Our half ton 4x2 did in fact originally come with the big block 460. However the 2nd previous owner swapped heads not knowing which ones were the best and which were the worst. Unfortunately for us he put the crappy heads on. What I mean by crappy is the combustion chamber volume is the largest Ford ever made: in the 95-100cc volume range and is completely open without a quench which was the standard for the '72 head (we have D2 casting #). This makes for very low compression ratios. On the good side, the size of the intake and exhaust ports are as large as the normal 460 heads from '73-'78 and the non-CJ (PI) heads from '68-'71. Another plus I guess would be that the lower compression will prevent pinging on low grade pump gas. This is not a race truck remember. Anyway we decided to have the engine rebuilt by a reputable shop and to go ahead and add some speed parts, which is usually a given when doing a rebuild anyway. Follow along and be sure to read the van page as to what I saw when taking the 460 to the machine shop.

Upon return from the machine shop, the block was already bored over .030 once and did not need another over bore, just a light honing. New dish pistons and a Melling high volume oil pump along with the usual Clevite bearings. The crankshaft needed to be ground .010 because either of the previous owners never changed the oil, or they assembled the engine with dirt still inside. Notice the "X" in the lifter valley. I have heard rumors of this being the block of choice due to the super thick cylinder walls but have no way to confirm this. Nor do I care how thick they are since once again this isn't a nitrous engine.

The complete engine with the new Weiand non-CJ 4v intake, Holley 750 zinc finish with electric choke, cheapie eBay valve covers, Professional Products damper/harmonic balancer and the coated "Hedman Hedders".