Progress Thread '93 Kenne Bell Notch

CarMichael Angelo said:

There used to be a day believe it or not when a 351 Windsor was a dog, and a 351 Cleveland was king.
From the 1st time it was used in prostock in 1970, through the mid 80's, it was the king of the Ford small block.
But that was before somebody started making aftermarket heads for the Windsor. The day that World products first made a cast iron set of good heads for a Windsor based engine was the day that a 351 Cleveland was doomed to restoration only status.

A 351c has its own fair share of negative issues..as well as a few benefits as a build up, so I'll list the good and the bad.

Pro:
You don't see the engine everyday, and in a fox the thing looks freakin huge because of the heads. It's different.
The crank mains are smaller in diameter than a Windsor, potentially better for bearing life.
The stock 4bbl heads are very capable of flowing enough CFM to support relatively high hp numbers.

Con:
the 4 bbl heads are cast iron. Heavy as all three pigs in a basket, and have flow issues at low RPM. ( the exhaust port needs restrictor plates that serve as a fix for a poor floor design)
The engine has oiling issues that you have to fix with restrictors as well, or the top end of the engine gets too much oil, and the crank starves at high rpm.
You will not have very many choices for exhaust, and what you find will be expensive, and potentially huge for the street ( like 2" primary tube, 3.5" collector long tube only)
The intake choices suck, as this engine never saw the efi revolution, so you'll be forced to take a carbureted intake, and convert it.
Nothing that fits a Windsor, fits a Cleveland.
The aftermarket makes several different heads to choose from now, from a smaller exhaust port aluminum head ( edelbrock) but it's based on a street friendly port and valve size
( edelbrock performer maybe) ...to a really good race head from trick flow.
With a few other castings in between.
So a head isnt really that much of a problem anymore.
Similar to the above, There is a ford made cast iron head out there called a 2bbl head, but the chamber is open, and terrible for use in a boosted or power adder engine.
There is also a cast iron 2bbl head out there from ford Australia that has a closed chamber, but it is as rare as seeing a 5.0 in a Camaro, and again, both cast iron head options are heavy, and old as dirt.
You'll have to source a double sump pan
As well.

There is a reason that dudes bare block is sitting, buried in his garage..But.....where there's a will, a buttload of money, and a whole bunch of know-how, there's a way.

I know a guy that has a 351 Cleveland style head on a six cylinder that he put in a Fairmont. Talk about stupid..

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