360 drop to a 429 swap

[Boggie]

Im in the proccess of fitting a 385-series big block into a 68 3/4 ton 4x4 truck and a few questions and/or comments.

Comments...
1. I have a DOVE-A 429 virgin block. (4U stamped on the crank)
2. I have a 351/400 bellhousing and spacer plate.
3. The chassis is bare with no body sheet metal at all on it. (body swap when the chassis is done)
4. Ive heard a lot off bad things about L&L's mounts and I trust my own work over a company worrying about there checkbook.
5. Oh, and my truck is fitted for an FE motor.

Questions...
1. In building my own mounts, do I need to worry about the 429/heads/valve covers coming in contact with anything? (Firewall, Brake booster)
2. If so how far forward do you tipicly have to move a 385-series big block? I would like to retain the stock location of the motor/trany/transfercase. (married-up, built my own crossmember)
3. Are these 385-series motors dependable/durable or is it even worth the effort/cost?

Thank you for your time and I appreciate any input one way or the other.

[BobbyFord]

73-79, 460 F-series motor mounts and engine stands/perches will allow a "bolt-in" installation. No clearance issues.
385 series engines are very dependable.
Rear sump oil pans are available.

[averagef250]

The 429 you have is a good unit worth using, quite a bit more compression than todays gas will support if it's a thunderjet motor, but 360 stock HP is pretty nice.

There is room, but not a bunch. What you have to achieve when you build engine or tranny mounts is a set of drivetrain angles that compliment each other. Rear pinion angle, front pinion angle, engine/trans/t-case angle and engine/trans/t-case installed height must all be correct in order for things to work correctly.

If I was doing what you are planning I would not build a new engine/trans crossmember and new engine mounts without the body in place. You have no frame of refference. I would set the engine/trans/t-case on the frame and set the new cab/front clip over the top. I would raise the engine/trans/t-case into it's exact finished location with the front end high by about .25 degree to compensate for motor mount sag. block and shim the engine/trans/t-case into the exact location with wood/metal out of the way of where your mounts are going to go.

In order to do this stuff you need to have an accurate way to measure pinion angles and drivetrain angles accurately. I use a machinists bubble protractor for this, my eyes aren't the best, but I can get it repeatable within .1 degree with some patience. There are several makers of digital drivetrain angle measuring devices. Don't use a welders pendulum angle finder for this type of work, those things are nowhere's near close enough for this type of work.

When I do this stuff I usually go off the rear pinion angle at ride height for refference and use the lower lip of the frame rail immediately behind the cab as a refference point for chassis zero.

If you don't have this stuff look at accufab's mounts, I here good things about them and they look how I'd build the mounts if I wanted something real strong.

[averagef250]

73-79, 460 F-series motor mounts and engine stands/perches will allow a "bolt-in" installation. No clearance issues.
385 series engines are very dependable.
Rear sump oil pans are available.

No, they will not work. The 460 was only in 2wd's from 73-79. 4x4's are very different.

[BobbyFord]

73-79, 460 F-series motor mounts and engine stands/perches will allow a "bolt-in" installation. No clearance issues.
385 series engines are very dependable.
Rear sump oil pans are available.

No, they will not work. The 460 was only in 2wd's from 73-79. 4x4's are very different.

woooops, my bad. Thanks

[Boggie]

Thank you for all of your replys, they give me good though and insight. I did'nt mention that I had already made a crossmember for my married tranny/transfercase. I bolted my 360 into the "FE" motor towers and hooked up the tranny into stock location and used the stock crossmember to measure the deck height of the NP 435 in referance to the frame. I then hooked up the married tranny/transfercase and measured off the same place on the tranny to get the same measurement from tranny to frame, suspended the whole get-up with a 4x4 off the rear yoke of the transfercase across the inside of the frame, and then started carefully measuring and building to make sure of a precise and stock fitmentand angle/degree. I then decided with a little bit of encuragement, to buid the 429 I obtained from a late family member in place of the 360. So with using the crossmember that gives me stock placement of everything but the transfercase, I obtained a 400 bellhousing, spacer plate clutch mount and a power steering bracket and pump, I can bolt all that to the face of the NP 435.

I an investigating on using the original "FE" motor mounts in stead of using an aftermarket item because of availability and the fact that a friend has done a similar swap using the "FE" motor mounts on a 460 block in his mudder and he's running 40" super swampers/C6/dana 60 front/14 bolt rear. He has broken drivlines/companion flanges/axletips but is still running with the same motor mounts from about 2 and a half years ago. And they used those mounts in the 427's and 428's for years without changing the desing so they seem to be up to the task of a mildly built 429 for a daily driver/work/tow truck that wont be getting hammerd like my friend does to his play toy.

In building my own motor mounts I was just curious if the 385-series block can be mounted at the same angle/degree as the "FE" motors were. I am assuming I can fab it to the same angle/degree since there are several companies that sell these conversion kits for the 385-series motors without selling tranny mounts or warning you about driveline angle changes.

And again thank you for your replys on the subject, I will probably be having photos the work when it is done.

[BobbyFord]

L&L makes a mount kit for 429/460 in a 67-76 F-Series 4WD:
http://www.landlproducts.com/details.as ... temID=1030

[zakt]

I will be using the auto fab motor mounts and probably the trans mount also for my 460 swap. What T-case you using?? Im using a married NP205 and it has its own side mount and using the stock transmission mount just should need moved back.

http://www.autofab.com/motor_mounts.htm