I have 96K original miles on my 87 F-250 4x4. It has a 351-4V, C-6. Looking for major power increases. It's just my play truck don't drive it to often. Will be used mainly to play in. Some towing maybe twice a month spring to fall. I know I have to rebuild the trans. with small converter poss. 2000-2400 stall. Poss. stroker for more cubes, but I want it to stay together. Want to keep compression down I have to deal with emissions every two years. Looking for that big block sound "if you know what I mean" Nice noticiable cam "choppy" for a truck not a car. I was once told build for torque and horsepower will follow. Ready to start buying parts for rebuild just want to get the facts.
Thanks in advance. Sorry so long. Dan

 

emissions and power are two expensive items to bring together. How much are you looking to spend? I have a really good plan, and that can keep you emissions legal, but it might get a little spendy(involves supercharging, a stroker kit, and a really good set of heads, and possibilities of around 500-600 horsepower and similar torque numbers), Write back with how serious you might be.....

 

Well when weather breaks engine & trans will come out but I want to get together a solid plan first. I know what superchargers cost don't know if I can go that route. But I'm not saying I won't. Also in my plans is to have the truck painted. Ford racing has a 385 horse 351 that I saw advertised and I was considering that. But I would rather be a little more creative than that. Like I said earlier, looking for cubes but I want it to stay together. If I could find a 460 W/trans. in a wrecked truck or something I would do that. MPG isn't an issue here I only put about 3000 miles on my truck in about a year. I do want it to run on pump gas. I know I want the best of both worlds but don't we all. I was hoping you would answer I have been reading some of your stuff sounds like you really know what your talking about. Dan

 

Sorry last one so long. Truck doesn't have cat. from factory. Just passed emissions no smog pump and everything else is plugged. Thought that this also may be important also. I have a carb. not injection. I was thinking about Holleys Pro-injection kit if that matters I think it was only about 600-800 dollars. Again thanks for your time. Dan

 

Where you been lvmoose007? I was all excited for a response! I guess I'll put this back up top.

 

oops, I thought I WAS responding to this one, lol. If this truck has a carb on it, it limits a bit to what you can do, but if you were considering spending the money needed on the motorsport engine, here is my idea:

393 stroker kit, balanced, get the balancer and flexplate kit from flatlander(you can use your old block and machine it, wait until you get pistons) and use one of the Flatlander racing(website the same name) kits, you can start off with the hypereutectic piston kit, or for durability, go with the forged piston kit(my recommendation).
Next, get a set of Air Flow Research 185cc street heads. The street heads retain the emissions passages for your truck.
I would get a set of Crane gold race roller rockers(best quality) and hardened pushrods to go with them.
Cam? you are going with the stall convertor(2200-2400rpm, max), and you did say you wanted a powerful toy, so Iwould go with a comp cams 35-243-4 Xtreme energy 4x4 cam(yes, I recommend this one a bit) to start off with, get a set of high energy lifters to go with it, and a good double roler timing chain, and install straight up. Start off with this cam ,and if it is not enough, write back.
I would try to find a good crank scraper to wipe the oil off of the crank when it is rotating, MPG parts has them, and some other companies(drawing blanks right now), use a stock volume oil pump, Clevite bearings, total seal rings, etc.
Intake? Performer RPM with a 2 inch open(not 4 hole) spacer on top(the spacer stops the fuel distribution woes), a 4 inch drop base K&N air filter on top, and a Speed Demon 750 vacuum secondary carb, along with a holley mechanical fuel pump and fuel pressure regulator, set to around 5 psi.
Exhaust? I would try to keep your factory stuff handy for smog checks(if needed) but set it aside. you could do it the easy way, and get the truck headers for EFI 351w's, but for the best power, I would get a set of Mustang 351 swap headers, and route the pipes to the passenger side, and run dual 2 1/2 pipe out into an h-pipe section, around the tranny somewhere, and then into (depending on how loud you want it) dual flowmaster delta series 2 or 3(my vote) mufflers, and out of the back.
ignition? go all msd, no worries,
have to go..........take a look and decide..........$.02

