New guy here... Do I need to completely overhaul my 429 CJ?

I have a 1970 Ford Torino Cobra Drag Pack car that belonged to my Dad...He was killed in a bad car wreck in 1976 in another Torino Cobra and this "extra" car was parked out in back yard of the family farm until I turned 18 (1988) when it was given to me! The original SCJ engine, CJ C6 with the R servo, and 3.91 Traction Lock rear were sold sometime before I got it so I had to find another driveline...
About 5 years ago I saved up enough cash to buy another Torino with the original CJ drivetrain ($4000). After I bought the car, I drove it around town for the Summer and then I took it to my mechanic friend to have hte driveline installed in my car. He took off all the original equipment for me and installed the aftermarket parts I had either bought or swapped around for...
Over the last 5 years, I have just had it in the garage and would only start it up about once every 2 months or so. I would only run it for 20-30 seconds or so because I didn't have the cooling system hooked up on it and didn't want it to get hot! It never would idle right but I didn't think too much of it...
About a month ago my kids (14 & 13 year old boys) talked me into getting it finished up and driveable so I could take them a ride I got right into it and had it driveable in less than a week...

Here are the components:
71 429 CJ block with 4 bolt mains
stock DO0E-R heads
Weiand Stealth intake
Holley Street Avenger 780 w/ electric choke
Holley fuel pump
Edlebrock aluminum water pump
Hooker Super Comp headers
MSD ignition: 6AL box, Pro Billet distributor, and Blaster 3 coil
Ford Racing 8.5mm wires
3.70 Traction Lock

It had a BAD BAD miss so I was told to get the carb rebuilt first...Done - Still bad miss!
I had a friend come over that dirt track races and does his own mechanic work so I figured he could help me troubleshoot it.
We pulled the valve covers and found a BROKEN pushrod on #4 cylinder! The valve on that pushrod is rounded off on the top like it was stuck and just finally beat on until the pushrod snapped in half! When I pulled the intake, I found a badly BENT pushrod on #3 cylinder! Each one of the intake lifters are badly wore as are the lobes on the cam itself...
When I pulled the heads, the pistons look good appearance wise with no valve damage or scarring of the cylinders I can see with my NON-mechanic eyes! It must have had some engine work before I got it because some of the valves still have the Ford logo on them...

SOOOOO, Knowing that I will have to have a valve job on the heads and a new cam and lifter set, am I going to have to have the bottom end of the motor rebuilt?
How can I tell if it has been bored before?
How can I tell if the worn cam and lifters have damaged the mains and rod bearings?
What will be the the best hydraulic cam and lifter setup to go back with on my CJ C6 w/ R servo? I am running power disc brakes...I don't want to run a stall converter unless it's absolutely necessary. I do however want a very agressive thump Is that asking too much without the stall?

I am NOT making this a show car any means but I do want this motor to be very dependable. I don't want to drop a lot of money into the motor because I only plan on driving it around my small town and an occasional trip to the local quarter mile dragstrip. Just basically want to have a car I can show off in...

Sorry to ramble on with the history of the car but it is one of those deals where I've had the car for the last 22 years of my life and don't ever plan on selling it. My boys are already arguing over who'll get it when I die! LOL

I was turned onto this forum by the guys over at the Torino Cobra technical forum...

Thanks ahead of time for any input you mighty have on my future rebuild!

Very cool car with a great story.
Yes you should go through the bottom end and you will need to put in new bearings, because the metal from the cam/lifters went through the entire oiling system and will be embedded in the bearings. The pistons should have the overbore size stamped in the top somewhere. Send the block out and get it hot tanked and then clean and clean and clean the oil galleries, because that metal will be hanging up everywhere. There are no shortcuts to this procedure if you want the rebuild to last more than a couple hundred miles. Have the block checked for cylinder wall taper with a dial bore guage to see if it will need a bore job. If it does, you could swap in a 460 crank and get some more cubes. 460 pistons are lighter and cheaper, and you can reuse the rods. The cranks are cheap and easy to find. Good luck with this, it really sounds like a great family project.

I have never had any machining work done but may be taking my heads to a racing shop here in town tomorrow! What are normal prices for 3 angle valve job, cylinder bore, line bore, head milling, hot tanking block, magnafluxing heads, etc.?

