Fired my new engine today

[JimNolan]

Yes it is about 500 bucks if you get the 6AL digital like I have but offers no modules needed. Soft rev limit is nice so you do not load the engine and destroy it. The box itself has capability of all trigger types including points and costs under 150 bucks. The big money is replacing the inaccurate worn out distribute. They were never intended to spin over 5000 rpm if that.

fe66comet,
   I always buy a rebuilt distributor from Napa and they always have the cast gears on them. I don't run roller cams so bronze and iron are out of the question. I don't go over 5K rpm, won't go over 5k either. Not because I don't think the engine will do it, just because I think the engine is getting ready to explode. Besides, you have to run your numbers no matter how fast you go.
   Now that said, you and me both know that you know a lot more about distributors than I do. I am concerned about this 410 I'm putting in the 57. It's a 5 speed and I just might miss a gear. I'm planning no more than 4750 rpm and work my way down a little in the higher gears. Which self contained distributor would you recommend with a built in rev-limiter that uses a standard type coil and distributor cap. Jim

[fe66comet]

I just never liked ford distributes honestly spacing of the terminals causes crossfire in damp conditions. I have tractors with that problem and they never see muck over 800 rpm. The box will help with plug fouling at low rpm with the multi spark and help prevent fuel contamination. Also cold starts are no longer an issue or flooding. The other factor and a major one for me is fuel efficiency, it will mean its keep quickly as a lot less fuel is going out of the tailpipe and being made.into power. You can still use the.Napa distribute but you will have to loose the vacuum advance due to the cam so pinning the plate is necessary. A coil upgrade to MSD or Bosh is a cheap upgrade just paint it black and it looks stock that is about 20 or 30 bucks. Good wires will help you the most no Napa Milage Plus or Echlin junk. I worked at Napa tried them had too much resistance and burned caps up. Get a good set of 8 km wires and you will save a lot of money and aggravating in the long run. Also no aluminum or zinc terminal caps the burn up in weeks , get a brass one . Even if you don't get the box I would still do the basic solid tune up and fix that advance problems to make it run decent.

[amdscooter]

Hey Jim, hope all is good with your new build. Just thought I'd give a quick update as the weather was nice yesterday here and I got under the hood for a bit. After some road testing I'm finding the best running setup on my stock re-manufactured distributor with points is the Mr. Gasket "all in" at 2100~2400 springs, vacuum advance disconnected, 10 degrees initial and 36 degrees total. Idle in park is about 1k rpm dropping to 800rpm in gear. Still have not located my vacuum gauge so I might break down and buy one today. As you noted earlier the spring kit and vacuum advance simply did not wanna play nice together at all. It really likes more initial (12~15) off the line, but doing so wrecks my total advance budget and it pigs at highway speeds.

I've made the decision to get another distributor with vacuum that can be pinned that is a bit more easy to adjust the total mechanical advance. Probably end up with a Mallory Unilite or MSD 8595. I could probably achieve the same result eventually with a stock distributor, but at this pint feel I've already invested too much time in it. I've learned a ton. But with two young kids and a new job.. I need just something a bit more plug-n-play friendly at this point. 

Chime in when you get a chance as our builds are similar and your input has been very informative. I'm thinking in a few months I'll probably migrate off my 600cfm/vac secondaries Holley. Like to know what you think of the performance with your 750cfm/vac sec carburetor as I'm considering the same size possibly going to a double pumper.

[JimNolan]

amdscooter,
      I got the old engine out yesterday and this week I'll be cleaning up the engine bay to ready it for the new engine. I'm excited to see how the new engine does on drivability. With 16 inches manifold pressure at 800 rpm idle I think it'll do good. 800 rpm is the lowest I can go and not make it sound like a 1 cylinder hit and miss Farmall tractor. It'll be a while before I get everything back together. I'll be running it at the FE Race and Reunion at Beaver Springs, Pa on April 27th if all goes well.
    Oh yes, the double pumper. I think if you'll research, the double pumper doesn't come with vacuum secondary. That could be a problem driving on the street. Jim 

[fe66comet]

I live by the rule mechanical secondaries for a stick and vacuum for a auto. The mechanical on a auto seems to bog and get ahead of itself. I welt vacuum on my stick car but upped the primary mechanical size to compensate for more throttle response, the secondary will just open as needed for more CFM at higher rpm. I have two square bore vacuum secondary carbs at 750 each. With my calculations I need 1000 CFM at 6500. So with both primary bores mechanically full open the extra 350 CFM or so gets pulled from 5500 to 7000.