 

I'll concur on the Xtreme 4x4 cam, those are the best 351W cams out there. AFR heads are supposed to be the best, but if you want to go with even larger valves you could also save some money with Roush 200 heads. A stroker 351 is a serious torque monster, and with an all-MSD ignition, you're gonna pass emissions anyway. Another idea that will really help you make up some power is to do a roller cam conversion while you have the block out. Just have the block tapped for the hydraulic roller lifter braces in the lifter valley, it only takes 2 bolts, then you'll be ready to install a hydraulic roller cam, which is a huge reduction in friction. Even a mild roller cam will perform very well compared to even a great flat tappet cam. Been there, love the roller cam, baby! I just can't wait until I can afford to throw that Comp Xtreme Roller cam in there. I think you'll be fine with Hypereutectic pistons, as long as you don't do anything foolish (nitrous). They're lighter than forged pistons, so you'll save some power that way and stress on the crank, and they fit tighter in the bore, so you can count on less blow-by. TK

 

Thanks guys, I already have MSD box, coil, Ford 9mm wires, shorty headers, true 2.5" duals w/40 original flowmasters. And yes, it does sound sweet. But, not enough for me. You mentioned limited w/carb.? Want to try Holley's Pro-Jection can't find anyone that will back it. Still many opinions on intake, heads, to bore?, to stroke?,compression?,What brand on converter? I want to build a streetable "pump gas" torque monster for a truck. I know you guys can steer me in the right direction. I like to do things just once, but it has to be the right way. Don't mind spending the money if its going to pull me back in the seat. Thanks again, lets keep this up trying to make a solid decision.

 

I don't like any more than 9.2 compression, and you won't need it with such a beast of a stroker. That motor is going to make ample power even with very streetable compression, and many iterations of Dyno 2000 have shown me that compression is not worth streetability, because 1 compression point is generally worth around 30 HP, but it will make it so much harder to live with. Besides, with a 351 stroker, you're going to have over 400 ft*lbs at your command and convenience anytime you hit the gas. I have a high compression mill right now, and it just makes tuning the advance in the distributor such a pain, because it's so sensitive to pinging. Besides, you can run cheap pump gas (87 octane) all the way up to 9.7 compression, and still do anything you want to with the timing. For this reason, I would very highly recommend an MSD distributor, because you can customize the mechanical advance in minutes. As for the carb, it's been proven that only very good fuel injection systems can match the power potential of a carburetor, but it's also very easy for a carb to not be tuned correctly. For this reason, I recommend an Edelbrock 750 cfm, and get one with an electric choke. The Edelbrock carbs are great performers, and they're the easiest to tune on the market, and most of the time they run flawlessly out of the box with no adjustment at all. I'm sure you could make up a few HP with the Holley system, but is it worth over $1,000?

The differences in opinions that you'll get here are all correct, but it depends on how much money you are willing to part with. If it was my money, I'd save it on the fuel injection, get an Edelbrock RPM manifold and 750 carb, and get a pair of AFR 205 heads. Another great option that will save you about $400 is to use the Roush 200 heads by World Castings. They're iron heads, but that will make more power than aluminum so long as extreme compression ratio isn't an issue. No doubt the AFR heads have the most R&D into them, and they've shined at the flow bench and on the track, but you'll pay for that technology. You can also save about $200 by using Crane Energizer roller rockers. They're not quite as great as the Gold Race rockers, but unless you're really turning 10,000 RPM, any quality roller rocker is going to give you the performance you need. I'd have your block converted for a hyd. roller cam, then pick up a set of Motorsport new hyd. roller lifters ($109), and look for an Xtreme Roller grind, I'll get back with you later on that, but the roller cam will help you really make up some power all across the board. The only downsides to the roller cam is that the cam itself costs more, around $250, because it's made of billet steel. Whatever you do, make sure that you have your rotating assembly professionally balanced, and installed if possible, and get an HV oil pump, and an extra capacity oil pan if you can, but make sure it has baffles to keep oil around the pump. I don't think a crank scraper is a very practical idea, you need very high engine speeds for that to make a difference, which you won't ever need to do in a stroker. Find a set of long tube headers, those will make a very big difference. Short tube headers are hardly worth the time and money. I don't even think I'd mess around with mufflers on that beast, let it roar. Since emissions are an issue, pick up a pair of high-flow cats. I've never failed an emissions test, and I've never taken one with a factory exhaust system or anything less than a 4 barrel carb. If you keep your plug gap large (.060") and you'll burn off almost all the hydrocarbons in your engine, MSD will help you with that. Enjoy! TK

