1969_Mach1

Yeah, return that distributor. Go with a stock one if that's what's in your budget. Duraspark is nice as well but those also require a large diameter cap. Unless somebody knows of a stock rotor and cap that fits the Duraspark distributors. The Weiand Stealth or the Performer RPM are a better choice for intake manifolds on a mild 351W. I don't know if you noticed carb pad positions when selecting intake manifolds? But, some like the Performer you have, the Edelbrock Torker II, and the Edelbrock Victor Jr. move the carb pad forward. This creates air cleaner to distributor interference if you try to use a round drop base air cleaner, thus forces you to install an air cleaner that fits over the top of the distributor. The Weiand Stealth and Performer RPM have the carb pad more rearward like the original intake. So, if you have a stock distributor or small diameter MSD distributor you can fit a drop base 14" diameter air cleaners if needed for hood clearance.

I think the original boosters are fairly common. A lot of Mustangs came with power brakes. Until there is a good quality reproduction the prices are going to be high. That seems to be the pattern anyway. Have you tried Perogie Enterprises. They deal in primarily used, rebuilt, and restored original parts for these cars. They might still be expensive if everybody else is for a booster.

I have one of those engine hoists. Not the best, but so far it has worked every time. I too am not a fan of gear drives. From what I understand they tend to transmit the valvetrain vibrations, loads, etc. to the crank which is not good.

I think you just need to check the camshaft end play. With flat tappet cams the taper on the lobes serves two purposes and one is to stop the cam from walking front to back. The lobes on roller cams do not perform that task so correct end play is critical. Regarding the distributor gear, check with Howard cams.

I would stick with an OEM Bendix 8" booster. I tried an aftermarket copy sold through Scott Drake before fixing and reinstalling my original Bendix Booster. Initially it looks good, but as with most aftermarket copied parts, the 'devil-is-in-the-details'. In my case, where the push rod attached to the brake pedal would not operate the brake light switch. The lights were on all the time. The master cylinder studs were too long so I couldn't install the master cylinder with the booster already installed (unlike the original). The bolt holes attaching it to the firewall didn't line up correctly. It is basically a universal booster with an adapter mounting bracket and push rod attached to it. From what I understand, the Bendix and Midland OEM 8" boosters are dual diaphragm. I think it's for increased power assist and not to be safer.

I kind of wondered why that cam selection as well. Mainly because of the lift. The duration numbers are not bad, only 52 degrees overlap at advertised duration and 1 degree overlap at 0.050" tappet lift. It will have a noticeable mild rough idle but I don't think it will be that slow lopey idle that some people really like (not me).

I would expect a 63,000 mile motor to have very little wear. I'm curious, what kind of oil was in the motor when the lifters and cam went bad?

I agree. At this point the entire motor should be disassembled and cleaned. But then where do you stop? Once you start you'll likely find a lot of parts worn beyond their useful life. Maybe you can get away with merely cleaning everything and freshening the motor for now.

I'll first say that I'm not very familiar with Cleveland motors. If that valve lift spec is for a 1.6 rocker arm that's what I would use. In my opinion that is a lot of lift for a street driver car. It starts to get hard on valve train parts and reliability suffers. Double check your valve springs. Hydraulic roller's typically require higher rate springs for two reasons, the increased mass of the lifters and increased acceleration of the lifters. Both of those increase the forces against the valve springs. You know, simply by Newton's second law of physics. Too much spring force and you risk collapsing lifters, too little, and valve float and/or bounce. Also check for coil bind plus make certain the spring retainer doesn't contact the valve seal when the valve is open.

From your noise description, like Barnett and others mentioned, it sounds like valvetrain noise. I don't know how much oil sprays from the rockers on Cleveland motors, but the best way I know of to find valvetrain noise is with the valve covers off and the engine idling. Then use either a mechanics stethoscope or long screwdriver, and place it on each rocker arm stud and the other to your ear(s). If it's valvetrain noise, you will definitely find it. If you find the one causing the noise, I would still replace all the lifters. Your muddy coolant is likely from rust in the block.

Are you certain there wasn't any rust inside the block somewhere making the coolant brown? Here's another question, was the motor a fresh rebuild from a machine shop? Some shops will put some sealant tabs inside the cooling passages of the block to help make certain no small leaks arise. Those sealant tabs will make the coolant a muddy brown color. That gunk inside your radiator looks like it could be from sealant tablets in the cooling system. If it were my motor, I wouldn't pull it apart until you are fairly certain you are somehow getting coolant into the cylinders.

