Mustang makeover

[mmason]

The flowing of the heads is a long story but the short answer is that I did not get them flowed although now that the engine is done I regret not pursuing it. The work I did on the heads was mostly clean up work and a three angle valve job with some blending into the bowl. The throat ended up being 1.95 inches. The valves were 2.20 and 1.73.

The pulleys I got at CVF Racing. They are very nice. The alternator bracket that I had was pre-68 and would not fit on Jays adaptors but he was kind enough to provide a template of the newer bracket included in his instructions. I made a flat one with a small tube for one of the bolts.

Jay, I might get a chassis dyno and for sure I am going to the track.

Here is a picture of one of the heads being worked on and a pic of the bracket I made.

[cjshaker]

That intake is a sweet piece. Nicely done! Raised plenums with air gaps seem to me to be a no-brainer for keeping the intake charge cooler. I suppose casting cores are more  difficult that way, but all performance manifolds should have runners divorced from the base.

I liked the color you had it painted before, not that paint matters. Maybe I missed it, but what heads did you have on there before?

And that keenly hidden accumulator is a great idea. Having to open the hood to start and shut off the system always seemed to be the major drawback to them. I need to learn to think outside the box more 

[jayb]

Your alternator bracket looks good. I think someone here, afret maybe, figured out how to modify one of the early brackets to fit my adapters.  Earl, if that is correct could you post some pictures?  Figuring out how to modify the early brackets is also on my own list, so that people who have the earlier brackets have a solution.

[turbohunter]

It's really getting annoying at how much drool I am expelling.
I feel like a little kid pointing at one car then another, "oh thats neat, oh but that's neat too, oh no, look at that".
Beautiful car.

[mmason]

The paint that was on it before the black was a mixture of Eastwood's ford blue, aluminum and a little black. The old heads were first generation Edelbrok's with the machined chambers.

Michael

[mmason]

Well the summer did not go as I had planned. The plan was to have the mustang running and to make some changes to the car though out the summer. I did get the engine back in and ready to run by the last week of may but I was under a lot of pressure to start putting in long hours at work because of the back log of work I had. Also I promised my wife that I would start the remodeling of her kitchen that she has been 10 years for.

When I tried starting the engine, it had a hard time turning over and would not start. Here is the engine ready for starting.



So I bought a new starter. It is a Powermaster and is only 6 1/4" long IIRC. I works out nicely with my headman headers.



Tried starting again and got some kickbacks but no start. I checked everything and it looked good so I suspected my ignition system. I have a MSD box, a programmable timing box and a locked out distributor. It was set for 38 degrees and a 20 degree retard. The was all bought in 1996 and ran fine in my 454. So I disconnected the timing box and set the distributor for 18 degrees. Tried starting again and it started right up. So I bought a new programmable 6al and a new coil. Here is a picture of it getting programed.



All this was happening while I was working 6 1/2 days a week and the other 1/2 day on the kitchen. I would sneak out for a hour or so before I would go to bed. While I was waiting for parts, I thought it would be a good time to do the other add ons. I upgraded my fuel line to 1/2" and new fuel pump and filter. I also decided to try using water/methanol injection. Here is a picture of the setup in my trunk.



The controller in my glove box.



And the injector in a 1" spacer.



I have it set up not to go on until the rpm reaches 3300 and not to start injecting until the vacuum is at 6" and is injecting at full at 0" of vacuum. By putting on a 1" spacer I ended up with air filter 1" higher. Here is a pic of that.



So I had to make a new hood scoop. This is what it looks like. I am not completely happy with the looks but it will have to do for now.





The setup seems to be working well. I had a problem with it in the beginning but that was because I had the solenoid check valve on backwards and it was sucking water all the time.

Here is a picture of what it looks like now with the new 950 carb and my modified air cleaner.

[jayb]

Looks great, Michael.  I'm curious about the Snow Performance setup; I've never thought about using one on a naturally aspirated engine.  What is your compression ratio?  Did you install it because you were concerned about detonation?  I ran one for a while on my Mach 1 when I had the supercharged engine installed, and it definitely allowed me to run more timing and pick up some power.  I had mine set to turn on slowly between 4 and 12 pounds of boost.

Nice water pump setup, by the way 

[mmason]

My compression ratio is about 12.1. The DCR is 8.35. So I think I am on the hairy edge of detonation. Besides it keeps things clean. I read somewhere that you should get your baseline of where you want your AFR to without the injection on and then with it on you should increase your AFR by one half to three quarters of a point. I have to get my camera to record the gauges because no way can I get on it and watch gauges at the same time.

I like my water pump setup too! Sometimes I will go out to the garage, open the hood and just look at it.(Yikes, I need to get a life)

One more thing. I am running 36 degree's timing now and want to try a little higher.

[66FAIRLANE]

I like what you did with the scoop. Looks great and just that bit different.

[mmason]

Just a quick update on the mustang. Last year I added a 1 inch spacer under my carb so I made a new hood scope to accommodate it. I never did like it so I tried to design a new one. My intention was to make a 3 1/2 hood scope look like a 2 1/2 scope. After I put it on the car I realized that I did not like it either. I started thinking that ford might have a better idea and so I bought a new hood with the scope on it. Here are the pictures of the two hood scopes that I made and then the new hood.

[R-WEST]

That is a sweet looking ride!! 

[MustangGT]

Wow! Looks great.
Would you please share what wheel/tire combination you are running?

[mmason]

The rear tires are 275-60-15. The wheels are 8" with 4 3/4" back spacing. My rear housing is off a Lincolon Versailles so the side to side measurement where the wheel mounts to the disk is 58 1/4". The front tires are 225-60-15 and the wheels are 7" and 3 3/4 back spacing.

[My427stang]

Beautiful car!

[MustangGT]

The rear tires are 275-60-15. The wheels are 8" with 4 3/4" back spacing. My rear housing is off a Lincolon Versailles so the side to side measurement where the wheel mounts to the disk is 58 1/4". The front tires are 225-60-15 and the wheels are 7" and 3 3/4 back spacing.

Thank you.
I have a Versailles axle in my 67 fastback as well. I really love the look of your wheels and now I know what back spacing etc to look for when buying new wheels.
Did you have to modify the fender lip in the rear? I tried on a pair of 275-60's but they where rubbing. Not sure what back spacing those wheels had though. They were stock stamped steel 8" from a 71 Plymouth GTX.