427so

[chopper]

mrmike:

One note here. Keep in mind that the maximum recommended bore on the 427 block is 0.030 in. That means that this particular block is finished as far as any more work goes, unless you decide to sleeve cylinders. That's not necessarily bad, it's just that it may entail more expense down the road if you ever have to have any future work done on the block. Ford recommended only one sleeve per bank maximum; however, we have guys out here in DesertLand who have eight sleeves and no complaints. In fact, if I'm not mistaken, George Anderson has eight sleeves in his engine, and he seems to blow by a lot of folks on the road, so the original Ford advice may be outdated now.

I agree with ERA535 on his comments about the block and LeMans rods, also. The 427 blocks are a high-nickel alloy cast iron and while stronger than the other FE blocks, are more brittle and more prone to cracking. Repairing requires specialized equipment and procedures, or the repair welds will just crack out around the edges of the welds. The LeMans rods were the be-all and end-all in 1966, but metallurgy has progressed far beyond them nowadays. I had LeMans rods in my old engine and Bill Parham at Southern Automotive strongly advised against using them in the replacement engine. They are great conversation pieces and will serve well if you're not planning to run the engine really hard, but you might think twice about using them if you're planning any type of performance driving.

IMHO, you may wish to be a little wary of plunking down large quantities of hard cash for something you haven't even seen. I'm not advertising for Southern Automotive, but for $8500, Bill Parham could build you a really nice 428 hi-po rig. I'm sure George Anderson at Gessford could provide a competitive engine for a similar amount. Have you tried either of them for quotes? Both are first-rate shops with wide followings.