How much to bore a 352 Block

[JimNolan]

Guys,
   I've got a few questions concerning a FE Block I have. It's a C3AE-A block with a 2J14 forge date. I thought it was a 390 but come to find out it is a 352 with .040 over pistons. I pulled a freeze plug and there's a .235" gap (15/64") between the cylinders. Question: is this a special heavy engine and can it be bored as much as 4.13" as Jim Dove says it can. There's no "352" on the front left side of the engine either. I was planning on boring it out to 4.08 and putting in a Scat 416ci rotating assembly. Is this engine heavy enough to take a big bore without overheating because the sidewalls would be too thin. Jim    Thanks in advance.

[My427stang]

Are you asking if it can go greater than 4.08?  If so, I'd sonic check, regardless of casting

As far as the 416, if going SCAT, why not go 445?

[JimNolan]

My427stang,
    I hadn't gave that a thought. I'll have to crunch the numbers. Thanks, Jim

[jayb]

+1 on the big cubes; you won't regret that decision.  15/64" between the bores is very good if there is no core shift.  And you won't know about how much core shift you have until you do the sonic check.  Core shift can take a lot off the wall thickness, maybe even .100".  So I would also recommend a sonic check; make your boring decisions from there.

[ScotiaFE]

If you have a 4.040 bore then you should have a serious look if it will clean up at .010" or .020"
Then stroke it to 4.250.
The small amount of extra bore will not be as benifical as the thicker cylinder wall. Better for high performance use.
Of course this all hinges on a good crack and sonic check.

[JimNolan]

Jay and Guys,
   I got the engine to the machinest today. There was cross hatch still in the cylinder walls and the pistons looked new. The guy that I bought the car from said the engine had just been overhauled, it was. The machinest is going to dip it and do the sonic test on it before boring or decking it.
   I've sent a email to Probe about their SRS 14470-30 forged piston. It's got a 16.90 cc dish in it and I can use it. It leaves me with a .047" quench and I want that piston in a 4.05" bore instead of a 4.08" bore though. With a 4.08" bore I'd have 9.58 CR and a 7.9 DCR. I can use 89 octane gas with that. The rotating assembly will be Scat with the internal balanced 428 crank and H-Beam 6.49" Rods. Along with the Streetmaster intake, 268H comp cam and stock C1AE-A heads and FPA headers that'll be enough energy for me. Along with those items I'm topping it off with a 670cfm Holley Avenger Carb. I've had a beautiful working 570cfm I've used on my stock 390 for over 33K miles. I'm not going to thumb my noise at success.
   I decided to not go with more engine than this. I feel it's like bringing home a new dog. If you can't or won't feed it why bring it home. I see a lot of guys at the car shows with super big engines and a lot of horsepower in their cars. But, the only time you see them is at the next car show. They can't or won't drive them. Why bring it home if you won't feed it. My little 57 has seen over 33K miles on it since it's frame off in April of 2009. I drive it because I get 20mpg at 65-70mph and my power brakes work also. I'm not going to stray too far from that.  Thanks guys.

[My427stang]

Nothing wrong with that plan, a good blueprinted 410 is a nice cruiser.  It'll feel very strong compared to a 352!

I am not fond of the metering in 670 and 770 Street Avengers, but with the vacuum that motor should make, you shouldn't have any tip in issues.

[JimNolan]

My427stang,
    I believe asking them people to make me 4.05" pistons is unnecessary. The 416ci setup off the shelf would be easier. If the block checks out OK, he'd have to be boring it out to 4.05" anyway. I have a 300hp 390 in my 57 now. This engine will be more fun I think and still give me decent dependablity and gas mileage. I have decided to work on the heads though. I might as well do it now as wish I'd done it later.

[My427stang]

Great call on both

I am sure the block will take it and no use buying custom pistons when you are only a small cut away

Also the difference you'll get with a good set of heads will be significant.  Added cubes, added airflow, and a mild cam, you'll be happy. 

[KMcCullah]

I've taken a early 352 block to 4.05 without a sonic check and ran the crap out of it without issue. I wouldn't go any bigger on the bore without a sonic check though.
Some other things to think about with the early block.........
The motor mounts bosses have the narrow bolt pattern. And the thrust bearing will need the shorter flanges.

[JimNolan]

Guys,
   I called Barry at Survival Motorsports today. He took a lot of time with me to explain everything I asked him about and told me a bunch of stuff I didn't know. I cc'd the reconditioned C1AE-A heads today and even with the resurfacing they came out to 75cc's. I'm waiting on the machinest to get the block sonic checked and cleaned up before I do the oil modifications but if it checks out this is the engine I will have:

Ford FE 4.07" Bore w/ Scat 9000 3.98" stroke, internal balance cast crank and 6.49" H-Beam Rods
Diamond Forged 11cc dished Pistons with @.015 deck clearance using .041 X 4.4 Head Gaskets.
C1AE-A Ford Iron Heads 75cc with 2.03 intake and 1.65 exhaust valves. ( bowl cleanup only )
Comp Cams 268H Cam  268/268 dur---4.94/4.94 lift.
Edelbrock Streetmaster intake (unmolested) w/670cfm Holley Avenger Carb
FPA 57Ford Shorty headers with 2.25" exhaust and Hooker HighFlow mufflers.
Ford Stock baffled 5 qt. oil pan w/Ford Motorsports windage tray. ( I'll run 6 quarts )

This is going in my 57 Fairlane w/ Lakewood- McLeod Racing clutch--Tremec TKO 600--Moser 3.50 31spline Tru-Trac.
The nice thing about this build is I've already got everything except the rotating assembly. Hopefully I will still get decent gas mileage and it'll upgrade from the 300hp stock 390 I have now. Thanks for turning me on to Survival Motorsports.
Would someone run the numbers on what I have and let me know what you come up with. All I've got is a Comp Cams calculator.
Thanks, guys.

[My427stang]

414 cid
Static compression ratio 9.54:1
Dynamic compression ration 7.90:1 (that assumes you degree the cam and it comes in on 106 intake centerline)

I really don't like the 670 and 770 Holley SA, but some guys get lucky   Should be a nice streetable combo

[JimNolan]

Final Answer,
     I went with the 4.05 bore with 381NP pistons, C7AE 6.49" rods, Eagle 428 Crank, C1AE heads with 2.03/1.65 Valves, .020 steel shim head gaskets, Streetmaster 390 intake with 670cfm Holley, Comp Cams 268H cam and FPA Shorty Headers, Ford Motorsports Billit Steel 29lb Flywheel, Ford Motorsports Windage tray and baffled 5qt. oil pan / 57HV oil pump.
     Still got the windage tray to buy and have the 1.65 valves installed. Everthing else is here and being worked on now. Hope to have it together before the end of next month.
     I came down to earth and figured if I was using the car for trips with occasional drag strip use and never using a trailor I didn't need an engine that developed it's HP at a high RPM, I wasn't comfortable with, and wanted dependability out of. Jim