I recently towed a 28 ft 5th wheel trailer from Okla to Mexico and back with a 78 F250 with a 460 engine. Having never owned a 460 powered Ford, I was most impressed. On some long inclines, however, I could have used just a bit more power. I am leaning toward keeping this old truck versus buying a powerstroke, dodge cummings or other diesel, but got to find a way to get a little more power. What is the best and most cost effective way to do so? Headers? Larger carb? Heads with larger ports? RV cam? I've worked on cars and trucks for years, but have never towed heavy loads long distances. OK, you 460 experts out there, how about some suggestions.
Thanks, Mark.

 

The cam timing on later 460 engines is retarded for smog reasons if you install a performance timing set that brings the timing straight up youll find more power out of this, plus the stock gears are only good for about 100K.


1972 F250 Crew 4X4
1975 F350 Crew

 

I'd say run a Edelbrock 750cfm carb, install a straight up timing set like the guy suggested, install a mild RV cam, and bump up your timing. The stock intake is actually pretty good, especially for towing.

 

what do you mean? only good for 100K?

what size is the stock (Holley) 4bbl Carb?
anyone have any experience with the Barry Grant Street Demon 725?


Edit:
I bumped this old thred because it was one of the first things that came up on Google when I searched "Ford 460 RV Cam"

as far as the "RV CAM"
can someone give the Cam specs from Stock compared to an RV cam?
and realistic gains to expect?

 

]what do you mean? only good for 100K?

The composite timing gear on the cam shaft is pretty much wore out at 100k+


what size is the stock (Holley) 4bbl Carb? 575 is what i was told
anyone have any experience with the Barry Grant Street Demon 725?

Know a guy had a demon on a 6.0 chev vortec in a 79 malibu, ran great.


as far as the "RV CAM"
can someone give the Cam specs from Stock compared to an RV cam?
and realistic gains to expect?[/quote] Rv cam, will probably gain you 15-25 horse, and 35 or so pound ft. of torque, nice and low in the rpms.

Headers are the first thing i would do lookin for power on a 460, timing kit with 0* or +2-3*. After that you could do a carb, cam, ( personally i like the Crane Energizers, or lunati Vodoo cams) then the thing that most ppl forget is ignition. Our trucks ingition, well its dead reliable and all but its weak as they come. HEI distributors are getting more popular and more affordable, definately something to look at, i had the Davidson unified on a 351M pulled it to sell it and stuck a stocker back in there.. long story short, i kept the DUI. Oh and timing, stock is supposed to be 12 iirc, i usually run 14-16 depending on how it runs. If it kicks back on itself when starting after its warmed up, or you get any pingin, back it off... obviously, lol.

 

thanks for the input

Headers,
I know most people are big fans of Long Tubes "Go big or go home" (I've got LT's on my 11 sec GTO),
but the way I understand it, LT's tend to scavange very well at high rpm's but you tend to loose some low end HP/TQ
and Shorty's tend to help out alot in the mid range
wouldn't Shorty's be better suited for these engines?

Timing Kit,
is there something special about a 0* or +2-3*?
ir is it just adjusting the timing gears/chain to 0*
when purchasing, id there something special to look for, or anything for the 460 will work?
any links for a write up on installing would be great!!

Ignition,
what parts are weak?
the spark?, how about just throwing a bigger coil on?
(I did 8mm wires, bigger coil, and wider gapped spark plugs, as well as advanced the spark timing. on my 1990 Bronco 302 with very good results)

 

The thing about header on a 460 is you can really shoot yourself in the foot with your primary dia. Longtubes of course, shorties arent even worth their money in scrap. For towing, or stock powerband, id look for a set 1 3/4 primaries, for a good powerband that is going to respond a little more in the mid top end, 1 7/8", or for some hotter ones, go 2". 2" and up really start to hurt the low end torque of a stock to mild motor. A set of 1 3/4" and a nice cam will really bring the beast to life, of course a nice dual plane manifold will really round out that list nicely.

 

[quote=KrautBurner;10332537]thanks for the input

Headers,
I know most people are big fans of Long Tubes "Go big or go home" (I've got LT's on my 11 sec GTO),
but the way I understand it, LT's tend to scavange very well at high rpm's but you tend to loose some low end HP/TQ
and Shorty's tend to help out alot in the mid range
wouldn't Shorty's be better suited for these engines?

Timing Kit,
is there something special about a 0* or +2-3*?

Retarded timing, is well.... retarded, reversing that can net you a bit more power, 0* is just fine for a mild engine, especially towing.

ir is it just adjusting the timing gears/chain to 0*
when purchasing, id there something special to look for, or anything for the 460 will work?
You just want an adjustable timing chain set, for instance #555-20452 from jegs, $39.99, its a 3 keyway, so just install it on the key thats the advance you want.
any links for a write up on installing would be great!! destructions should come with packaging

Ignition,
what parts are weak?
the spark?, how about just throwing a bigger coil on?
(I did 8mm wires, bigger coil, and wider gapped spark plugs, as well as advanced the spark timing. on my 1990 Bronco 302 with very good results)

Everything, from spark to timing curve. Bigger wires with the power ours makes actually is hurting your spark. 8s are nothing, but 10s or 11s, well thats dumb lol. Coil is obviously a great, and cheap place to start. Bigger gaps can help, as long as it still starts ok, also when you widen the gap, you retard the timing a little. An aftermarket distributor really is a worthwhile investment on these, better timing curve, better spark, more accurate timing. Davis Unified Ignition 33820BL - Davis Unified Ignition Ford Street/Strip D.U.I. Distributors - Overview - SummitRacing.com

 

If you want to know more join us on 460ford.com or 429-460.com


To make more power I advise:

-Aftermarket intake (Edelbrock Performer)
-Double Roller timing set
-Headers
-Exhaust system with 2" diameter pipe (better flow)
-Flat top pistons (if you want to run 93, will have compression round 10)
-Big cam with lifters (watch what lift you have to see if they work with your heads unless you do head work)
-Converter- if equipped with an automatic (get the right one if your towing so you won't burn your transmission up)
-Aftermarket heads/D0VE heads/D3VE heads with polished and ported intakes
-Aftermarket distributor/coil
-Holley/Edelbrock 850DP carb (according if you want a little bit more juice to it)
-Lower gears in your axle

 

i have a malory distributer on my truck and i think the matching coil too it runs great and has lots of power. its a 460 from a early 72 lincoln... but anyone that knows about these engines knows it has 345 hp stock haha and 500 ft pounds

 

Gears dont make it have more power
You do not polish the intake side, you want it rough as it helps atomize the air / fuel mixture, you polish the combustion chamber and exaust to prevent hot spots, flow gain is minimal. You can port match the heads if you like, but porting costs alot to be done right, for the gain it gives.
850cfm is pretty big on a non built motor, our 650hp 451 runs a 900 and its jetted pretty low. 770 holleys work great on these, thats what was on mine, dynod 423 at the wheels
Pistons depend totally on what heads you have, although i do agree get some dove Os or 3s
i dont like edeljunk, but to each thier own, but imo intakes, wieand is the way to go.

Really depends on how far you want to go, or more importantly, how much money you want to spend, you can get a 600hp 521 for pretty reasonable these days. The stuff i listed was just what i felt to be the biggest bang for the buck.