I have a 462 FE , 501HP in a '57 Ford (small engine bay). I started with a "16" " Derale puller fan/ shroud, it even overheated on the interstate. (BTW I have a Griffin radiator). Next attempt was (2) 12" Spal puller fans on a custom shroud. They were marginal at best and did not keep the temp down after the AC was installed. I finally got the temp to stay under 190 using a Derale 7 blade 19" clutch fan/custom shroud (Hayden custom shallow clutch). The temp would start to creep up with the AC on so I installed a 16" Spal pusher fan that comes on with the AC on. My car would barely run over 205 with the carb I was using (tried everything to fix that too) so I switched to EFI. Now I can drive the car on a 100 degree, 50% relative humidity day in south Louisiana in stop and go traffic. A bigger radiator was not an option w/o MAJOR surgery. very little room between the engine and the radiator to boot.

Can offer more details/pics if needed and I still have the fans if anyone is interested.


Lynn

I have Edelbrock 60079 Heads, 8 bolt, 76CC chambers. I have had them for 8 years. I would have bought TFS heads had they been available. I have FPA headers with the 16 bolt flanges and they seal just fine with only 8 bolts. You can buy assembled ED heads for around $900 ea. I actually paid less than 1400 for the pair I have. The Trick Flow heads are $300-$400 more expensive each (well worth it). I have an off the shelf Comp Cam 281/281 adv duration .571/.571 lift. but if I was doing it again I would contact customfordcams.com ( Brent Lykins) and get a custom cam quote. The stock cylinder heads on FE's are a large detriment. Edelbrock claims that their top end packages (manifold, heads, and cam) are worth 100HP. You can use the stock rockers and shafts with the ED heads if you want.

Lynn

There are a lot of generators around south Louisiana for hurricanes. Several of my neighbors even have whole house emergency generators that run on natural gas. I have a Honda generator for that purpose, we have lost power for as many 8 days. My generator is not quiet, the quiet ones generate DC current that is converted to AC electronically. Mine has an AC generator. I believe the AC types are less expensive in terms of KW/$. My generator is 2500KW that will run the refrigerators (2) the TV and a few lights. I don't remember how much I paid for it in 2008. There are a couple of inherent issues. One is gasoline supply. You need several 5 gallon cans. I added a drain valve on my '57 Ford's 22 gallon tank to avoid that issue. The second issue is reliability. My generator sits for years on end I seldom think about it. I run the fuel out of it for storage but I have had to have it serviced when I think I will be needing it. Heating is not a big issue around these parts but cooling is. A generator to run the central air in my house would be too large. My suggestion is make sure you get one with more power than you think you need and periodically start it. I hope this helps.  Good luck!

FYI, check this out, Ford engine weight detail....

                       http:/raceabilene.com/kelly/hotrod/FordWeightDetail.html
Lynn

Does anybody know if there is a difference between hydraulic and solid lifter rocker shafts? I have new adjustable rocker arms and used hydraulic shafts that seem to fit.... I will buy new shafts but the ones I have found are said to be for hydraulic rockers. Clueless again.

One of my questions would have been about minimum wall thickness at some point. I will report as this thing develops just as another "point on the curve". It may take a while though... I move slow. I have a retired machinist friend who owns a Bridgeport. Great feedback from everyone and I will continue to solicit advice along the way. I am looking at another machine shop, but the choices are limited locally.

 I will try to have the sonic test first on second thought. I will talk to them first. My machine shop doesn't do sonic testing though. I just want to say I have cross bolted mains.... I am sure I don't really need 'em. i really don't need a new engine when you get down to it, or so my wife likes to point out. I really enjoy getting the feedback, thanks again.

Thanks for the info to date. The block is drilled for hydraulic lifters. I would probably use 427 main caps as well, no point in machining off the existing bosses in my mind. I took a 62 Mercury block in my first build and put stock new 428 pistons and a 428 crank when you could buy 'em from Ford. I had no issues at all back then but we didn't do sonic tests back in 67. Because the block is so rough I am thinking about going straight to the stock 428 bore and then doing the sonic thing before I do the 4 bolt main caps. The block passes the "drill bit" test.