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1961 401-hp 390 info (FE)
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Posted by: Mr. P

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Posted by: Tang

I already knew all about it...lol

Really tho, I wonder what that 401hp is by todays measurment standards ? 275 or so ?...lol

Posted by: Mr. P

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Posted by: Tang

It would be cool to get to drive a car with the 427 cammer

The basic version of the crate engine made around 600hp on pump gas, and that wasnt the racing version,

Posted by: SVOno5oh

The biggest difference between the old engines of yore and those of today was the ease of picking up power. On today's cars, things are optimized. Heck Honda is making 240 hp from 2.0L, you aren't going to do much to make it better. You can't tweak the A/F ratio, add headers, swap cams, put on a better exhaust system, and get 100 more hp like you could in the old days.

No joke it was very common to find big block cars pick up 50+ hp just by recurving the distributor, indexing plugs, putting on a set of headers and rejetting the carb. Sound nuts? Talk to the old timers. Most of these cars left the factory in a very poor state of tune with all the hard parts there to make insane power. It just took a guy that knew what he was doing to make the cars monsters. That's why Royal Bobcat Pontiac GTOs were the most sought after of their day and still now. They had all the work done for you, and made ridiculous power.

If you can't make 400+ hp from a 400+ cubic inch engine you just aren't trying very hard.

I will have to agree though that the ratings used back then are not very comparble to todays. The SAE changed the standard in 1972. It's hard to say exactly what the old motors would do today. Heck its really hard to find one that isn't modified or in a very poor state of tune. Honestly, just how well do you expect NOS plug wires and coils from the '60s to carry juice to the plugs? It's sick how bad some show cars run, and its sick (in a different way) how fast some old cars run that aren't show cars. I've seen some old iron at the track that would leave you shocked. The worst two I ever saw were a well out of tune Cougar Eliminator and a Plymouth Superbird running head to head. It was sad. The best I ever saw was a very well taken care of and very mildly modified Mercury Cyclone Spoiler.

Posted by: Mr. P

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Posted by: Tang

pretty cool stuff

Posted by: Mr. P

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Posted by: Tang

Hey P, how about giving me one of those 427's you have laying around there...lol

Posted by: Mr. P

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Posted by: Tang

Check your PM's Mr P

Posted by: Mr. P

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Posted by: Tang

I'm in SW Virginia, not far from Tennesee at all.

Posted by: Mr. P

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Posted by: 68cougarthundercat

Mr. P
I need to know were can I get some diagrams for my 390. What I really need are the pully locations and other things.

also I need to know can I put in roller lifters in with out puting in a hydrolic roller cam.
if you can help me you would make my day. Thanks
P.S
I am really new at rebuilding Eingnes so I'll need you to keep it simple.

Posted by: Mr. P

Hello Thundercat, I'm assuming you have a hydraulic motor, as most of the FE motors are. Any change in the lifters, roller rockers, or cams MUST be done with advice from the manufacturer. That's the best advice I can give you. Don't start swapping this and that, just go with the recommendations of Crane Cams, for instance, because they know exactly what their products will do in a given motor. I wouldn't be too comfortable shopping between different manufacturers either, just pick a good brand, like Crane, and stick with all of their cam and valve gear.

I have some generic motor diagrams that may give you an idea what to expect. I can also photograph my marine FE motors if necessary, but those differ a bit from automotive applications, naturally, but there are a lot of similarities. Lemme know if I can help.

I sent you a Private Message with some addl info.

Mr. P

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