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Hi, I'm Tom. I am from the UK but based with work in Singapore at the moment. Last year I bought my Pantera and suffered engine failure after my first 15 miles of driving. After researching many options and from the excellent advice on here, I have decided to go down the route of having the original engine rebuilt. I thought it might be of some use to people here to post as we go and I would REALLY value your input.


PRESENT ENGINE

Present engine is a Q-code 351 Cleveland that was rebuilt 25 years ago with "performance parts from the US" and then the car was put into a static private collection. When I bought the car, it ran very poorly, the first dyno only producing 110bhp. Yes, 110! Upon investigation we then switched the incorrect carb for the correct four barrel and did the attached Dyno run (no laughing please!!):

Engine Power: 177 bhp @ 4845 rpm
Wheel Power: 148 bhp @ 4845 rpm
Torque: 243 lbsft @ 2752 rpm

Very disappointing and the Torque curve hits 2700rpm and then plummets down to 140 lbsft within just 1000rpm. The engine is running Hall Pantera 180 Degree Headers and a 'Dogbone (?)' air intake.


NEW ENGINE

Having looked at Windsor engines, Clev'or engines, Stroked engines, the decision has been made to work with what we have and rebuild the current engine. This also helps from an originality point of view. The aim is to have a street engine that revs high without having too lumpy an idle. I am looking for torque but consistent smooth torque across the rev range. At the end of the day, if we end up with around 400 bhp and 400 lbsft then I'll be absolutely overjoyed.

The engine is with Wren Classics in the UK and I have already handed them George's excellent tome "Guidance for 351C engine building". I am also utilising the advisory services of Roger Brotton at Threepointfour.

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  • UK_GT5_Dyno_Run
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ANCILLIARY STRIPDOWN

The carb and inlet manifold were removed along with the rocker covers. Straight away one of the key problems was bent and loose pushrods (as attached). It seems as if the valves and seats haven't been modified to take the cam.

Next stage is to take the engine and gearbox out of the car, leaving a nice clean engine bay.

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  • Ancilliaries
ENGINE STRIPDOWN AND REPORT

Wren took the engine and gearbox out of the car yesterday and we're now discovering a whole raft of reasons as to why the engine wasn't running properly. Some of these so called 'performance parts' weren't in existence or very poorly installed. Do excuse my sometimes lack of knowledge but I am very pleased to have the expertise online here and at Wren.


In terms of specification of the engine as is, we have:

Engine block Ford 1972
Crankshaft 351 Boss 1971
Cylinder Heads Early Boss 4V
Camshaft Comp Cams 32-225-4 (06296) as new cond'
Push rods 8.402-5”
Inlet valve 2 3/16” diameter
Exhaust valve 1 45/64 diameter
Crank end float 13” thou


We also have measurements and tests on valve lift and compression:

Camshaft lift Exhaust 307"
Inlet 305"
Valve compression Exhaust 352"
Inlet 468"
Valve to piston clearance Exhaust 388 degrees at top dead centre
Inlet 304 degrees



ENGINE REPORT


Clutch cover has been fouling gearbox adapter plate.
Clutch assembly very basic and agricultural.
Starter ring gear very worn and damaged from starter.
Cam timing out of alignment.
All pistons show signs of contact with cylinder head face, witness marks on both head. Piston faces, pistons also show signs of engine hasn’t been running on all 8 cylinders (cam!).
No 5 cylinder, big end cap wrong way round.
All bores at +30.
Crank bearing in very poor condition for limited miles engine has run, all shells damaged and consistent with poor assembly and preparation practices.
Crankshaft on +20 mains and big ends.
Conrod journals show signs of being stretched.
Witness marks on rear shells from movement and pistons fouling heads.
Edelbrock timing gears fitted, but have been modified to fit into crankshaft. Advise good chain and sprocket replacement.
Hydraulic lifter in as new condition, don’t know as yet if suitable for present cam.
Crankshaft shows signs of assembly damage on some journals and oil ways not dressed! Offering sharp edges to shell bearings, copper showing.

