Tell me about stock SBF heads/topend

[Tommychu]

Kind of an oddball topic for a Festiva forum, but I'd rather ask you guys since the boards that specialize on this topic are all a bit douchey. Also if this is a bit tl;dr just read the last 2 paragraphs.

So my B8 swap has been running for about 6 months now. The project is nowhere near done (I've got some ignition stuff, LOTS of bodywork and all those little details I glossed over doing the swap outside on a gravel driveway in the pouring rain left over) but at the moment my attention has turned to the F150 I bought in the spring. She's got 288000 km (180K miles) on the clock and it's screaming for a rebuild- bad seals all over, lots of blowby/low compression, oil pressure is all over the place and power wise it might as well be a B3 lugging this 5000lb tank around.

Anyways, to avoid another disaster like the one I had with the festy I'm going to do a bunch of prep work beforehand and I figured I should start by grabbing a pair of JY heads and having them decked and rebuilt. This opens up the possibility of swapping on some different (OEM) heads. Thing is, this is my first 'real' Ford and I know next to nothing about the Windsor. Is there another head that will work better in this application?

It's an '88 injected 302, I've already eliminated the air pump and plugged the lines but I'm leaving the EGR and the other emissions junk mostly intact. Aftermarket/aluminum is out of the question. I need something that won't confuse my stock EFI, get decent mileage, enough torque to get this old tank moving, but maybe a little more beef in the midrange. I usually run on 89 or 91. I would consider a different cam and intake but only if my (severely limited) budget and the stock EFI can take it. I don't have the resources to do port work myself or the cash to have a shop do it.

My train of thought led me to believe the heads (and cam?) off an early-mid '80s truck 351 would suit this situation well. Am I totally on cloud nine with this assumption, or am I on to something? Or, should I just get a pair that match what's on the truck right now?

[getnpsi]

You want velocity. You don't want bigger flow351 heads with 87 octane compression. Look for 93 to 95 cobra iron heads. Ford explorer heads were popular for a while too.

[NovaSS]

With that many issues I would scrap the head idea and search for a long block. Rebuilding the top end of an engine with a ton of blow by is a waste.

[nitrofarm]

Dont rebulid-just get another 5.0.They are a dime a dozen.

[blkfordsedan]

Your '88 truck 5.0L should have E7TE heads, roller cam and I believe speed density (no MAF meter and OBD1). The 351W from '78 on up share the same heads as the 302. The truck cam sucks and the heads are not much better. There is no factory head that will have too big of ports. The 351W stayed a flat tappet cam until the mid-90's. The pre-77 351W heads have a different rocker arm design and ther would be several issues that would make swapping them more involved. Best bet is to stay with the E7 heads and do a mild port and bigger valves. You could also go for a used set of the early GT40 Explorer castings...the later ones had a funky plug angle that requires special headers. A roller cam from a Mustang will be an improvement and still work with the speed density computer. Long tube headers will also make a big improvement. Option 2 is to just do a 351 swap.

[Tommychu]

I don't think I was quite clear on my intentions- The plan is to rebuild the whole engine, but having a second set of heads prepped beforehand to minimize the downtime. It doesn't seem like I have any top end issues but I can get any set of heads from the JY for free because I've got a massive store credit at PNP from returning all my BP stuff when I switched to the B8ME head. And my machine shop does basic head rebuilds super cheap but the turn around time is slow.

Another engine is not an option in my case. Explaining why would be another unnecessary wall of text. It just isn't. If it was I'd do a 351 or 5.4 swap, which would have precisely the characteristics I'm looking for.

Edit: Thanks Brian, that is precisely the info I was looking for. What range of years would I be looking for in exploder heads if I went that route?

[citizen caine]

Any head from a 351w will fit your 302.
You might run into some bolt on differences on exhaust or valve train. Just check into it and ask lots of questions.

Incase your on A tight budget as most of us are,# its cheaper to pull another running motor. You can Buy a used low miles motor for about the same price as buying bearings, head gaskets & a rebuild kit.
Don't go to a junk yard...you'll find a perfectly good motor if you go to a racing forum for a out $100. These guys are pulling stock motors out to drop in a high HP race motor. They just want these stock part out of there way.
lol kinda like my B3 I pulled that I just need gone.
a few times IV had a perfect 302 and lots of other stock parts given to me once I go to pick up what I though I was buying.

[citizen caine]

Try websites for race tracks in your area.

[Tommychu]

Problem is our race track shut down at the end of last season so all of the ads on forums/cl/kijiji are guys who aren't willing to keep their racing stuff around for the 3-5 years it'll take for the new track to start up. The market is saturated with $6-10000 all-out racing motors and there's not much stock/street stuff floating around. Plus I'm in an area that's 90% GM so the good Ford stuff is few and far between.
I plan on keeping this truck for a while (and asking for a good chunk of change when I do sell it) and I much prefer the idea of a fresh rebuild. And there's the logistics problem of buying an engine and having nowhere to put it while I wait for an opening in the only garage available to me that's equipped well enough for a swap and/or rebuild. Not to mention I would never drop in a used engine without blowing it apart and making sure it's good to go, which means buying a gasket set at the very least anyway. That also leaves me with the issue of what to do with the motor that's in it. It would be a waste to scrap it but i'd once again have nowhere to put it while I waited for someone to buy it.
Long and short of it is, I'm dead set on the bottom end that's in it. If my situation was a little different all of the alternate suggestions you guys mentioned would make perfect sense, be a lot cheaper and leave me with a better performing truck in the end but my main constraints are space and the short time window I'd theoretically have to actually rip the truck apart and get some kind running of engine back into it.

[bhazard]

Explorer 5.0....240HP stock I think. Almost 100 more than your truck.

[zoom zoom]

Straight 6 with a 4 speed! Horrible gas milage but you can pull anything you want!

[getnpsi]

I bought a lincoln mark 7 for 750 bucks and threw drivetrain into a f150. Im so lazy these days.

Low miles complete explorer engine or the bone stock 5.0 from a fox body forum would be less headaches. No ned to resarch the 7/16 rockers from old and new if you just score a low miles longblock

[Movin]

Rear wheel bearings holding up ok?

[Tommychu]

No issues AFAIK, rear end seems smooth/solid enough. Why do you ask?

[citizen caine]

Good points, but somethings are being overlooked.
if you need anything please pm me. Small blocks are what I know.

I understand what your saying, but it will be so much faster & cheaper to drop a low mileage motor.

Side note.
your going to find HP with your heads, but its not cheap.
next look into pistons & Cam.

$240 KB pistons, good used Cam & $2000 in heads.
450 HP and went low 11s in the 1/4.