hello. I have just have a few questions about my truck ,

I currently have a f-350 , auto trans 4x4 stick on the floor 460 efi /swapers 32 x 10 x 16.5 12 in lift , doug thorley headers ...
129,000 miles ... its a beast lol
-------------------------
my heads cracked .. so I am currently replacing the stock heads , I would like to squeeze a bit more horsepower out of my engine with just a simple cheap* top end rebuild ...
I don't have much experience with engines ... so with that in mind would someone please post there thoughts on simple top end changes I can do once the old heads are off ,
I already bought double roller timing chain and Gasket engine set though summit along with a high flow water pump ... I would like to replace cam, heads , throttle body , new pistons possibly ? port heads ?
thanks for ur time ford fans ...

ur new friend
jayson , Ca

 

From my own expirenece unless your truck is a mass air truck you will be headed for a big let down trying to do all that with a SD truck. My truck made not one hp more after the rebuild using speed density i have a thread running about this very thing you can check out and maybe that can help you

 

hey thxs for the advice but i dont understand a few things , Whats Mass air truck ? also what does SD truck mean ... i dont know how to work this site well yet.. but did you have any advice for me on how i should fix my eng up a bit ?
heres a pic of my truck

 

Sd and Mass Air refer to the method the fuel injection computer (EEC) uses to determine how much fuel to squirt into the engine as you drive.

Speed Density (SD) measure manifold vacuum and some other parameters and makes a close guess as to how much fuel is necessary, and a Mass Airflow system measures the mass of the air going into the engine, then adds the appropriate amount of fuel.

If you change the cam, port the heads as well as other things that allow the engine to draw in more air (and in turn, require more fuel), the mass air system can understand this need better - because it measures the air going in.

A speed density system is oblivious to airflow as well as engine displacement - these values are stored in the computer's memory as a constant - meaning that it's making an assumption as to what engine is there, and how much airflow it will do at a given RPM. If you change the engine's displacement, valve lift and timing, port the heads, well, you're going to get much more airflow and the speed density computer will have little clue what's going on.

However, if you spend some time learning how EFI works in general, then venture into the effort involved in editing data tables and code within the EFI computer, well, you can in fact reprogram the computer for just about any application. To do so requires a bit of time, knowledge, and focus - not something everyone wants to do.

 

So does anyone have any Advice on what changes i should do to the top half of the eng .... i am kinda pressed for time due to tax return etc
and i am clueless

 

im gonna use a Comp cams XE 256H-14 cam and a Hughes fuel miser 1200 Stall torque convertor. Also ordered a set of Doug Thorleys for my 1988 F350 dually 460 EFI motor. How do you like those Headers??

BigLar

 

Jason, have you looked into aftermarket heads? I'm thinking if your factory ones cracked, there's not much sense in spending a ton of cash on having another set of stock heads ported cause they may crack as well. Besides porting ain't cheap (unless you do it yourself), so you may really be better off with aftermarket stuff. I also like BigLar's idea of a low-stall converter, but that should not be on your priority list quite yet. And yes, like them other guys said, you really want Mass-Air setup on your truck to be able to utilize the airflow gains the aftermarket heads will give you. As for camshaft profile, I personally like the RV/towing/offroad cams, as they have the tendency to give you lots low-end torque, which is what you need for a big truck like that - unfortunately since I've never owned a 460 engine I cannot recommend a particular model, so maybe some of our other fellow FTE folks will jump in on that?

 

There are many choices and you'll have to pick what is comfortable for you.

You can buy stock junkyard heads.

You can buy used or new aftermarket heads with bigger valves and possibly a hair higher compression.

You can learn to port heads on your old ones using a die grinder (air or electric) with a set of carbide burring tools, then possibly port the replacement heads - junkyard or aftermarket. You can buy templates to do this or make your own.

You can buy a RV/Towing cam, possibly with more lift than stock.

Combine several ideas, And so on.

Maybe the crack is repairable and you can weld/braze with an oxy/acetylene torch. Depends where the crack is and your ability to weld/braze. I'm hit or miss with this kind of repair. I always try because it's "fun" then depending on the results I'd pick from the aboe list lol.

With your Speed Density EFI just don't go overboard with modifications that reduce vacuum or make idle too "lumpy", as that will confuse the snot out of the EFI computer and cause you much grief - unless of course you want to learn how to tune EFI systems and are willing to make a time/materials investment to get up to speed enough to do it.

 

well the headers are great , alots of noise ah ha j/k they run well with the trucks set up right now.. but i will be mod'ing it up soon with extra parts so we will c

jayson

 

well guys i will have to keep reading the fourms till i figure this stuff out ...
i am lost and dont know anything about engs.. i want to learn i am currently takeing classes at a collage on how to fix them.. but it will be a while till i am done with that ...

so if someone has an IDEA of how my eng should be set up please let me know kk
jayson

 

Since you are in CA, you can’t get too wild, but here goes:<o>

</o> Make sure that the replacement cylinder heads are the same F3TE’s that your 1994 already has. If they are the earlier E7TE’s, you will want to add the larger F3TE intake valves. Porting will help on either head.<o>

</o> Ported intake manifold.<o></o>

BBK 61mm throttle body.<o></o>

K&N air filter in stock air box. <o></o>

Remove the silencers from the intake tract.<o>

</o> Mild cam upgrade (I used custom Voodoo 61600 ground on 114 lsa for efi compatibility.)<o>

</o> Adjustable fuel pressure regulator set to 44 psi at wide open throttle.<o>

</o> Advance initial timing 2 degrees to 12 degrees BTDC.<o>

</o> I recently finished (2500 miles) a similar top end upgrade on my 1997 F-350 crew cab/longbed/460/E4OD/4x4/4.11 gears /33x12.50 tires and was pleased with the results. I did not touch the cylinder heads, but did upgrade the valve springs, etc. I already had Banks headers w/big single exhaust. With similar upgrades, my 100k mile engine dyno’d at 229 HP/331 TQ at the rear wheels. Some may have been disappointed with the results, but it was just what I needed to get my 18,000 pound truck/trailer over the mountain passes. The truck has been running great and getting 11.5 mpg highway and about 7 mpg highway towing 10k+ lb fifth wheel. (before mods was 10.5 - 11 mpg highway and 5 mpg towing…) By the way, I am also in CA and just passed a smog check.<o></o>

 

WOW THXS i will look in to the parts and do me best to get it rebuilt, infact i will look today ! you dont mind if i ask you a few Question while i am trying to put this all together ??
again thxs you got a NICE truck , i just like the fact that i got dana 60s front and back ... i do need to change my gears lower there 5.11 atm also i want to get lockers down the road... i will keep you all posted

jayon

 

One thing you should be WARNED about!! If you start doing any mods to a speed density EFI you really have to be careful no to have your engine go lean. I changed the cam in my 302 to a "SD friendly" cam, headers, 3 inch single exhaust, flowmaster, and a K&N. It seemed to run ok but the gas mileage dropped a little. The problem happend when i pulled a snowmobile trailer it started detonating the #5 cylinder so bad it busted the plug. 6 month later that cylinder had a compression problem and i started getting oil in the air box. i would take a hard look at a mass air convertion if you are serious about bumping up the power.