What kind if price can I expect to pay for a 460 crank and pistons?

Thanks

Where are you located? There are some real good guys here on the board that specialize in working on these engines.

That is 1 hr East of Lexington, KY and 1 1/2 hrs Southeast of Cincinnati, OH

There are a lot of our members in your area, maybe they can chime in with some local prices for these services. I would say that Jet Boat Bob Hardison isn't too far from you near Owensboro KY. He is a top notch machinest that has worked on plenty of the blocks of guys on this board. I would suggest having more done to the heads if money permits, as a little money spent porting the bowls will reap some huge rewards in performance.

Owensboro is about 4 hours from me so that's a thought! I also was given a racing parts shop in Livermore, KY that is also about 4 hours away. I'm definitely trying to get by on a budget as times are tough and there atr a lot of things that come ahead of my playtime project! I've had my car for over 22 years without driving it... But now that I've gotten a taste of what 6 out of 8 cylinders will do, I only want the real deal built right! Ha ha

Good luck with the build, it will be flying when it's hitting on all 8.

I have decided to go with the local racing shop here in my hometown... Took the heads to them today and the valve with the broken pushrod was just about ready to let go! The locks that hold the retainer were missing or something they were saying! Told me I was very lucky I didn't have a busted up cylinder!!!
I will be getting all new stainless valves and the machine they use to do the valve jobs is supposed to be state of the art! I asked about porting the exhaust and was given the price of $200? Is this about normal and how do they know how much to take out? Flow testing on a bench - numbers to expect?
I am pulling the motor next week and taking it to them Friday to see if it is going to need work! Somehow I have a feeling they are going to tell me it needs bored because they are already trying to get me to make it a Stroker! I really can't afford to go the stroker route so I'm hoping I can get lucky enough to get by with new bearings and oil pump... If it turns out I do have to bore it, what kind of Stroker kit should I get and what will it cost?
I already know my cam and lifters are wiped out so what are my options here? I'm running power brakes with a 3.70 gear and really don't want to run a stall! He said a good stall would cost me around $400 and I thought that was a little pricey?
This is just a cruiser with an occasional trip the the strip with my wife and kids!!! Not looking to spend any serious money at this time!!!
What are your opinions?

If it needs bored, It dont mean that you have to stroke it.

If it needs bored, just do a .030 over if that will clean it up, then put a 3.85" stroke 460 crank in it with new forged pistons and get a cam from Lem. That should be all that is needed period. Good 460 crank and pistons will be less than just the 429 pistons. If by some chance you can't find a 460 crank for less than $75 I would be surprised.

Sounds like a cool car. Why don't you post up the name of that shop because that is the first thing I would do. With all the big block Ford guys in your neck of the woods someone is bound to have some feedback or at least heard of them. There are so many hacks and bowtie babies out there that don't know squat about big block Fords and you could very well be throwing away good money. I am not saying they can't be a good shop but I would ask around. Time and time again we see stories on here of people having all kinds of problems due to lack of knowledge and poor work quality and it is usually in an effort to save money or use the local chevy guy.


Good luck,

jasonf wrote:Sounds like a cool car. Why don't you post up the name of that shop because that is the first thing I would do. With all the big block Ford guys in your neck of the woods someone is bound to have some feedback or at least heard of them. There are so many hacks and bowtie babies out there that don't know squat about big block Fords and you could very well be throwing away good money. I am not saying they can't be a good shop but I would ask around. Time and time again we see stories on here of people having all kinds of problems due to lack of knowledge and poor work quality and it is usually in an effort to save money or use the local chevy guy.


Good luck,

Very good advise.

sounds like a cool car

Cropper Racing Engines in Flemingsburg, KY. Any horror stories I should be aware of?

Talk with Lem Evans (at BF Evans Ford) and see about Jet Boat Bob, Mike Phillips at AMP, or Laws doing a rebuild for ya, First rate guys and no horror stories.

I spoke to Lem on the phone this afternoon and got some good advice and answers today!

I've got the motor ready to pull out of the Torino now so I'll get it on an engine stand this weekend so I can see how much damage has been done on the bottom end...