Engine ID puzzle

[Lambo]

I am trying to id the motor in my 68 F250 4x4 and not sure of what I am finding. Looking at information on this site, I have performed the stroke measurement using TDC and cylinders 1 and 4. However the measurement I am coming up with is either 3.625 or 3.6875 inches and this doesn't match anything on the chart. I know the motor has been changed out because their is an old crimped over dipstick tube on the front of the motor and from what I have read here, that is not correct for my truck. My truck is supposed to have a 360, but believing motor has been changed, I am trying to determine what I have. The casting number is a C7ME-A, which the chart says is either a 330 or a 428 PI. But the stroke measurement I get doesn't appear to be a 428. To make matters even more baffling, the guy I bought the truck from told my son the motor had an aluminum 4V PI manifold on it which he kept. This truck had been in a lumber yard and had the rear end converted to dual wheels and had a custom heavy duty flat bed on it when I purchased it. I have put it back to single wheels and regular 8 ft. bed. Given the HD use it seemed to have gotten in the lumber yard, and looks like it had a snow plow on it too, I am wondering if they didn't need more horsepower and transplanted a 428 PI motor into the truck? But then there is the stroke measurement that doesn't seem to match the 428 information in the chart. I have a set of Stan's tri-y headers coming and want to install a Comp cam and better heads for more HP, but don't want to put that on a 330. This is driving me nuts! Any help in identifying my motor would be much appreciated.

[idaho_cowboy]

Probably a 360 and you're measuring tool is in the compression dish of the piston giving you a false measurement. Could be a 390 also, from a car. Does it have a rear sump oil pan?

- Joseph

[Lambo]

Yes it has the rear sump oil pan as that is a necessity for the 4wd. I thought about the pistons being an issue but wondered if it might be the opposite problem with a domed piston in a 428PI motor? Do stock pistons have cut outs for the valves in a 360? With the casting number being listed as possibly a 428PI or 330 medium truck motor, I didn't consider a different c.i. motor. Plus with previous owner removing a police interceptor aluminum manifold, I didn't think they made a 360 PI Motor. I know they made a 352 PI motor as I had one years ago in a 48 Ford F1 I owned.

[1972hiboy]

http://www.fordification.com/forum/view ... hp?t=39961

This may help.

[Lambo]

Thank you Rich. It looks like whether I want to or not, the only real way to tell is to pull a head and get a good bore and stroke measurement. If anyone knows of another reliable way, I am all ears. The previous owner telling us he had removed the PI manifold had my hopes up.

Lambert

[Lee]

Hi,...

You could drop the pan and see what numbers are on the crank.

Lee

[1972hiboy]

Hi,...

You could drop the pan and see what numbers are on the crank.

Lee

way easier to do on a 4x4 than a 2x4.

[Lambo]

OK, thanks. Where do I find the numbers on the crank?

[idaho_cowboy]

When you're #1 is up top shine a bright LED flashlight down. You'll see the 360 valve relief low compression pistons (also used in truck 390's). That will give you an idea on where to feel for your measurement.

Previous owner didn't know what he was talking about...

- J

[1972hiboy]

OK, thanks. Where do I find the numbers on the crank?

its stamped into the crank face that faces you when your looking up at it from the gorund. rotate it around and wipe the counterweights off and you will find it.

[Lambo]

Thanks Rich.

[tnlprt]

The number on the crank will be on the 3rd counter weight from the front

All 428 engines came with flat top cast pistons ...None had domes from the factory

Casting numbers are practicably useless when trying to determine the cubic inch with the FE engine

Ford never made a bad FE head some are just better than others

360/390/410 and the plain jane 428 all shared the same head of the period

All FE engines have the dipstick hole drilled into the block above the oil filter adapter even the 360 destined for the 4X4 truck

[Lambo]

I just crawled out from under my truck after removing the oil pan and found one digit stamped into the third counter balance from the front like you said. It appears that area was machined flat where the letter is stamped. The letter is not complete and is either the top half of an R or the bottom half of a B reversed. I checked the crankshaft file here on this site under engines and there are only two crankshafts that have one digit and both are 428 motors. Does this mean I have a 428 even though my stroke check on cylinders 1and 4 didn't come up to 3.98? The block casting of C7ME-A indicates it could be a 428 and the date code of 7L27 by the oil filter says it was made 11/27/67 if I decoded correctly. All of this with what previous owner told my son about taking a PI intake off the motor is making me lean toward a 428 PI. The thing that doesn't make sense is the stroke measurement I took. Can anyone help me make sense of what I have? I don't know what else to check at this point.

Second easier question is what should the oil capacity be with filter change, 6 or 7 qts?

Thanks,

[Lambo]

After thinking about this more, is it possible that the crankshaft is a reman? It doesn't appear from the pictures on this site that the area where the crankshaft casting number is was supposed to be milled flat. If that is true, then someone has done this besides the factory. Is it standard for crankshafts that have been redone to be like this?

[tnlprt]

I just crawled out from under my truck after removing the oil pan and found one digit stamped into the third counter balance from the front like you said. It appears that area was machined flat where the letter is stamped. The letter is not complete and is either the top half of an R or the bottom half of a B reversed. I checked the crankshaft file here on this site under engines and there are only two crankshafts that have one digit and both are 428 motors. Does this mean I have a 428 even though my stroke check on cylinders 1and 4 didn't come up to 3.98? The block casting of C7ME-A indicates it could be a 428 and the date code of 7L27 by the oil filter says it was made 11/27/67 if I decoded correctly. All of this with what previous owner told my son about taking a PI intake off the motor is making me lean toward a 428 PI. The thing that doesn't make sense is the stroke measurement I took. Can anyone help me make sense of what I have? I don't know what else to check at this point.

Second easier question is what should the oil capacity be with filter change, 6 or 7 qts?

Thanks,

428 crank numbers are
1U
1UA
1UB

No 428 crank only has 1 letter or digit

A picture of the counterweights would help ...So would a picture of the stamped crank number

C7ME-A can be a 360 or a 390 or a 410 or a 428
CASTING NUMBERS on the block mean NOTHING in that era
Typical crank number stamped into the crank pictured