calling all BBF gurus!

[fordtrucknut77]

I have a 77 150 with a 460 DOVE engine complete, fresh rebuilt top to bottom, basically stock with a mild cam..I also have a set of D3VE heads that have been freshly worked and fully ported. So my question is, how will these heads run compared to my stock DOVE heads IF I swap them?
I am very happy with the power I am making now But this thing is on a strict 93 octane diet and well I kinda have an itch to work on it but dont wanna waste a bunch of time only to put it back the way it was so tell me what you guys think!

[huff75]

I'm no guru but I will try to give an answer. Its hard to say. The D3s have been know to make power when ported if it is done correctly. But they have large chambers and and thus less compression on a given motor. You said your DOVEs are stock but they will give a higher compression due to the smaller chambers.

Sooo what it comes down to is the port work on the D3s going to flow enough to overcome or even out the compression disadvantage. Its hard to say. You didn't mention valve sizes so I am assuming stock. Really might just have to slap them on and try them out to see.

Prob not the answer you were looking for but with the variables in the port work its hard to give a clear yes or no.

[79beater]

With the larger CC (d3ve-95cc, d0ve-77) you will lose a fair amount of compression, which I dont believe the port and polish on the d3's you have will make up for. Your compression ratio may be dropping as much as 2, from roughly 10 (1968-1971 460) to around 8 (1972-later) with just a head swap, these are just rough numbers.

I would say stick with the heads you have on it now because whatever gain you get from swapping to the d3's will be little to none. Plus you said that it is running fine and you are happy with the power. Sometimes it is better to leave well-enough alone.

Excellent sites for info on the 385 series are 460ford.com and 429-460.com. Btw, I am not pimping these sites, there is alot of info on those two sites that cant be found anywhere else, they both helped me out when working on all my 429 and 460's.

[Proeliator]

Originally Posted by fordtrucknut77

I have a 77 150 with a 460 DOVE engine complete, fresh rebuilt top to bottom, basically stock with a mild cam..I also have a set of D3VE heads that have been freshly worked and fully ported. So my question is, how will these heads run compared to my stock DOVE heads IF I swap them?

You're compression will significantly drop, which in turn means you'll have noticeably less power but it will run on crap regular.

Stick with the dove heads. The D3s have their place, but you won't be happy with them on your motor.

[fordtrucknut77]

ok guys, thanks for confirming what I pretty much already new...anybody got a spare front 60 layin around they wanna donate to a worthy cause
I cant afford gas to drive this dang thing much but every time I start it I get a big grin and run the guts out of it till its out of gas again.

[bayoubuster]

I know exactly how you feel

[fordtrucknut77]

usually all it takes if for one of my buddies to call and say they got a truck stuck and me knowing how much the chicks love the sound of a screaming big block ford..the guys to for that matter. and ill go put 20 bucks in it and burn it out in a matter of minutes but its sure fun! I am wanting 5.13s BAD and as always more motor ofcourse.

[manja]

Also got to look at it this way. Do you get gaskets for free? Going to cost you at least 100$. At a difference of .20 cents a gallon you would need to buy 500 gallons of gas to recoup. And thats only if you have a set of heads ready to bolt on.

I do however know that you would be better off running the larger chamber heads with dome pistons than the smaller chamber heads with flat tops due to the better quench area.

[bayoubuster]

Just put 513 in mine I love em

[79beater]

Sounds like you have it figured out. You will save some extra money by not doing the swap, which in the end can go towards mo-better parts or gas money.

[Dr.Danger]

Originally Posted by manja

I do however know that you would be better off running the larger chamber heads with dome pistons than the smaller chamber heads with flat tops due to the better quench area.

Not on a BBF. The heads are basically the same design, with the exception that the D3 heads have a deeper combustion chamber. Put them side by side and compare it. The quench pad is about the same, and flat top pistons take advantage of it very well on either head. Flat tops are typically lighter weight anyhow.

If you wanna stick with pump gas, you generally use dish pistons with the D0VE heads and flat tops with the later D3VEs. Both of these piston styles cover the quench pad in either design. I don't know anyone running dome heads in a BBF who isn't running 14+:1 compression. It's just not normally needed for these engines.

[7.62FMJ]

Why don't you just sell the D3's, and take that money and have the D0VE's worked? Port/polish/valve job...maybe mill them down a little?

I had a 3-angle valve job and a thousandth milled off of my D0's. The next step will be a full port & polish with larger valves....which I should have done in the first place.

[fordtrucknut77]

The doves have already been worked and so have the d3s I would be glad to sell them but nobody wants to give me anything for them and I'm not gonna sell a fresh set of worked and ported heads for a 100 bucks!