Gumball
07-05-2011, 09:57 PM
Well, today I started actually working on my first engine build. What started as a re-gasketing and rattlecan rebuild of the 302 out of '94 SVT Mustang Cobra #831 (my donor) has turned into quite a different project - sort of like my entire build. A friend with vintage race shop first suggested that in order to get the cam I want (lumpy) to work best, we really would need a bit more compression to really make it "pop." Well, one thing led to another and now we're in the final steps of building a 347 stroker that should put out somewhere in the low 400 range of hp and torque. We started with a forged Scat reciprocating assembly, had a local machine shop handle all the block prep and balancing, and are re-dressing the engine "old-school" style with a carb and an early style front cover with mechanical fuel pump. After a few months of gathering parts, I went to his shop today to begin assembly. I took the week off from my day job to be an engine builder for a few days. Today we did a final clean and check of everything and assembled the short-block, including painting the block, and installing the crank, pistons & rods, cam, and timing set. Tomorrow we'll button-up the front cover and bottom end, then work on finishing the head machining and hopefully get the heads assembled and installed. I'll take some pictures tomorrow and update this post.