I'm going to get under the hood on Tuesday.

I'm replacing the lifters. To do this, I have chosen to remove the intake manifold, as the gasket is in very poor shape. I have the correct lifters (which are soaking in fresh oil), I have a lifter tool. I have my intake, distributor, and valve cover gaskets. I have 3 different books on the motor. I have moly lube, and gasket maker (both Red RTV and Indian Head) I am going to borrow a timing light. I have fresh oil and fresh coolant. I am going to leave the carb attached, as the gaskets were recently replaced.

My question for all of you is...

Are there any "unknowns" (to a FE noob like me) to watch out for? Anything I may not have thought of? Any specialty tools needed?

Just want to make this as painless as possible.........

 

I'd still probably keep the pushrods in order. Make sure gasket surfaces are super clean and use a little sealer around the water jacket openings. I used the cork ends because I felt I could do it without a vacuum leak. So I just dabbed a little silicon at the four corners.

To get pushrods out you'll need to lift the rocker shaft. This is under tension. Best to set #1 at TDC and then rotate the crank additional 45 degrees past TDC. Then no lobes are at full lift. Now loosen the 4 stand nuts a little bit at a time so you don't warp a shaft. Don't mix up the shaft assembly bolts. When you re-install you tighten down on the 4 bolts a little at a time and then torque in sequence a little at a time to be safe.

As for painless I don't know. You are working with an FE manifold after all. That is a minimum two person job. Now I have pulled one myself at a junkyard since who cared about the truck. I needed to make a lift so two of us could get it off my truck without damage and to put it back on. The other person was my wife so there you go...

 

Don't leave the carb on! Because the intake is so heavy, you run a real risk of damaging it.
As for re-installing the intake, use this method to make sure it doesn't leak again. They are prone to leak even with new gaskets, it is just the nature of the design.
1. Put a thin layer of RTV silicone on the front and rear of the block - but not on the heads.
2. Position the block-to-intake gaskets on the block. Use a little pressure to get them to adhere as thoroughly as possible to the RTV and the block.
3. LET DRY OVERNIGHT. This is to keep them from sliding around when you re-install the intake.
4. Install the head-to-intake gaskets, but do not use any sealant. Just position them in place.
5. Put a 1/8 - 1/4 inch bead of RTV on the top of the block-to-intake gaskets.
6. Put an additional 1/4 inch or a little larger sized blob of RTV in the 4 corners. It is OK to get RTV on the intake-to-head gaskets where they all meet.
7. Install the intake straight down - and this is the hard part due to its weight.
8. Torque the bolts to spec.
My 352 went many thousands of miles for over 20 years and it was dry as a bone - after I did it this way.
Before I used RTV like this, especially letting it dry overnight under the block gaskets, it leaked pretty badly - or should I say normally for an FE engine.

Good luck!

 

Use a cherry picker or engine hoist to raise and lower that HEAVY intake. Tie it to a pole and have two friends raise and lower it as you guide it works as well. When it is close to sitting where it needs to be , start a couple bolts finger tight to guide it for the final 1/8th inch. I toss the end gaskets and use "Good stuff" silicone. Lay a nice 1/4 inch bead of the stuff on the block and a finger smear on the intake at the front and back. Sealing FE intakes is a PITA! You can use a few wooden shims to hold it up a bit as you line everything up, then gently slide the shims out and allow the manifold to settle. I glue the water passages on both sides of the gasket. read all the advice here several times. I think everything has been covered. Line the XX mark on the damper with the timing pointer this will unload the rocker shafts. Good luck.

 

Hey thanks everyone... should be fun.

 

hardest part is keeping the gasket between the intake and block at the rear. one little slip and it's gone. when you get it set in place run your finger along the back of the intake and make sure you can feel the gasket the whole length. this is especially important if you are not using a cherry picker. also itsa lot of help to have a buddy there to help you get it set as you will find that the intake is unhumanly heavy when trying to hold it straight overr the motor while your hemroids are protesting. i speak from experience here. LOL. Dutch