Thread: 428 help

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First i want to say my name is Quincy and iam new to the forum. Im excited to learn more about motors and cars and get good information and not biast information like i normally get from my brother in law who is a chevy man. I don't have anything against chevy it's just i'm planning on building a Roadster kit car and wanted to keep everything Ford. So any ways now to my question. I've been looking for a 427 and i asked my grandpa if he new where i could get one, and he replys with i have a 428 you can have if you want it. So i jumped on it. It's been in storage and needs to be rebuilt which i was planning on doing any ways to what ever motor i got. I haven't done much investigating of the motor to find out what year it was built but i did realize it says Ford industrial on it and my grandpa told me it was a motor used for Fords trucks and irrigation. So i was wondering if i should spend the time rebuilding this motor for that car or not. My plans as of right now is fully rebuild with a port and polish, paint the block, and put on chrome oil pan, and Ford Racing chrome valve covers. There is much more that i know needs to be done to the motor but those are just the basics off the top of my head. So if i could get any good advice to if this motor is worth my time and money it would be greatly appreciated.

Thank's
Quincy

Welcome Quincy, what kind of a Roadster kit? Cobra replica ? Model A? Duece?... Any 428 is a cool motor to use, it's a great choice and it sounds like the price is right too!

Around here there's a saying that goes, "Plan the work then work the plan". Now that you've got a motor, you'll need to decide what trans and rearend, then what's it going into?

I'd suggest that before you spend monies on a rebuild you have the other pieces in hand first. For alot of us it's more about the build so we'll be thrilled when you can share pics with us. And again, welcome!

Welcome to CHR, Quincy. Down in your area there were a bunch of old big blocks bought for irrigation pump service - lots of low end torque, set on an engine stand in a field coupled to a big pump, and run on a governor at their power/efficiency point for hours at a time, pumping water for the cotton crop. I remember walking into a Chevy dealer around 1965 to see a brand new 409 sitting there on a stand at the service bay looking grand, but with a little two barrel carb sitting atop the intake. I got excited, and an older farmer said, "He!! boy, it's just a damned irrigation engine!"

I'd pull the pan and see what you have for a bottom end, two bolt mains or four, and then maybe get some casting numbers and check them against the lists on line, like maybe this one Ford FE Engine Block Casting Numbers - FORDification.com Like Mike says, the key is getting your plan, and then working the plan without much deviation. Changes almost always cost money, and sometimes lots of money. You're most welcome to kick things around here, but you'll find a bunch of focused Cobra guys over on Club Cobra, run by the same guy (Brent Mills) with the same kind of rules.

Good luck with your Cobra!

Thanks for the input it helps out alot. I'm gonna be building a 65 Shelby Cobra Roadster it's a replica kit car from Factory Five Racing. I haven't put much thought into the transmisson yet. I don't know much about transmisson i was just gonna deal with it when i got to that point but i'll start my research now. Most of my mechanical skill is helping my grandpa rebuild motors and this will be the first one he sits back and watches me build and help me when i need it. I know i wanted to go with a 5 speed if possible but that's about it. Any ideas? As for a rear end the kit car needs a donor car which is an 87-04 Mustang GT so I was just gonna take the rear end out of a Mustang which im looking at a 1990 Mustang GT for my donor car which has an 8.8" ring size and 3.08:1 gear ratio i believe. I'm gonna be tearing into the motor this weekend and i will get casting numbers and check them out and find out if it is a 2 or 4 bolt mains. I'm excited about this build and will post pics when i get started. Thanks agian for the help i feel i'm headed in a better direction know i need to start thinking about my transmisson and rear end now instead of later.

Originally Posted by quincyp2003

Thanks for the input it helps out alot. I'm gonna be building a 65 Shelby Cobra Roadster it's a replica kit car from Factory Five Racing. I haven't put much thought into the transmisson yet. I don't know much about transmisson i was just gonna deal with it when i got to that point but i'll start my research now. Most of my mechanical skill is helping my grandpa rebuild motors and this will be the first one he sits back and watches me build and help me when i need it. I know i wanted to go with a 5 speed if possible but that's about it. Any ideas? As for a rear end the kit car needs a donor car which is an 87-04 Mustang GT so I was just gonna take the rear end out of a Mustang which im looking at a 1990 Mustang GT for my donor car which has an 8.8" ring size and 3.08:1 gear ratio i believe. I'm gonna be tearing into the motor this weekend and i will get casting numbers and check them out and find out if it is a 2 or 4 bolt mains. I'm excited about this build and will post pics when i get started. Thanks agian for the help i feel i'm headed in a better direction know i need to start thinking about my transmisson and rear end now instead of later.

Factory Five is about 20 minutes from my house, I watch people hauling them away on trailers all the time! And I think it's very cool that you and your Grand-Dad are teaming up for this! It'll mean a lot to both of you I'm sure.

For a tranny.. I'm unsure that a stock 5 speed will handle the torque of a 428! A 5 or 6 speed capable of living behind a 428 is available but it won't be cheap. For an automatic, look for a C-6 Ford, these were behind many FE big blocks and are reliable.

If it is a 428, it'll be a 2 bolt block, if you find 4 bolts - that's a 406 (early) or a 427, but I'd be surprised if it turns out to be a 427...

One of the things that you'll need to do is "mock up", that is fully assemble the car to make certain that it can be all put together and work together. Then completely dis-assemble the car for paint and polish / interior, etc. That would be the time to do your rebuilding. Now would be the time for planning, gathering and inspecting what you have. Once you have enough parts / pieces to complete a system, then install / fit those parts to complete that system. By system I mean, fuel / brakes / cooling etc. etc. etc...

It's great to have you here with us! We love following builds and watch out for the pic police chief... He whines when he can't see your build!

I'm with Glenn--I sure wouldn't be in a big hurry putting an engine together now! It is nice to have the engine (or one just like it) disassembled and cleaned during the build process as there are so many things that need to be done with an engine installed. Never could see any good reason to have a "done" engine sitting in the car and getting all filthy dirty and dusty during the build of the rest of the car, also could never see a reason to have a "done" engine hanging on a stand for the duration of the rest of the build, just too many ways for things to go wrong!!!!!

Glenn???????????

Originally Posted by 34_40

Glenn???????????

oops, can't read either!!!!

Originally Posted by Dave Severson

oops, can't read either!!!!

HAH HA! I always aspire to write as well as Glenn so when I saw your reply and didn't see Glenn's anywhere after mine.... well, I can dream right?!?!