CONCLUSIONS

Crank would go again but would require dressing and attention.
Engine block sound, but would need further checks to block height, due to pistons extending out of bores.
Pistons ok, all have scoring on skirts, these could be faced to overcome protrusion.
Conrods are scrap.
Valve gear springs etc – replace.
Camshaft chain and sprocket required.
Hydraulic lifters ok.

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  • Bellhousing
I'm certainly not an expert when it comes to this type of thing but I believe your pistons are suitable for a mild street build. Of course, that depends upon which cylinder heads you have. You're OK as long as you have closed chamber heads. If you have open chamber heads, your compression ratio might be a bit low with these pistons. You're best checking with Sealed Power for specs.
Tom,

Sorry to hear of your woes so early in ownership, but once the engine is done you are going to have one great Pantera on your hands.

Being in the UK Cleveland parts are probably not as easy to come by, so what we might just replace here may be a re-use for you e.g. crank.

A few things that come to mind;

As you have been forced to go this far, it would be worth checking the cylinder wall thickness to ensure that block is sound for re-use.

You mightbe able to get away with thicker head gaskets to solve the piston protusion problem.

Lower on you priority list at present, but do consider a 9 quart baffled Pantera specific oil pan (sump) as offered by Aviaid or Armando.

You likely have a stock Ford 11" clutch, which are known to foul the bell housing as the clearance is minimal. Consider a Pantera specific replacement from Centerforce or McCleod.

If you need them I have a good set of used stock conrods (my rebuild is going upgraded H beam). I'd have to separate the pistons, but they are yours for cost of packing & shipping.

If you need other parts that can be shipped from this side of the pond, then Summit Racing is a few blocks away from my work, just let me know.

Julian
Hi Tom,

> I am from the UK but based with work in Singapore at the moment.

I was there just in Singapore a few months ago. I guess I should have
posted to see if any owners were there. In case any Pantera owners are
nearby, I'll be in Montreal, Canada (specifically Mirabel, Quebec), Belgium
and Dayton, Ohio in the near future.

> Cylinder Heads Early Boss 4V

Those cylinder heads are not Boss. Boss heads had adjustable valve train and
were set up with studs and guide plates. Are the heads open or closed chamber?
Post a picture of combustion chambers if you can. If you retain the cylinder
heads, be aware that 4V heads respond well to smoothing of the bowl area just
below the valve seats and short side radius work.

> we then switched the incorrect carb for the correct four barrel

Can you provide the list number on the carb (stamped on the choke air horn)?
The intake pictured is a single plane Edelbrock Torker.

> Your pistons are Sealed Power (Speed-Pro) part number: L2379F.

Both TRW and Sealed Power/Speed Pro used the same L2379F part numbers (TRW
was acquired by Federal Mogul, parent company of Sealed Power/Speed Pro).
The pistons changed after TRW was acquired and the later L2379F pistons are
Speed Pros. Yours are Speed Pros as evidenced by the Speed Pro logo stamped
into the piston top. They are forged flat top pistons. The current versions
have coated skirts. Do yours? You mention the engine was built 25 years ago.
I believe it has been into more recently as those pistons didn't exist at that
time (only the TRW version did).

> Any idea whether they are appropriate, inappropriate for this build?

Assuming they aren't damaged, they should be fine for a street high
performance build.

> Engine block sound, but would need further checks to block height, due to
> pistons extending out of bores.

Cometic will make custom thickness head gaskets to offset the decked block.

> Camshaft Comp Cams 32-225-4 (06296) as new cond'

That's a single pattern Comp Cams 280H flat tappet hydraulic camshaft.
Specs are:

280 degrees duration at 0.050" lift
230 degrees advertised duration
0.530" lift
110 lobe separation angle
60 degrees of overlap

> We also have measurements and tests on valve lift and compression:
> Camshaft lift Exhaust .307" Inlet .305"

351C rocker ratio is 1.73:1. 0.530/1.73:1 = 0.306" lobe lift which
checks with what you've measured.