[amdscooter]

^^^ Thanks for both your input on the Holley. I'll leave that one open until I get the distributor replaced. Once I get the initial and total advance in a curve I like I might not be thinking mechanical secondaries any more but simply a more appropriate cfm rating. 

[BruceS]

Jim, that '57 is lookin good!  The red/white combo is great and the Cragars compliment it too.

Scooter, FWIW my Fairlane with the 347 SB has a 650 double-pumper with manual choke and secondaries.  Dist is an MSD Pro-Billet @ 15 deg initial advance. Starts easily and no acceleration issues even though it has a C4 trans and a tall gear.  I'd do it that way again... The only problem I've had is sticking floats when I've let the car sit for a month or two and not drained the fuel pump to carb  gas line.

Bruce 

[69Cobra]

I'm a little late on the subject but with a new engine try not to do to much joy idling. You need to get a load on it to get the rings seated in.

[My427stang]

Whats the scoop on the new engine?  Been down the road yet?

[JimNolan]

My427stang,
    I've got about 400 miles on it now. It's smooth as silk. The engine idles very well at 650 is just a slight lope (very slight). The one thing I've noticed about it is the amount of exhaust that is coming out the tail pipes for idling at 650rpm. That's probably a weird thing to notice but it really struck me odd. I haven't had it over 3000 rpm yet and I'm not cruising on the interstate very long with it. I continually run it up to 3000 rpm between shifts and drive where I'll not maintain one speed all the time. I haven't barked the tires yet either. I thought I'd give the ceramic clutch disc time to wear in also. I can't get over how smooth and quiet it is. This is going to be a very good application for me. I just hope the gas mileage isn't that bad. The car is just as smooth and drivable as the 300 hp 390 was. The only difference is you can tell there is a lot more to be had when you shift gears. If I can't get a couple thousand miles on it by the end of April I won't be drag racing it at Beaver Springs. I'll just put it in the show. I'm going to change oil to Brad Penn in about another 100 miles. Jim PS  Thanks for checking on me.

[My427stang]

If it were mine, I'd run it in the RPM range you plan to run it at the races, at least now and then

Matter of fact, if something is going to break at 5000 rpm, it'll do it regardless of going easy for 1000 miles or not. I'd much rather catch second gear and break it in my neighborhood than at the races LOL  Not to mention the cam will be happy with as much oil as you can throw at it LOL

Although in 4000 miles it wont make a noticeable ridge, keeping it at low RPM isn't doing a  thing for reliability, some good hard accel and decel is good for a break in, but honestly, engines don't need that much

Regardless, nice work, sounds like it hit exactly the mark

[JimNolan]

Guys,
As some may know, I missed the FE Race and Reunion because my pull truck lost it's brakes at the Pa. border and I turned around and went back home. Saturday, I got a chance to see the rewards of my labor. My buddy in a 2008 Mustang Bullitt beat me 1/2 a car length from a red light. I was on 215/70R15 tires and I know I can reduce my ET by 8 tenths with my Hoosier tires. Our buddies behind us said my car didn't blow any blue or black smoke so I'm presuming the 750 Holley isn't too big for my engine. I know I was pleased with the feel all the way through the 1/4 ( or less ). If it had lasted very much longer I would have gotten him. I was pulling him in 4th gear. I didn't get to go very far in 4th gear because of traffic.
I hope to take it to a drag strip soon and know what I've got. At least I learned I might better get a helmet if I want to run more than once. Jim

[bn69stang]

nice toys , congrats on a job well done and the MSD stuff is really nice and simple ..