Pull the spark plugs and pressurize the cooling system to about 15 psi. Let it sit with pressure for 20-30 minutes, then disable the ignition system and with the spark plug still out and cooling system pressurized crank over the motor. Look for coolant shooting out of a spark plug opening. Sometimes you get better results doing this with a warm or hot engine. This is just one method to look for a leaking head gasket.

Yeah, the service manual doesn't mention doing that. Sometimes I wonder if Ford stopped installing drain plugs to discourage people from changing there own trans fluid.

If your case doesn't have a drain plug, remove the lower bolt attaching the tailshaft housing to the case. The gear oil will drain through there. Put some type of sealer on the bolt threads when reinstalling it, like Permatex Aviation thread and gasket sealer.

I installed JBA short headers on my 69 Mach1 with a 351W. Fit is good with no issues. On those Hedman headers, the only thing I see is that tube for number 7 cylinder going up might be an issue with spark plug wires. And put more heat in the area next to the valve cover and master cylinder. I don't know why Hedman did that. The JBA header tubes are routed differently.

Is the Pertronix I the system that goe bad if the ignition switch is on without the engine running for only a minute or so? Or has that been corrected? If you want OEM reliability there is always the Duraspark II conversion.

You need something like a mechanics stethoscope to pinpoint the source whistle. Holley carbs do not have throttle shaft bushings. Some of the old OEM Holley versions use thin Teflon bushings that fit into grooves in the throttle shafts. Usually what happens is the aluminum throttle shaft bores in the base plate wear out. On Fords, if using the original return spring setup, the primary throttle shaft bore will wear. Simply because both the throttle cable and return spring are trying to pull the throttle shaft to the rear. I've heard of whistling through on of the verturies at idle. I've also heard of leaky power valves causing whistling. But when a power valve leaks the motor also runs rich at cruise and maybe rough at idle because of a vacuum leak..

If it's a small block oil pan compare the width of the flange that goes around the rear main bearing. In my experience, the OEM oil pan was more narrow in the flange area than aftermarket oil pans.

Just leave the PCV in the valve cover.

This guy should be giving this car away. It's only worth the 9" rear axle housing if it has a 9" rear end. I say housing and not the complete rear end because it's probably a basic open differential in a standard third member, nothing special. Don't forget, unless you have a lot of storage area, you'll have to figure out what to do with this car after you remove any parts you want. Wrecking yards, at least in my area will charge you to take it.

You've asked a loaded question and you'll get a myriad of responses. I'd stick with either something from AED like J's69Mach1 mentions or Holley. Quick Fuel carbs have more features for the money, but something about their quality is not as good as AED and even Holley. I've tried Quick Fuel carb parts but never a complete carb, metering blocks, base plate, throttle shafts. I've always ended up either throwing it in the garbage or it sits on the shelf. There's always been something just a little off that cannot be corrected. I currently have two pairs of Quick Fuel billet metering blocks and one set of their high flow throttle shafts that are sitting on the shelf that I don't want to use. What's wrong with your current 650 DP carb? The size is suitable for your motor. You're not going to improve gas mileage simply by switching to a vacuum secondary carb. The choke horn is milled off but you can still install an manual choke or electric choke assembly on the side and have a fast idle. Do you know what the list number is, 4777-X? If it has some original color still on it and the throttle shaft holes in the base plate are not worn out, I'd do a thorough rebuild and run it. Especially if it's an older model. The older carbs for some reason seem to run better in stock calibration than current stuff.

Before condemning the wheels, they might not be the problem. What type of tires did you install on them? I have noticed lower price tires usually need more weight to balance. Also, are those wheels supposed to be hub-centric balanced or lug-centric balanced? Not certain my terms are correct, but some aftermarket wheels cannot be located by the hub opening when balancing and must be located by the lug nut holes when balancing.

Yes, paint it black with a satin or semi gloss finish. Don't use an engine enamel. Engine enamel lays on with a heaver film thickness and will not leave as nice of a finish on smooth parts. When using spray cans Duplicolor brand dries fast but is not very durable. I use to use that brand but now do my best to avoid it.

Master cylinders do not include the front seal for the brake booster. Here is a link to a kit that includes that seal. There are more parts in it than you need, but it's the easiest way I know of to get that seal. https://www.npdlink.com/product/boot-kit-power-brake-booster-repro-bendix-booster/205434/203210

If it's a Bendix brake booster after the master cylinder is removed there is a seal in the front of the booster than can easily be replaced. The brake fluid might have damaged it by now. The piston rod will sometimes just slip out as well so don't worry if it does. I've seen those seals on National Parts Depot's website.