> Push rods 8.402-5

If those were right to begin with, they won't be with a thicker head gasket
or an undecked block.

> Inlet valve 2 3/16 diameter
> Exhaust valve 1 45/64 diameter

Those are 4V valve diameters (2.19" intake, 1.71" exhaust). You need
to check if the valve stems are single or multi groove. If the valves
have multiple grooves, throw them away. If not, look for part numbers
(usually near the tips). Are you retaining the rocker arms? If so,
post a close up picture of the rocker arms. They should have steel
(not aluminum fulcrums) and there is a potential issue with higher lift
cams (lugged vs unlugged rockers). See the info here:



You oil pan capacity is standard. There were several variations of
that pan. Some had scrapers and a baffle like this one:



However, Panteras set up with good tires are capable of uncovering the oil
pick up during hard cornering or braking. Armondo and Aviad make custom
Pantera gated and baffled larger capacity oil pans.




More tech info here:

http://www.bacomatic.org/galle...ars/album04/album24/

> The aim is to have a street engine that revs high without having too lumpy
> an idle. I am looking for torque but consistent smooth torque across the
> rev range.

Street performance 4V Clevelands built with a fair bit of overlap tend to
come on like a light switch around 3000 RPM. It takes some experience to
know what to do to get around that.

> At the end of the day, if we end up with around 400 bhp and
> 400 lbs-ft then I'll be absolutely overjoyed.

Is that at the crank or at the wheels? You won't do it at the wheels
with a smooth idle open chamber 351C-4V. Properly assembled and dialed
in, the parts you have now are maybe 370 HP at the crank, 300 at the
rear tire, assuming you have enough carb.

> Edelbrock timing gears fitted, but have been modified to fit into crankshaft.
> Camshaft chain and sprocket required.
> Advise good chain and sprocket replacement.

Be aware there are some very bad timing chain sets out there.
Most vendors of timing sets do not make the timing sets they sell. Instead,
they repackage the chain and gears from multiple vendors. You need to know
who made the sprockets and chains. One of the guys on the FE Big Block Ford
forum used to work at Speed Pro. When he worked there they had offshore
companies trying to be suppliers, so they piggybacked some chain and sprocket
testing on an OE bearing durability dyno run. The Rolon chain from India
cost them the test motor a couple times when it failed before the test was
completed. Having just disassembled a 351C that had a Rolon chain, I can
believe it. This engine had approximately 8000 miles on the chain and it
was stretched worse than the one I pulled from my 5.0L at 163,000 miles. A
summary of the test results for the chains is listed below. Speed Pro ended
up using Dynagear sprockets and Morse chain but had some quality control
issues then Dynagear went out of business. After that they sourced the high
end Cloyes sets (which used high quality Renold and Iwis chain) and the
quality control complaints went away. Take a look at the name on the
sprockets and the name on the chain and let me know what they say. FWIW,
The Ford Motorsport 351C timing sets I've purchased have used the Renold
chain Mike Drew reports he recently examined a set that had a no name chain
and the top of the line J.P. Performance sets used the Iwis/Jwis chain.
The Cloyes true rollers are usually pretty good and reasonably priced and
the last Comp Cams set I examined was good.

The sprockets tend to come from Rollmaster (Australia), SA Gear (US but poor
quality) and Cloyes (US, not pretty but good quality). Avon also makes some
sprockets but sources others. Dynagear (US) used to make sprockets but went
out of business. A bunch of the performance aftermarket companies are selling
the poor quality chain from India (Rolon), along with sprockets from Australia
(Rollmaster, J.P Performance) or SA gear.

