Unfortunately, Tasca Ford is now a Lincoln/Mercury dealer, and they have moved from their original location. I found a number for them when I was (and still am) trying to track down some of their metal dealer emblems. They called me back a few days later, telling me the above, and that much of their old records are lost or gone. MAYBE, just maybe, somebody had the forethought to stash away the old records, but they haven't surfaced yet. Hope this helps. Aloha, Robert

thanks james

Aluminum retainers have no place except on the shelf of a nostalgia collector. They are, as you found, prone to erosion by the rocker arm due to their extra thickness, prone to valve pull-through due to the soft nature of aluminum, and erosion by the valve spring sending slivers of aluminum throughout the oil system, amongst other things. Replace them ASAP, unless you have a NASCAR team's budget that will allow for frequent teardowns/rebuilds. They were intended to be replaced regularly during weekly rebuilds of drag race engines who wanted every last RPM squeezed out of their engine.
Try pushing a short length of rope into the spark plug hole with the piston down in the bore, and gently rotate the engine by hand until the rope has packed the cylinder tight. Voila, the valve stays put. Brought to you by somebody who doesn't always have access to compressed air. Aloha, Robert

Thanks everyone, I really appreciate your help.. I was thinking on the terms of pertronix... but it doesn't hurt to get an opinion or two :) thanks again.

Rob

Right! I'm convinced, but as I live in New Zealand, I would like to try and source a petronix locally. Does anyone know what model I need? I have a '68 GT390 Mustang with standard single point dizzy.
Thanks in advance.
Jeff

Right It is a 65 tbird.. sorry bout that... I knew I was gonna have a problem with clearance on the headers.... block is too close to the spring walls.... i got less than an inch clearnace with the stock manifold..... but hey ill keep looking for some other method out there... Maybe Ill try a set of 68 mustang headers with the FE block.... i dunno...... I can switch to a Mustang II front end... but thats only in dreams cause of the money...HAHA!.... thanks for your help anyways... looks like a pertronix ignition will be going in my 390 soon...

Thanks everyone.. and take it easy i appreciate all the help.
Rob

Yeah, got it and replied...later..FE's and `57's...cool.

What is this,a test? Here we go again! Two simple words that will represent your power goal=NITROUS OXIDE!

First off, you'll need to get a cam if you want a 1:1 HP:CID ratio at the flywheel. Emissions regulations sorta put the binders on any camshaft that could deliver that kinda performance.

Another complication is the compression ratio. Since 1971 was the last year Ford published HP ratings for your motor, you'll sorta have to extrapolate to realize your HP.

In 1971 the CR for the 390 2V truck motor was 8.6:1 (8.4:1 for the 360) and the HP was 255 @ 4400 (215@4400 for the 360-2V). Torque 376 @ 2600 (327@2600 for the 360). By 1972 the CR hit 8.2:1 (8.0:1 for the 360) and they no longer spoke of HP or torque numbers at all. From 1973-76, Ford no longer even published the compression ratio, though the camshaft never changed from the 1971 numbers.

Interestingly, the D4TE block of 1974 frequently had reinforced main bearing saddles (but normal thickness 390 cylinder walls), so that block was designed to take a bit of a hammering, so long as it wasn't bored out too far. With the historically good rods and crank of the 1964-later 390, this appears to be a shortblock that can handle some extra horsepower.

Sadly, it also means you need both pistons and cam to make your shortblock roar. The good part is that 1968 390GT pistons probably weigh the same, so you probably need not rebalance your motor if you wish to switch pistons (I'm presently researching piston weight criteria - don't have results yet). You have "full emissions" heads, which have been the norm since 1968 (and good for an easy 400HP, but limited beyond that point) - so you will need headers which mate to the relocated "full emission" exhaust runners (forget Hooker or Hedman, think FPA).

As I was trending, you'll need headers, an intake manifold (iron CJ, alum PI, or Ed Performer RPM), a carb, pistons, and a cam to get the HP you seek. fortunately, you can easily reach the 400HP number with this combo and live for a long time to tell about it. Note that with the new cam, a new set of lifters is necessary, as are stiffer valve springs and non-rotating retainers and locks. New valves are needed, in order to to work with the non-rotating type of valve stem locks, so you are talking non-trivial stack of ordinary parts to get the HP you seek.

You can save a few bucks by sticking with your stock exhaust setup. That will cost you a couple dozen HP, but you can always "bolt it on" later if you wish, and it's the best item to leave off outta the mix, should you decide to shave some cash from this particular upgrade.