 

Well, there were a few reasons I selected what I did. The AFR 205(2.05 intake valves, 205 cc intake volume) heads are designed for higher rpm useage(3500-8500 rpm range) in stroker applications( A friend just bought and installed a set, absolutely evil......but he lost some low end torque, like that really hurt, it spun all the way thru 1st and second, and you can floor it in 3rd, with the AFR 185's on it, now it is just insane above 3000 rpm, I won't ride in it unless I am driving...), and not truck useage. The afr street 185's are carbon copies of the race 185's, just drilled for Smog, and can be available with pedestal rocker stands. Since the exhaust will not be race flow quality(you will have some bends to make to get around the transfer case and if there is a dual fuel tanks setup, and that kind kills off long tube header ideas), and the AFR 205 heads need at least a Victor jr. intake and 1 3/4 primary header tubes to take advantage of the heads. The 185's allow the use of the performer RPM(as long as you use a 1 or 2 inch open carb spacer, to cure the fuel distribution problems, 2 inch preferred). The edelbrock carb I bought(750, manual choke) ran fairly well out of the box, but I can guarantee you will have to rejet it once on the truck, I had to put bigger secondary jets and smaller front metering rods to get it to run right, and increase pump shot. It runs as fast now as it is going to,(borrowed a friends 02 sensor setup, to monitor fuel ratio, and it is close) but it still does not feel as fast as the borrowed holley 750 DP I installed on it . The edelbrock would be great for stock vehicles, but most everyone I now has gravitated toward the Demon carbs, and I am still torqued off for not buying one(maybe later, my 351w is coming apart later for my own stroker or long rod build), they are getting the best power(and mileage, of all things) out of those, and most are able to be tuned to almost F.I. perfection.
Cam choice? I am sticking with the 4x4 cam, start off small(and driveability, low end torque, and mileage wise), the AFR heads make power with almost any cam you toss in it(except for broken ones....). Get used to it, if you need more, then step up to a roller cam conversion( I will be doing that, but I can get away with a more psychotic cam, I won't be towing). This truck should have low end torque out the wazoo with this package, and quite possibly drop your convertor needs down to a 2200 rpm stall, approaching stock.
Just my $2.41 worth

 

You may want to give a Predator carb a shot. They have one with an idle circuit, and that's the one for street vehicles. They're 930 cfm capable, and never over-carburate the engine. I run one on my 351W Bronco and a buddy runs 2 on his 671 blown 5.0 Ranger. Never had a problem and never will.

 

Kinda like everything I see. You don't need big port heads on a truck. You do need something better than stockers for a stroker. I would spend the money on a roller cam set up from the start. There is no comparison. It will make as much or more power than any flat tappet cam , and your going to have more vacuum for your power brakes(kinda important in a big truck). Comp sells a lot of cams that already have the correct distributor drive gear pressed on. What's wrong with a carb? Injection is nice if you can find something that works with your combo. I would tend to stay away from holley's projection setup unless you get a real good deal on it. Factory injection is ten times better. I tried that setup once and got so mad I trashed everything before I could take it back. Also, holley is in bad financial shape right now.