Chain durability testing summary:

Iwis (German) - looks very nice but was not tested, but has excellent
reputation as an OE supplier, used in high end Rollmaster
and some high end Cloyes sets
Cloyes (US) - tested OK
Renold (France) - tested excellent, used in most high end Cloyes sets but not
always
Morse (US and Mexico) - tested excellent
Daido (Japan) - tested excellent
Tsubaki (Japan) - tested excellent
KCM (Japan) - looks very nice but was not tested
Rolon (India) - failed test

Sprockets:

Rollmaster - Aus - pretty - never examined QA, good reputation
SA Gear - US - ugly - crappy
Cloyes - US - not pretty - good QA
Dynagear - US - out of business - so-so when they existed
Avon - some sprockets, buys everything else
Crane - buys everything
Comp - buys everything
Speed-Pro - buys everything
Ebrock - buys everything
Melling - buys everything
Elgin - buys everything

Note: Some of the test data was from Speed Pro, other from TRW.
Also, your balancer probably needs to be rebuilt or replaced. For your
application, I'd recommend an SFI spec elastomer balancer such as the
Australian made Powerbond part number PB-1082-SS (351C, 28.2 oz-in,
SFI, steel). I can put you in touch with a vendor who will meet or
beat Summit's price while verifying you get the right parts.

> The engine is running Hall Pantera 180 Degree headers

In case you aren't aware of it, I run a dyno evaluation program for this
forum (and a couple of others) where I test various Cleveland parts. We
have several engines that we test on, one of which is a 351C with L2379F
pistons. We also have a variety of intakes (including a Torker like yours)
and headers (including the Hall 180's). We've gathered a bunch of data
that's allowed me to tune a high end simulation program (Dynomation) to
permit accurate power predictions and custom cam designs that match a
specific engine. I'd be happy to help in any way I can.

Dan Jones
WOW! Dan, that is some superb information, thank you so much.

Mike Huddart at Huddart Engines(http://www.huddartengines.co.uk/) has now made a full evaluation of my engine and alas it seems that the block and crank are not going to make it, the wall thickness is just not there anymore. He has very kindly sourced me a thick walled Australian block.

He is going to supply a replacement cylinder block, fit the existing four bolt caps, line bore, bore and hone cylinders to plus .020 " with torque plates fitted and machine the deck surfaces.

We are going to convert the cylinder heads to unleaded spec. with hardened exhaust sets, bronze guides, repair damaged exhaust mountings, rebuild with new Ferrea stainless valves, new Comp Cam springs, retainers and locks.

The existing Holley carburetor as fitted is too small for 400 HP, We're going to fit a Holley "Street Avenger "

We'll be fitting a new Scat steel crankshaft, Scat longer than stock con rods, Probe forged pistons, molly rings, heavy duty bearings, high perf. steel damper, a billet steel flywheel, Centerforce HD diaphragm clutch assembly. Dynamically balance complete assembly.

There will be Lunati hydraulic camshaft / lifter kit, new cam bearings, hardened pushrods, replacement rockers. double roller timing set

High volume oil pump, heavy duty driveshaft. High volume water pump

Pertronix Electronic distributor, coil, plug leads, plugs

He'll then be building the engine, mount it on the dynamometer, run in and tune and then re torque components.

SO THE BIG QUESTION IS:

To supply as 351spec ( 5.8 Ltr ) @ around 420 HP

OR

To supply as 393 stroker spec ( 6.4 Ltr ) @ around 460 HP

Any input or comments that you have would be very much appreciated.

He has also uggested upgrades at this time which I am almost certainly going to go for.


Convert cylinder heads to "Boss" spec adjustable valve train with screw in 7/16 rocker studs, pushrod guide plates and full roller aluminum rockers plus the extra machining to cylinder heads.

Canton extra capacity, winged and baffled oil pan and pick up
> He has very kindly sourced me a thick walled Australian block.
> He is going to supply a replacement cylinder block, fit the existing four
> bolt caps, line bore, bore and hone cylinders to plus .020 " with torque
> plates fitted and machine the deck surfaces.