Your 1974 motor really was set up for torque and emissions efficiency. While it's a solid motor structurally, it's not a great motor if you want cheap horsepower. It is a great motor for horsepower if you are ready to do a standard rebuild , however, as the cost of the higher compression pistons and a camshaft kit is pretty much the same as the same as the low-comp stuff.

I could go on, but will stop here. If you have questions, feel free to rattle them off. I've got plenty of wrong answers, and others around here can even offer proper advise.

Shoe.

Hello Dave,
Your right Its worth the extra money for the better gauges.
Its hard to find, but you can get copper tubing, compression rings, and compression nuts that fit oil pressure gauges, If I am not mistaken the tube size is 1/8" OD.(outside diameter)
As long as the plastic tube is not factory pressed into the back of the gauge you can run copper.Most gauges will have the threads on the back that fits 1/8" compression nuts. If its pipe thread on the back of the gauge, just use a
1/8"IPT(iron pipe thread) X 1/8"compression, adapter
I don't remember what brand gauges that I used, but I have hooked up a couple of these guages with copper tubing .

Another thing I used to do in my dirt poor days was.
Once I busted a pressure side power steering line on my
1977 Ford E150, With no money to buy a new one and needing to get to work, and being a plumber by trade, I thought theres got to be a way to use something else to get me through the week. So I took a hacksaw and cut the male and female flare nuts off of the old line, next I measured the inside diameter of the flare nuts ( which were just a little under 3/8"),and then I took the closest size copper tubing I could find (which was 5/16" ) then I flared the first end and hooked it to the pump, then I bent a circle in it ( for the engine movement) put on the other flare nut and flared the line then hooked it to the steering box and away I went, That line lasted for seven years and the only reason it failed was it was rubbing the frame, the flare joints never gave me any problems and looked fine .
Since then I have used copper tubing for power steering lines, and transmission lines on my personal vehicals without any problems, but like anything else there are rules to follow,
First-you should only use flare fittings on the transmission and power steering lines ( compression fittings can slip under high pressure).
Second-the lines have to be ancored well so they don't rub on anything, or put stress on the flare joints.
Third-make sure to install the movement loopes.
I know most people are aware of this, I am just going to put it in for anyone who may not know.
Only use steel lines and double flare joints on brake and fuel systems. Well thats enough for now. Mike Jones

Thanks for your response.
The engine was rebuilt by a friend with a machine shop.
It is a new SCJ camshaft and all new bearings.
The crank was reground .010"/.010" on the journals with new bearings to match.
The oil pump is a mellings hi volume/hi pressure both times.
The oil pickup was from Ford Powertrain Applications the first time.
The oil pickup was a standard pickup the second time.
The reason for the oil pump replacement and pickup replacement are as follows:
The builder said some of the past pumps had sticking pressure relief valves.
The pickup from Ford Powertrain was an aftermarket type with a very large pickup tube and small screen head. The builder felt that it could have been cavitating at idle.
The man who did the engine is Doug Cope in Vancouver,Wa.
He has been building FE engines since 1985 and came highly recommended by someone on Woody's Fairlane Site.
He builds about 40 engines a year and is honest and guarantees his work. He suggested that I get a good oil pressure gauge ( Auto meter ) and if it is still low, he said it was possible that the windage tray could be the problem. The clearances he had on the crank was ( .008" ) I think, but I'm not 100% sure. He said if there is still some problem, to give him a call. He said as a general rule that 10psi per 1,000 rpm is normal, but it should be a little higher. I'm currently using 20-50wt. Valvoline racing oil. The engine only has about 2 hrs runtime ( after pre-break in by Doug and installation in my Fairlane, if that many hours )
This is all that I know at this point, let me know what you think and If you can ask around and see if the opinions are the same.
Thanks!
Terry

O.K. I will keep it clean,but you need to go to the drag racing underground forum and see what he has to say about the people who post here.We cant get rid of him.All he does is sit around ranting about how a bunch of idiots on the FE board talk about using the FE engine for something other than a boat anchor.I would imagine that there were guys like him around when the ohv engines started phasing out flatheads and the sat around making fun of the guys who still tried to make power with the flathead,but at least they didnt have the internet back then and you didnt have to see them post everywhere you were trying to post.He has absolutly respect for anybody on this board so why should they let him on here?He is telling guys on the DRU forum to come ver here and waste your valuable space with trash talk.Isnt it nice that at least I can here and talked trash ans left an Email address and a real name?That is more than stosh does.