Just thought i would share my newest project. We will be installing a 425 nailhead in a T bucket. Since I am a buick guy we might as well power it with a nailhead. :beer
Should be a scary ride!!! I would think you could scare the heck out of anyone with a 322. 425 might be enough to do a burn out and a wheel stand at the same time. Make sure we get pictures of the progress!
I've always thought a well dressed nailhead is one of the prettiest engines. They clean up real nice.
Few Questions for you quys. How much can a 425 be bored to. Not looking for max bore just looking to clean up the cylinders I have my choice of a 401 or a 425. The 425 is 30 over but have surface rust in cylinder. This may kill the 425 unless it can be bored more than 30 over without overheading issues. Again I am not familiar with how much a 425 can be bored to. The 401 is in fair shape but will need total rebuild aswell. It is a virgin bore. I will keep everyone posted on the progress.
I'll tell you what you should do. Send me that old 425 to put into my 64 and put the 401 in the T bucket! The T would still be a bad a$$ ride!
Phil,I really started to look hard at hotrods around '89-'91,an all steel '34 Ford with a Nail,on a get together,sparked the flame.A T-bucket with a NH should be a lot of fun. I'm not up on the Nailhead's specs but plenty of people in this forum are,I'm sure that your answers will come,either here or via PM from them.Take pictures! On the matter of the engine choices that you have,I'll offer this thought as my 2 cents.I would go with the virgin block if it checks out ok.I would get the best machining that I could get and good hardware for the short block but it would be built as close to stock as possible.Same with the heads,just add a mild cam and the T will fly.
Naw,naw,,, dont send that 425 to Dave, send it to me....:laugh: He will want to put some old off brand carb on it.... :laugh: :laugh: If the 425 has already been bored .030 over there may already be a problem,,, A t-bucket doesnt have a lot of area for a radiator,,, and you will need all that you can get,,, or have a special extra thick one made for it... also you will need a multi blade fan,,, in short set up a heavy duty cooling system for it... Nailheads have a lot of nickel in the metal and the blocks are hard... may be that a just a hone will take care of the surface rust...I have run engines that had surface rust on the cyl walls without problems.... Nailheads are the best looking engines in cars with open engine compartments... send that engine to me ,,, I will put a HOLLEY THREE BARREL on it..:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
I know a couple of guys who have successfully bored a 425 0.060 over, BUT they had the blocks sonic checked first to see how thick the cylinder bores were. Another 0.010 would probably be safe if it's already 0.030 over now. If the 401 has the virgin bore, you can probably do what ever you want with it up to 0.060, but it will still have less cubic inches than the 425 as it is now; 0.060 over in a 401 yields about 413 cubic inches. With the massive torque of the nailhead, you're going to need a lot of support and crossmember work on that frame. Looks like "buckets" of fun though. Ed
Give my old man a shout: tburgeson (here on the site). He's had his 23 T with a 425 for about 35 years now and I'm sure he'd be glad to lend his advice :beers2: .
Thanks Ben, one of the reason for building it with a nailhead is Buick, Cadillac, and Dodge motors were easily found in the early 60's I am doing a retro version of a T. It will be bobtail with a nailhead a 12bolt and a Turbo 400. It will be black with Red interior, Whitewalls with gasser 10 spoke (for disk brakes) red steel rims with dog dish and beauty rings.
Now you see, a three barrel instead of dual quads or a six pack. Clearly that engine would find a better home in my 64!:laugh:
Cool Ride! Thought this might give you a little incentive... Good Luck on your project. Your build will evolve into something cool! It take lots of time to work out the details. Mine will be a 425 Nailhead , Solid Roller Cam, Turbo 400 w/Full Manual Valve Body. 12" Switch Pitch from CTI, Home built intake, and Crank hub. 8-71 Stage 2 blower, with 1:1 Drive. 8:1 Compression. Predator Carbs. Supercharger USA Competition Blower Drive with Straight Cut Gears. Delco 10Si Alternator, Dual Point Ignition, 110+ Octane Only! 3.89 Locker 9" Ford. Killduff Shifter. As for cleaning up a little rust in the Cylinder Walls, try Coca Cola. It frees up stuck engines, too! :TU::TU::TU::TU::TU::TU::TU::TU::TU::TU::TU::TU::TU::TU::TU::TU::TU::TU::TU::TU:
Thanks for all the cool pics. Here is a car that is similar to what I want to build. I will not have a hood or use the T grill. The plan right now is one of the nailheads, 400turbo (for nailhead bolt pattern) and a 12bolt posi with 373's.