If the Australian block has 2 bolt mains, it is not a thick wall block.
Only the XE race blocks had thicker walls. I've owned both and the 2 bolt
main Australian blocks have walls that are no thicker than U.S. 2 bolt main
blocks. That's not a problem as long as the core shift is minimal. Have
the block sonic tested if you can.

> We are going to convert the cylinder heads to unleaded spec. with hardened
> exhaust sets, bronze guides, repair damaged exhaust mountings, rebuild with
> new Ferrea stainless valves, new Comp Cam springs, retainers and locks.
> Convert cylinder heads to "Boss" spec adjustable valve train with screw in
> 7/16 rocker studs, pushrod guide plates and full roller aluminum rockers
> plus the extra machining to cylinder heads.

Before you do all that, get a quote for the total cost. Labor rates vary
widely but with the exchange rate the way it is, you may find purchasing a
set of TFS PowerPort 190 aluminum cylinder heads to be no more expensive.
Mike Drew can keep the shipping cost to a minimum with his pilot discount
and you can sell your existing heads.

> The existing Holley carburetor as fitted is too small for 400 HP, We're
> going to fit a Holley "Street Avenger "

Wait before you order the carb to finalize everything else.

> We'll be fitting a new Scat steel crankshaft, Scat longer than stock con
> rods, Probe forged pistons, molly rings, heavy duty bearings, high perf.
> steel damper, a billet steel flywheel, Centerforce HD diaphragm clutch
> assembly. Dynamically balance complete assembly.

Check with Brent Lykins. He supplied the SCAT stroker kit for my recent
403C build. He also internally balanced for a very good price with
excellent service.

I'd recommend against the Centerforce. Check with Dennis at the Pantera
Performance Center for his Pantera specific Mcleod diaphragm clutch.

> There will be Lunati hydraulic camshaft / lifter kit, new cam bearings,
> hardened pushrods, replacement rockers. double roller timing set

For what you are doing, I'd recommend a custom cam. I can design one
suited to your particular collection of parts, then cross it against
any off-the-shelf cams to see if there is something close or have
a custom one made. Custom flat tappets are quite inexpensive.
Custom hydraulic rollers are more expensive ($299 to $399) but may be
worth the extra expense.

> High volume oil pump, heavy duty driveshaft. High volume water pump

You probably won't need a high volume pump. Better is a blueprinted
standard volume pump.

> He'll then be building the engine, mount it on the dynamometer, run in
> and tune and then re torque components.

I'm not sure if you saw the post I made on dynoing my 403C.

> To supply as 393 stroker spec ( 6.4 Ltr ) @ around 460 HP

Go for the 393C. Be aware that SCAT only lists a flat top piston
393C kit (unlike the 408C where they also have a dished piston
version) but Probe will dish the pistons for an additional cost.
The pistons you will need will depend upon the chamber volume of
your heads.

> Any input or comments that you have would be very much appreciated.

With the proper cam, you should be able to hit 500 HP and still
be easy to drive on the street.

> Canton extra capacity, winged and baffled oil pan and pick up

As far as I know, Canton does not make a Pantera pan. A winged
pan will also not within the Pantera frame rails. Armondo, Aviad
and I think Kevko make Pantera specific pans.

I just went through the costing exercise for a couple of Pantera
owners as well as for my own Pantera and can help source the
right parts.

Dan Jones
quote:
Originally posted by TCH911:

... thick walled Australian block ... fit the existing four bolt caps ... We are going to convert the cylinder heads to unleaded spec ... We're going to fit a Holley "Street Avenger " ... Centerforce HD diaphragm clutch assembly ... High volume oil pump ... heavy duty driveshaft ... Convert cylinder heads to "Boss" spec adjustable valve train with screw in 7/16 rocker studs, pushrod guide plates and full roller aluminum rockers plus the extra machining to cylinder heads ... Canton extra capacity, winged and baffled oil pan and pick up

Any input or comments that you have would be very much appreciated.



