390FE (406ci) for #50, built by Tom Lucas at FE Specialties.

[dustman_stx]

I'm commenting based off what I remember from the pan I had, which wasn't a Canton, so I may or may not be correct. With that said, I dont think it will interfere with the baffling. It will reduce capacity slightly...just go a quart low for the first fill-up and then add til you get to full. Take note of the total capacity and go with it.

[robroy]

Good afternoon Dustman_Stx, thanks for replying!

I'm commenting based off what I remember from the pan I had, which wasn't a Canton, so I may or may not be correct.

Okay, thanks for qualifying your anecdote!

With that said, I dont think it will interfere with the baffling. It will reduce capacity slightly...just go a quart low for the first fill-up and then add til you get to full. Take note of the total capacity and go with it.

Okay, that sounds pretty good, thanks!

I heard from Tom over the weekend that he'd be happy to modify the "T" style pan to fit, but it will reduce the pan capacity by a quart (to six instead of seven quarts), and cost $100 for the modification. Note that the Canton web page says that the 15-810's an eight quart pan, so maybe it would really be seven quarts of final capacity instead of six).

The Canton "T" pan itself (P/N 15-810) is around $285. So that's $285 + 100 = $385.

By the time the Canton screen-style windage tray and pickup have been added in, I'll be just a hundred or two short of the cost of the Dooley Enterprises full-sump pan.

Do y'all think Tom's modified Canton "T" pan is a good idea? I'll spend some time today searching for alternatives, if there are any.

Thanks very much for all the superb advice!
Robroy

[robroy]

Good evening Dustman_Stx!

Passenger side of the oil pan was pushing the engine over- probably needed another inch or so of clearance.

This afternoon I took a good look at my Autofab engine perches, and the passenger-side perch appears to be more narrow than the Ford perch! Depending on where the measurement's taken, the Autofab perch appears to supply 1/2" to 1" of extra clearance over the Ford perch.

Note: clicking on any of these images will yield large editions.

I placed the Ford perch next to the Autofab perch on the passenger side (the Ford perch is held by a loose bolt at the top, and is roughly in its installed orientation, albeit moved forward).



When viewed from the front, you can see that the Ford perch sticks out more than the Autofab perch.



Depending on where the measurement was taken, the Autofab perch appeared to have 1/2" to 1" of additional clearance over the Ford perch. In this photo, the end of the measuring tape was touching the engine-facing surface of the Autofab stand.



When viewed from the rear you can see the same difference.



The additional clearance is most pronounced towards the bottom, and tapers off as I go up.



Here are the perches from above:



Based on this, it appears that there's a chance that the Canton 15-810 will fit! I'm just not sure whether this is indicative enough to warrant the gamble. Needless to say another oil pan swap during my installation attempt would be a hassle (should I loose the gamble), yet it sure would be nice to use an unmodified pan!

Thanks very much for the fantastic and generous advice!
Robroy

[robroy]

Good day!

Great news! I heard from Tom today. He took the time to actually measure the capacity of the Milodon 30740 and confirmed that it truly holds five quarts, so he gave it his official blessing! He did this knowing that he'd have to return the Canton pan that he already ordered--what a guy huh?

He did warn me to stay away from high RPMs on the Laguna Seca though, which I'll try to abide. Yet with the F-250's cat-like handling, I'm not sure if I'll be able to resist it!

Robert, thanks again for providing the information on the Ford TSB advising to run an extra quart of oil! I'll chat with Tom about that to make sure he agrees with that strategy, which it sounds like he will. And I'll be sure to get the dipstick re-marked!

Thanks for reading and for the excellent advice!
Robroy

[Alvin in AZ]

...I'll be sure to get the dipstick re-marked!
Robroy

Not sure where I saw it first but I believe it was my ex-GF's Freight-Shaker.
The oil dipstick was notched on the side in two places.

FiNgured if it was good enough for a Freightliner it was good enough for my junky stuff. :)
Tried out a "3 square" file but it's not the best IMO I prefer a 90* notch from a plain old file.

It's cool as anything, no looking close anymore, the range on the dipstick is obvious as anything.

Alvin in AZ modifies anything and everything because he's a tinkering fool.

[HOWDY69]

Yet with the F-250's cat-like handling, I'm not sure if I'll be able to resist it!

Is that with or without the extended camper?

[70_F100]

[robroy]

Good evening Alvin, Howdy69, and 70_F100, thanks for replying!

Not sure where I saw it first but I believe it was my ex-GF's Freight-Shaker.
The oil dipstick was notched on the side in two places.

FiNgured if it was good enough for a Freightliner it was good enough for my junky stuff.
Tried out a "3 square" file but it's not the best IMO I prefer a 90* notch from a plain old file.

It's cool as anything, no looking close anymore, the range on the dipstick is obvious as anything.

Alvin, this is a great idea, thanks! I'm not sure if I'll be able to apply this idea (or any idea, really) to my Lokar after-market dipstick, because it's a different design. As you can see in this photo, it's one of the sort that has the long, round, flexible dipstick with the "bullet" on the end.

Yet with the F-250's cat-like handling, I'm not sure if I'll be able to resist it!

Is that with or without the extended camper?

That's with an extended camper and three 250lb guys in the front seat! I went to the Leguna Seca Raceway the other day to preview the tight corners I'll be tearing through!

Thanks for your ongoing interest despite my lack of updates!

There aren't really any updates. I haven't spoken with Tom since the last update, but I'll probably chat with him again in the next few days!

Alvin, Howdy69, and 70_F100, thanks very much for the excellent replies!
Robroy

[robroy]

Good day! Here are the photos I received from Tom today. You can click on any of these small editions to load larger, uncropped editions:

Look at these beautiful exhaust manifold surfaces, big stainless valves, and nice paint job! What a contrast from what I had before.



A close-up of the installed valves. It looks museum-like to me!



The cylinders sure look pretty!



Here's one of the custom-made Diamond, 428-sized, forged pistons. What do you think of those marks on the top? I forgot to ask Tom about that during our last phone call, but I might ask next time.



The gleaming pistons and re-done connecting rods! How do you like them?



Here's one of the ported passages--too bad the photo's blurry. I'll have to ask if he has any other photos of the porting work.



And here's Yellow Jacket shortly before going on the test stand!



How do y'all like what's in these photos?

Thanks for your ongoing interest and guidance!
Robroy

[robroy]

Good afternoon!

I know that a few of you were interested in swinging by FE Specialties to witness the live run! I started a thread in the Shows & Events forum area with the details. If you're interested in stopping by, would you please update that thread? (I'm attempting to keep this thread as focused on the new engine as possible).

Meet at FE Specialties in Sacramento, CA for an engine run!

Thank you very much!
Robroy

[DuckRyder]

Very Nice!!!

The marks on the pistons are nothing to worry about, it is just where the cutter that did the dish started and stopped. "Tool Marks".

[robroy]

Good afternoon Robert, thanks for replying!

Very Nice!!!

Excellent!!! From the photos it looks like a whole new animal.

The marks on the pistons are nothing to worry about, it is just where the cutter that did the dish started and stopped. "Tool Marks".

I see! Thanks for letting me know about that. I figured that Tom would be highly observant of things like that, so it probably wasn't a problem. It's good to know what the marks are though!

Robert, thanks again for your excellent reply!
Robroy

[iamthewreckingcrew]

FRAM filter??!

Everything else looks great.

[1971ford]

I can't wait to see it ... and HEAR it!

Yeah the Fram filter jumped at me too... I'd swap a Napa (Wix) filter on.
Looking goooooood Robroy