352 Rebuild Recommendations

[dstuart]

I’m going to rebuild my bone stock 352 in my ‘67 F100. I’d like to have a nice increase in hp while I’m at it. I’m planning on all the usual improvements—4v carb, new intake, headers, heads, and cam. The question is this: what is the best displacement to aim for with a 352 block? I’m assuming a combination of boring and stroking (with a new crank) will be required to get me there. Can anyone share what has worked well? Does anyone know the max boring a 352 can handle? Thanks! Oh, one more thing—hopefully the hp increase can be handled by the stock 3 speed manual tranny (“Ford Light Duty”)? And my rear axle is 3.25.

[Nitekruizer]

I haven't done a 352 myself, but I did take my 390 out to a .040" over bore with no issues. I have read where some people say that you shouldn't bore a 390 more than .030" while others say you can go to .060" and be just fine. If you are planning to go more than .030" with your 352, you may want to have it sonic checked. It sounds like an interesting project.

Do you plan on staying with the 3.25 rear gear?

[My427stang]

I build a lot of FE strokers, they are hard to beat for the money

What I would do first is have your block sonic checked. More than likely, it will go to 4.08, that will allow you to buy off the shelf pistons, which will save you money. That gives you 445 cid and will be a very strong engine. If you want to save some cylinder bore, you can order custom pistons affordable using the Autotect line from Racetec. At .020 over, a 352 will give you 431 cid and be very strong.

Now, the other option is to build a stock bore 410 using a 428 crank, however, there really are no good pistons out there to hit compression and quench goals, so it still requires custom pistons

A third option is 390, and a 4th is optimizing the 352, but when you consider those options, multiply the cid by about 1.1 to estimate a street truck HP. So 352 will be 387 at best, but a 431 can make 470 hp, then it's easier to make a decision. FWIW, I end up at about 1.15-1.25 per cid with an engine that makes vacuum for power brakes, more if you don't need that and have the gear, but have been doing these a very long time. The 1.1 is a good wag

[dstuart]

Thanks so much for the recommendations! I like the idea of going to 445. And since you have one, what crank do I need to get that displacement if the bore is 4.08 as you suggest? Can we assume you’re pretty happy with 445 cid? Anything you would change if you could do it over? Thanks!

[nooptions69]

I've built a 445 too, you should really be fine with a 4.08" bore. I used a 390 block for my build (starts at 4.05" x 3.78"). a 352 block starts at 4.00" x 3.50", but everything I have checked indicates that the same block was used for both displacements, they just bored it according to spec. Some would say you need to do a sonic check due to possible core shift problems, but I think you'd be fine going to 4.08".

You've got great info so far, the stroke you need will be 4.25" to go along with the 4.08" bore. I recommend you get on line and check out Survival Motorsports. You'll see various packages assembled for sale from a single source (always a better idea in my book) and the owner is Barry Robotnik, and FE guru to say the least. The parts to stroke an FE are off the shelf pieces that Scat makes (crank and rods), pistons for this swap are also off the shelf at +.030" for the 4.08" bore. If you go this route he assembles what you need and verifies the components are ready for assembly.

I am attaching a photo that shows the difference between a stock 390 piston and rod assembly and what is in my 445, quite the difference.

DSCN1661 resize.jpg

[sparky72]

I second the Survival stroker kit suggestion. For what you get (an entire balanced rotating assembly), the price isn't bad, especially when you consider the amount of power you are gaining per dollar. Check 'em out: http://www.survivalmotorsports.com/FE-Engine-Kits.html

[nooptions69]

And oh yeah, a word of caution. 1960's stuff does not turn or stop. A 445 will put you on the edge of the tech you hook it to. I am posting a non-bump picture here of something that is stupid fast but does not turn or stop. Have fun

DSCN0462.JPG

[My427stang]

Sorry for the late reply, your need a 4.25 stroke crank, recommend SCAT. Many have used Eagle successfully, but many failed in the past. Those of us who build strokers regularly just don't use them.

Barry at Survival was brought up for parts, Lykins Motorsports is good and likely easier to get in touch with. Barry is a great guy but posting that he is having a hard time getting cranks on the forums. I haven't seen any slow down personally, and actually have a couple on the shelf. I am willing to put together a kit, but I am not a parts dealer, I keep them on the shelf for full builds, likely Brent at Lykins is a better bet

One thing i would say though is look at what the truck is worth, a stroker, or any rebuild can get expensive quickly. "One more thing" can slow a project down and empty a wallet. Sometimes, a nice 428 or a strong 390 build for the RPM range you plan to use can be a lot of fun too