Dan has already mentioned the block is probably not what you thinkit is. Its either a standard thickness production Australian engine block, or its a US Ford rejected NASCAR block, rejected because it had too much core shift. You don't really need a heavy duty block, a standard block in good condition will suit your purposes just fine.

Dan also mentioned Canton does not make a Pantera oil pan, unless it is a new product.

The other items I've quoted above are bad choices for one reason or another, I can't take the time to explain in detail. I have the flu, it hurts to even type. I want to be supportive, but at the same time I'd like to be honest as well. Advice from a friend if you understand my meaning.

-G
Thanks to all of those that have helped and apologies for the radio silence, it has been a long old haul getting the engine to this stage.

But...it has now been on the Dyno at Huddart and the engine ran on a program for a little over two hours without any issues.

A very hot day for the testing and no a/c in the Dyno shed so not ideal testing weather but it ticks over quite happily at 650 rpm with 55 lbs oil pressure, 75 with revs and the engine hot.

Has over 20 inches of vacuum at 2500 rpm so should hopefully be very efficient at cruising speeds.

Oh and I nearly forgot...............466 ft lbs @ 4100 rpm and 471 hp @ 6000rpm

I for one am rather pleased. The engine should be going into the car over the next fortnight and looking forward to driving it when I am back in the UK in September.

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  • Rear
Final Specification of the engine was:
- We sourced a very good block, had it fully sonic tested and bored and stroked it to 393 cubic inches.
- The existing heads were completely rebuilt and modified to a customised adjustable valve train/BOSS spec.
- We used an Aviad gated oil pan and pick up.
- Everything inside the engine was replaced for brand new Ferrea/Comp Cam/Scat/Probe/Lunati components except the engine block and the cylinder head bodies.
- Holley 770 cfm Street Avenger carb.
- MSD Distributor and 6A ignition box.


Given that my whole engine bay has been smoothed and painted, I decided in the end to go low profile with the engine. My transmission is already lightly polished so we went with a silver block, silver heads, polished rocker covers, inlet manifold and air filter set up. Every hose on the engine is Aeroquip with the ubiquitous blue and red anodised fittings. Red Dizzy and black leads. I can't wait to see how it all looks hooked up to that 180-degree system.

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  • Front
FWIW:

I think you mentioned it somewhere earlier, but it would be a good time to upgrade the clutch. My personal experience (and several friend's experience with 500hp cars, non-pantera but various small block Fords) has been, that at ~500HP single disc clutches quickly become wear items. Of course it depends a lot on the driving style as well. It's not that difficult to wear out single disc clutch in one summer.

After several years of experimenting with different manufacturers and friction materials all of us have ended up with twin disc clutches (mostly McLeod I think), and haven't had to change clutches since. It is heat that kills the clutch and twins have double the surface to get rid of it and double the amount of material to wear. They may rattle though if idle is low and the cam is lumpy.

Single discs we have worn out so far include at least several Centerforces, RAM, Anderson hi rev, Hays, Motorsports, Spec Kevlar (that went very quick behind 550hp Windsor). It's not to say they don't work, just wear out fast.
Edit: All 10.5" except one 11" centerforce that didn't last any longer. All diaphragm, except one RAM that didn't last any longer.
Tom, standard 3-finger clutch covers have centrifugal weights that swing out at some rpm to add extra holding power. These do NOT fit a Pantera bellhousing and will rip out the internal reinforcing ribs (if not crack the whole bellhousing). Use ONLY 3 finger clutches without centrifugal weights, or have the weights ground off and the part rebalanced. Centerforce has a diaphragm pressure plate that works well & uses sliding, not swinging, weights. You may find that aftermarket clutches use a different bolt pattern or thread size than what your flywheel was drilled for. I didn't notice what flywheel you have, but the ring gear is separately replaceable on all. Redrilling and rethreading can be done by a competent machine shop. Or if the flywheel is stock, it can profitably be replaced from the clutch mfgr. Aftermarket flywheels are far stronger than stock & usually have multiple clutch bolt patterns.

