460 steal. . .is this a decent starting point???

[atomicjoe23]

OK. . .so I picked up a Ford 460 for free and I'm wondering if I have a decent starting point or another boat anchor. Let me put the disclaimer out there that I know very little about Ford engines and this will only be the second one that I have ever worked on. . .the first being the 351M in our '79 F-150 4x4 and I have only done external work on it (replaced intake manifold, carb, vacuum lines, fuel lines, plugs, plug wires, distributor cap & rotor, and the voltage regulator. . .it now runs much nicer by the way!!!). . .I have a 400M that came out of a '79 wagon to replace the 351M but that's another story. . .on to the 460. . .



. . .the 460 I picked up supposedly came out of a later model dually (EFI) that blew the transmission. The guys son wanted to keep the engine for some project so they kept the engine and sold the truck and rest of the drivetrain. . .long story short, son pulled the intake and heads and then it sat in the guys garage for two years. . .he finally got tired of it taking up space and his son not doing anything with it and he wanted to get rid of. . .enter me.



My plan is to use the 460 in a '79 F-150 4x4 that I'm gonna do a full tube chassis on as a desert style truck (all the way including a TTB front end conversion and a 4-link rear). . .all I know about the engine at this point is that it is an EFI engine (I got all the EFI junk with it) and I found these casting numbers on the block and heads:



Block:

on the outside of the block:

-2K06KB. . .looks like the code was put there with a hammer and

alphanumeric punch set

on the lifter valley of the block:

-117

-2F3

-5

-X by every lifter passage



Heads:

outside of heads:

-E7TE

-6090B

top of heads (below valve covers):

-2JI

-13 on one head & 14 on the other head (assuming this just designate left & right heads???



I have the High Peformance Ford Engine Parts Interchange manual, but this engine is apparently too new to be in there. . .so I'm looking for a little help to see if at least the block and maybe the rotating assembly are a good starting point, this isn't going to be a race truck but I would like a reliable engine that makes good power.



Thanks!

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[Wild bill]

How many miles on the motor?

[atomicjoe23]

Don't know for sure. . .under 100K if I remember correctly. . .

. . .like I said it was free and it had been sitting in the guys garage minus the truck for 2 years. . .I haven't slapped the heads back on yet to try a compression test yet. . .

[squirelmurphy]

EFI started in 87, so it's at least an 87. Do you plan on a full rebuild? No reason to not use it.

I would put some good forged pistons in it, a cam, good timing chain, intake, carb, and headers. Keep the compression low so you can still run pump gas. You can make plenty of horsepower and a ton of torque pretty easy with those motors. You actually might be better off with a later model motor, as most of the early head castings are 10:1 or higher in compression ratio. Todays pump gas just can't hang.

The other thing is quality machine work above all when it comes to a rebuild. Find a good machine shop in your area that knows big Ford motors. I built a 8.5:1 390 for my 73 F100. It will make about 500 hp. Not a monster number, but it can do that on Pemex.

[atomicjoe23]

I'm not interested in a tempermental full-blown race engine. . .I'm more interested in a reliable engine that can be driven on the street (in a '79 F-150) and see recreational off-road use and maybe some pre-running. . .

. . .I planned on doing a full rebuild and swapping a carb intake and manifold in place of the EFI intake and backing it with a C6.

I have just recently heard that a carb intake will not mate up to the EFI heads but that there are adapter plates to either put a carb on the EFI intake or put a carb intake on the EFI heads. . .do you know if this is true?

That being said, heads are expensive! Are the EFI heads going to do OK for what I'm wanting. . .I would be happy with 500 (or more) HP and torque is more important to me since this isn't going in a full-blown race rig.

Thanks!

[Ol' Curmudgeon]

You'll drive it on the torque, build and gear accordingly. Low comp., mild cam.

[atomicjoe23]

Thanks NBD. . .

. . .any clue as to whether the stock EFI heads are worth keeping on it???

The combustion chambers don't look like the shroud the intake valves. . .I would call them a happy medium between a closed chamber and an open chamber from what I've seen in magazine pictures. . .not from the point of experience.

Thanks again!

[John F2000]

I built a 460 nat aspirated for my pre-runner and love it. However, its from a 69-70 approx lincoln, one of the better years. 750 carb, victor manifold, 9:5 compression, headers, ignition. Expect no more than 475 hp, but plenty or torque. Youll need some good heads to get in the 500 hp range. The key to the 460 is the main bearings. You need to keep them loose. And keep the tach under 6k. Motor has run forever, no issues.

[atomicjoe23]

Sounds good to me. . .I'm more interested in the torque for this vehicle than the HP anyway.

I'm just happy to hear the bottom end is a good starting point!

[bigblock72]

Pull the motor down and see what kind of shape it's in. Odds are the bore and pistons will be in good shape and if they are just hone the cylinders and install some new rings and bearings. There is no need for forged pistons at this power level so spend the money elsewhere. Use an early 429 timing chain and gear set as the later 460 stuff retards the cam timing around 4 degrees. Get a mild cam with around 215 degrees of duration(@ .050") and keep the lift under .510" for long rocker and valve spring life. install a Performer RPM intake with a 750 cfm carb (I prefer a Q-jet) and a set of headers and you'll have a super reliable 400 plus horsepower and 500 plus ft. lbs. of torque for not a lot of money.