like ****. It doesnt work that way you have to fine tune things mess with jets and idle mixture and what not. Only on a race car would i consider not running a vacume advance. I can't tell you what timing you will benifit from the most because all engines react different to timing. when you advance your timing too you want to pull the vacume line off the advance and advance it a couple of degrees go take it for a test drive ease onto it. If it detonates back it off a degree or so. you just have to keep messing with it tell its at your liking. if detonation is not that bad you might consider running a higher octane fuel and it could solve your problem. Thats your choice though.
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you could also change out the timing gears for 429 timing gears and that will wake it up alot. not sure if 86 is the same as a late 70s besides the block differences, but I do know in late 70s the cam timing was retarded something like 4 degrees. bring that back to 0 would make one hell of a difference.
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Postmaster
Joined: Apr 2002
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From: Coal country
Faststang: You are right on the money! The straight up cam gear timing will indeed wake the 460 up. It will get better mileage too!
The 429/460 uses the same cam setup. The cam timing was retarded in '71 or '72 - not the late '70s, so I suggest using a '70 gear setup to get the best out of it.
The 429/460 uses the same cam setup. The cam timing was retarded in '71 or '72 - not the late '70s, so I suggest using a '70 gear setup to get the best out of it.
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Originally Posted by banjopicker66
Faststang: You are right on the money! The straight up cam gear timing will indeed wake the 460 up. It will get better mileage too!
The 429/460 uses the same cam setup. The cam timing was retarded in '71 or '72 - not the late '70s, so I suggest using a '70 gear setup to get the best out of it.
The 429/460 uses the same cam setup. The cam timing was retarded in '71 or '72 - not the late '70s, so I suggest using a '70 gear setup to get the best out of it.
Post Fiend
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 6,056
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From: Union, Washington
Originally Posted by Troy Bredthauer
anybody that thinks im misinformed please call Troys Motorsports @ 307 367 6368 as i am tired of going to races around the country and seeing fords suck, because ours dont.....
Old School Hot Rodder
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 6,472
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From: Exmore, VA
I am going to stick my $.02 in on this one. If you have the over 8500 GVW truck like mine, the exhaust is dual 2 1/2" pipes all the way to the muffler. My exhaust guru told me he could sell me a bigger muffler for around $400 in 1994, but if I removed the spark screens I would get the same thing free. I agree with the 600 cfm carb, I ran a low compression (9.7:1, early heads late block) 460 in a 1971 Mercury Colony Park wagon (5000+ lbs). I used a 600cfm Holley service carb on it. I did find that you can run 38-42 degrees total advance on these open chamber 460s with no problem on regular gas. The best carb I ever found for the old high compression engines was the 1969 428 CJ 735cfm Holley. It would wake one up and improve the fuel economy. On the cam sets, 1972 was the year Ford lowered compression and retarded the cams. Be careful buying timing chain sets for these, many parts stores will list 1 set for all non-roller chain systems. You will need to keep a vacuum advance if you want any kind of fuel economy other than single digits like a brand C big block.
Tuned
Joined: Apr 2005
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On mine, I changed to a pre-'71 timing set, installed an open-element air cleaner and created a 4" single exhaust. I have the initial timing set at 12BTDC. Everything else is stock, and this beast gets up and goes. I can't imagine needing more, unless I was racing. 