Further back, I suggest a long-throw clutch slave cylinder. This is because heavy clutches or dual-disc types require more disengagement distance than the stock system can deliver. The distance can be checked with flat-blade feeler gauges thru the bellhousing inspection/vent port. A brand new Pantera with all-stock parts usually gave 0.040" of clearance between disc & flywheel. This is divided in two to get disengagement clearances on both sides of the disc: 0.020" is right on the ragged edge of acceptable. A dual disc cluch would need 2X that clearance to avoid drag of one or both discs. Using stock hydraulic parts often means the gear synchronizers in the ZF will drag a little with each shift.... and ZF balk-ring synchronizers are all-steel and will wear not just themselves but the mating gear-pair as well. A ZF overhaul runs around $8000 USD if most of the box is still useable. Some are over $11,000 USD... plus shipping.
All genuine ZF parts for these transaxles come from RBT Transmissions in the L.A area, as ZF sold the rights and all spares decades ago. ALL other parts are either NOT genuine or are recycled- used even though they may work OK.

Next, if you're going to re-use the cam you have, I hope you kept track of which lifter went to which position. Lifters and cam lobes mate during break-in, and this is a one-time thing. Swapping lifter positions has led to complete cam failure. If you replace the cam (Dan will have some suggestions), I suggest you include a new set of lifters & valve springs per the cam grinder's recommendations. The 351-C community has had far more early cam failures than is our fair share.
A couple of more oiling tips: replace the spring-pin found in most distributor drive gears; they will crack, stopping te engine most inconveniently. A split-pin with a second one inside, or an oversized pin from a 350 Chevy or other local engine, or even a piece of drill rod will upgrade this area. The next weak link is the oil pump driveshaft; stock ones are made of recycled coat-hangers and will twist in two on a high powered 351-C. Moroso, Milodon or Ford Racing sell a 4130- steel part for less than $20 USD. Cheap insurance. Good luck.
...well Boss, I hate to contradict your statement; but here is a photo of the McCloud Clutch and 3 Forged Finger Pressure Plate, I have been running for years and thousands of miles. NO interference with anything inside the Bellhousing!('74L 5-Bolt) Perhaps, the design of these weights is More 'Tucked-In' for clearence; than the Original design.

On the other hand...the flywheel is Brand New and I had to Drill and Tap it for the Plates' Bolt Pattern; on a Mill, using a Rotary Table. The 'Error' on Concentricity was Less than .0010" Total! The indexing error is less than 40 SECONDS!! Probably More accurate than the Original Factory 'Drillings'!

I purchased the McCloud Disk and Pressure Plate from P.A.W. and saved well over $100.00 from buying the same exact pieces from P.I.!!

If there are any persons who need their Flywheel Drilled/Tapped for a specific Pressure Plate; I am more than willing to do the Machining. If You can ship the Flywheel AND the P. Plate to Me, I can do the work for You! Removing the Exact Same amount of metal from 6 places (Blind Holes). 'May' or may-not cause an inbalance...but your sure to have the Flywheel balanced with the rest of the 'Rotating Assembly', anyway! As I had Done.

FWIW, I highly Recommend this McCloud Clutch (Borg and Beck Long) It is the Thickest, Beefiest Street/Race Clutch on the Market!
It Locks-Up Smooth and Positive!!
I believe it was a 2800 Pound Pressure, NOT including the 'Centrifugal Assist'! Perfect for the Pantera!!

The only 'Negative' about the Centrifigal Assist, is...If Your 'Style' is to shift gears at Much Higher RPM's, say 6500-7000; it May be more Difficult to 'Un-lock' and Fully Disengage the clutch! And then You ARE 'Dragging' the Syncros! I have Never had that problem, as I tend to shift early..3500-4500!!
I have always suggested..'The Earlier you shift gears (lower RPM) The Easier 'It' is on the Syncros, and the Easier it is to Get into Gear!!'

Marlin

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  • engine_BEFORE_installation_002
Last edited by marlinjack
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