Stroked Ford 418ci V-8 Assembly - We've Got To Have Morrre Power, Captian!

But first a thin coat of gasket sealer was applied to the engine block ...

And to the mating surface of the aluminum front cover.

The synthetic fabric front cover gasket was carefully put in place--two front-cover bolts were slipped through mounting holes.

Alignment of the timing-chain cover was accomplished by using a socket that closely matched the diameter of the front cover O-ring.

Bill tightened the front-cover bolts. Notice that the socket wrench is attached to the socket still in place on the crankshaft.

Another small but import-ant engine builder's tip: Bill uses a single-edge razor blade to trim the bottoms of the front-cover gasket. This will help prevent even a small oil leak around the oil pan gasket.

We selected a Melling oil pump for reliability, complete with a chrome-moly oil-pump shaft.

We were also fortunate to obtain an anodized split-front/rear Milodon oil pan, windage tray and rear sump oil pickup. Milodon reports that windage trays help create power. On a 400hp street engine, a louvered windage tray can add about 12 to 15 hp; a more sophisticated screen tray can add up to 25 hp.

Bill checked out the oil pump on the bench. Four mounting bolts and an oil-pump shaft were ready to install. But a test fit was the first step.

With the front-mount oil pump bolted in place, Bill began to check clearances of the inter-nal oiling system.

The oil pump comes very close to the crankshaft counterweight. Bill recommends a minimum of .050-inchclearance between the oil pump and crankshaft.

Bill took this opportunity to make a preliminary check of the windage tray clearance.

Bill sights along the crankshaft, under the tray. Again the distance from the tray to the crankshaft was very tight. A minor adjustment to the shape would be made to clear the rod-cap bolts.

The oil pump was prepared for installation with a generous squirt of pre-lube.

An oil-pump drive fitting for the Melling oil-pump shaft was installed in the oil pump before mounting it to the engine block. It's an important part of the oiling system. And the last problem you want with a new engine is oil starvation.

Now a bit of locking fluid was added to the bolt threads.

With the Melling oil pump shaft in place, the Melling oil pump was secured to the engine block.

Next Bill bolted the Milodon oil pickup in place to pre-fit the Milodon windage tray and oil pan.

With the Milodon oil pickup and windage tray in place, Bill rotated the crankshaft to check for clearance.

One little click was heard when a rod cap came in contact with the tray. A minor shave of the rod cap provided the clearance needed for a silent rotation of the balanced rotating assembly.

Finally Bill was satisfied with the minor adjustments to the windage tray and rod cap. A bit of thread lock on the studs and the bottom-end was nearly complete.

We learned an important part of engine assembly is pre-fitting (or test fitting) each part before final assembly. He checked the Milodon oil pan for clearance of the oil pickup and windage tray.

When Bill was satisfied that every part of the oiling system was correct, gasket sealer was applied to the engine-block side of the oil pan gasket.

The synthetic fabric oil-pan gasket fits perfectly on the sides of the block.

Two plastic seals fit snugly into the front and rear crankshaft.

A bead of gasket sealer was applied over the plastic crankshaft seals.

About an hour after the assembly began, the anodized oil pan was put in place and secured with the oil-pan bolts.

Systemax aluminum cylinder heads (356-T6), by a division of Holley, are a significant weight saving over cast iron heads. The intake and exhaust runners, designed to flow a maximum amount of air, produce optimum power for 351W Ford engines. Computer-designed combustion chambers are engineered for the best combination of torque and horsepower. These heads were checked for proper valvespring pressure before we arrived.

COMP Cams lifters are stronger with a chrome-moly pushrod cup and C-type retainer clips. A stock lifter typically has a sintered-iron pushrod cup and a U-shaped horseshoe clip that can be prone to malfunction at higher rpm. The COMP Cams lifter will also improve oil supply to the cam lobe.

Bill does a preliminary check for burrs or foreign material in the block before oiling and installing the hydraulic lifters. This will assist greatly to prevent problems later.