At this point I have a small but useful inventory, having reduced my projects down to a very tight focus.
~One of those projects is NOT a Ford, but will be the parts getter that will make all the rest possible.

I have a potential gain for a project that will be a truck - but a truck of a size that would seem ridiculous in America. I've been thinking for years that it would be very cool to get my hands (paws?) on a Thames Delivery van, but even if I COULD find one it would be priced out of reach. So the method and the madness dictate a different approach entirely. "MORON" this later...

The most advanced (as in most progress on) project in the Ford Truck venue I have right now is a 1989 Ford Ranger that has a 351W mounted in it at this time, but needs danged near everything else.

I have a couple of engines waiting in the wings for future funds and frankly transportation to go get parts and God knows what all else. (SEE: NON-Ford Project, above)

I've also got a stripped down 1989 (I think) Ranger chassis that came from a V6 truck. It donated a bed that I am making a trailer out of, and also a rear half of a cab that will be useful for the "MICROTRUCK" project sometime in the future.

The important thing for me to do right now is to not allow myself to get scattered. I have a budget that is so tight it squeaks...

I'll drop a few pics in here as I manage to round them up. Not much can happen for a while yet though.

At least I have more than enough tools and skills to do what I plan on, too bad I haven't hit the lotto for some major parts cash - that would be the bomb.

Another bright side is that several years ago I changed status from REMF to ORMF (Old Retired Mother...) so I really have very little else to do with my time and skills.

 

I hope you come into funds soon, I have always liked your ideas for builds. I still love the fiesta/truck idea.

I don't recommend coming into some cash the way I did, having a van pull out in front of me on a motorcycle lol.

But I hope you can do some stuff soon.

 

Good luck & congrats Wolfie

 

Looking forward to your updates.

 

Right now I have to get "Something completely different" running and registered.

But this is my reason for being here, and what all the rest is for:
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Hi Wolfie.Know what you mean about tight budget.Just the other day my wife said"Honey,we`re so poor we can`t even pay attention".
Good luck.Have fun.Be safe.
Leo

 

Yeah, just look at my tagline! LOL

 

Love v8 rangers, had 2, one with a stock 302 and another stock 351w. We used to race the Stranger(351) vs Supercoupe for fun, about even going about 90-95mph in the quarter mile. Even a stock Windsor just toys with that light ranger, so much fun to drive!

Cool build. If you have any question, I think I still remember some of the unique oem parts it took. I still have a nice set of 260 exhaust mani's that work well for the 351 swap...

Is that a Cleveland on the stand or M?

 

It's an "M"

The one major difference that I have identified between them is heaviness of structure. The M has a much heavier crank, with bigger main journals. The block also seems to be a little bit stouter - I was always told that whenever you deal with a Cleveland the first and most important step is to have it magnafluxed for cracks as completely as possible, you want a Cleve' expert to look it over.

The 351M and 400M are both die hard truck engines, they don't make real great racing engines because that heavy crank doesn't spin up as fast, nor will it really go to as high an RPM as a lighter crank. But what it will do is to NOT BREAK.

It's a cement mixer or industrial engine.

If you are building for reliability rather than speed it's a better choice. If you wanna go fast - you need to grab a Windsor and have it run out to 408.

Clevelands are for collectors. You dang sure don't want a Cleve if you are a weekend rodder. I mean - yeah, the kudos and notoriety is there, but Cleves are much harder to replace if you bust one.

Both M's and Cleves are also heavier being midblock rather than smallblock engines.

*Now watch Bill jump in and make me feel like a mental midget on the topic. Which I don't mind coming from him

 

Have been around them too, pro jected a 400 with 2bbl cleveland heads in a 79 supercab 4x4. Little difference between m and c 2bbl heads, but if I wound up selling them, rebuilt cleveland heads would certainly bring more than m's around here. Have had a few clevelands, even a set of pro stock heads with the raised exhaust port mods, just never wound up using a C. Agreed, mag the cylinders and oil restrictors and they are pretty good. The 400 in the supercab got great milage and pulled very strong with a mild cam, correct timing chain and 600 holley.

 

I once had a '73 Gran Torino that turned out to have a Factory 4bbl Cleveland in it - that was one cash sucking monster to rebuild, both heads were ruined and the machine shop I went with found a set on a shelf in South Bay San Diego. Somebody paid to have them done and never picked them up....

That one was the notorious vacuum dumper that you stuck your foot into with mechanical secondaries on a spread bore and it just plain "GULPED" and died, until it got some venturi action going again - big Cleves were sorta notorious for that, and are why we have vacuum actuated secondaries on serious carbs

That sonnabeeotch was a true four-bolt main full blown screamer, but as far as I know after I had to let it go it wound up in a scrapyard.

I told a guy at NAS Miramar about it, and I think he found the car in a wrecking yard. From what I told him about the heads, he went back and salvaged the heads for a '73 Ranchero he had that was an absolutely sweet car. He deserved to get those parts!

 

I would never think that of him - he's too good a man.

THX for the heads up, a lot of us are getting on in years, and we wonder sometimes where our old friends are.

Any word on Dennis?

 

I was looking at that truck today, with mixed feelings. I almost want to rip that engine back out and plant it in my other chassis so that when I fit a cab onto it, the mechanical side of the house will all be a done deal.

I thought about a body lift, low profile valve covers, and was also looking at the steering link to the gearbox. There is NO WAY to move the gearbox, but the shaft itself can be modded. I wondered where it all would sit with the body dropped back down - and a three inch body lift is NFW going to happen! It would throw everything else off a mile.

And I keep thinking about extending the nose by cutting the front supports out of a Mustang to give it 2" more space behind the radiator.


~I have time, I want this one right. It will not be "JACKASSED" together...


But it almost wants a custom frame made out of square tube