DIY F100 360 Engine rebuild?

[scooter83]

new to the forum. I just bought a 69 F100 with a 360 in it. I knew it had a noise in the engine when I bought it, but I thought it was on the top of the engine. Mechanic says it's on the bottom. Sounds great cold, but once it warms up you can hear a rattling noise when accelerating and staying at a steady 45 mph. Oil pressure is good at low RPM but around 8PSI at high RPM. Mechanic says needs new cam, some bearings, lifters, etc.... Quoted out $3800 to rebuild.

I've always wanted to rebuild an engine myself. I've pulled engines and transmissions, replaced auxiliary parts, and painted many cars. Never been inside an engine other than pulling the valve covers and oil pan to paint engine. Think I can do it?

Do I just need to buy an engine rebuild kit? my concern comes with knowing whether or not I will have to rebore it or not, and if so, then what kind of pistons or piston rings will I need? I want to keep it stock. Just as an occasional cruise to work or lumber yard. Any special tools?

Thanks!

[colnago]

That's a pretty good description of my truck, too. I have a 352 with low vacuum (probably due to two known cylinders that have input valves that won't close all the way). I was just going to have the heads rebuilt, but a friend said that if the top end needs rebuilding, then the bottom end probably does as well. My truck runs well enough for in-town, so I found a block on craigslist, bought a rebuild kit off of ebay, and am diving in. I had all the machine work done by a shop in town. He bored and honed the cylinders, polished the crank, put hardened seats and new valves in the heads, and replaced the cam bearings. I figured that I could put it all together myself, as long as I take my time.

My progress is slow, because I've never done anything like this, so I spend a lot of time reading and asking questions. But I think the only specialty tool I had to buy was a torque wrench, which I already needed for everything else. And an engine stand. I'm using the yellow "Big Block Ford" book as a guide. Whenever I need a sanity break, I tell my wife, "I'm going outside to swear at the truck," and wrench on the engine for a while. It's fun (mostly), and it keeps me out of the bars.

Joseph

[71Fe2O3]

It is certainly possible for someone with reasonable mechanical skill to rebuild a 360, and, depending on how worn out it is and how much you want to spend on parts, you could probably do it for less than $2000. You can remove it from the truck and take it apart by yourself, and consult with a good machine shop about boring out the cylinders and related work. Time spent discussing the job with a good machinist will be very educational.

If you are going to go that route you should educate yourself about the engine and the procedures involved in rebuilding. I found Steve Christ's book, Rebuilding Ford Big Block Engines (or something like that) very helpful when I was considering rebuilding my 360. Though I ended up buying another engine when mine turned out to be too worn out, I spent a lot of time with that book and found it very informative.

If you don't want to spend the money and time it takes to rebuild, buy a replacement engine. There are a lot of them out there. I found one on eBay for less than $300 several years ago, replaced the timing chain and gear, cleaned out the rusty old coolant, replaced belts and hoses, cleaned the oil returns and put it in. It has been running ever since in my plow vehicle. You certainly take a chance by doing it that way, but it is a lot easier, and certainly cheaper in the short run.

Another possibility is to buy a replacement engine and rebuild it while you drive yours. You can stretch out the time and cost, and think through the possibilities without having your vehicle laid up.

The more people you ask, the more answers you will get about possibilities, so you will have to search your soul and research the costs and benefits of, for example making it into a 390, adding high performance parts, or just keeping it stock.

Whichever way you go, good luck on your project.