We take an in-depth look at the features and benefits of Ford Racing's M-6010-Z351 aluminum alloy 351 Windsor block, which will be the basis for the build-up of a 750-plus hp stroker street engine.
a friend of mine built a 351 windsor motor a few years ago, original block, reconditioned heads, but he also stroked it and put a supercharger on, it became a damn beast!
This is the block that a lot of builders are using for their “Clevor” engines. There are some great RU-vid videos featuring 461 cu/in stroker alloy block builds using aftermarket Cleveland canted valve heads. Dandy Engines in Australia built a 461 Clevor featuring Higgins Race Heads Alloy Cleveland heads for use in a street vehicle. It’s naturally aspirated and using pump fuel it pulled 934 horsepower and 669 lb/ft of torque on the dyno. Running race fuel it increased to 979 horsepower and 700 torque. Pretty good numbers with no power adders. I have to agree that the guy narrating this video comes across as being clueless in general and especially bad in his knowledge about Fords. Popular Hotrodding Magazine was always heavily Chevy biased. Now it shows on their videos. And the beat goes on.....
Stock Windsor blocks with 4 head bolts per cylinder are good for about 450 HP if you change to 4 bolt main caps or stud girdle with 1/2" bolts/studs at both mains & heads & ARP quality 5/16" rod bolts or 11/32" rod bolts minimum for 221/255/ 260/289/302. The 260/289/302 blocks came with 7/16" hardware at mains & heads & weak 5/16" rod bolts. Shelby had developed the 11/32" rod bolts as a compromise that could still use the stock length 289 rods. ARP has these bolts available & they can be fit into stock rods by drilling them out. Boss 302 rods came with 3/8" bolts. Obviously if you're going to create high HP or run the engine hard, it would be best to replace the rods with units that use either 3/8" or 7/16" rod bolts. Eagle Specialties has reasonably priced replacement rods for 302 engines with ARP 3/8" bolts. All 351 engine designs use 1/2" main & head hardware & 3/8" rod bolts & 3.500" stroke, 4.000" bores, & 2.310" rod journals. Block design, deck height, crankshaft main journal diameters, & connecting rod thickness & lengths vary. The lower end Windsor engines are essentially a small block version of the 385 series Lima big block (371/429/460) engines, using the same block, front cover layout, water pump, coolant flow, & oiling system design. 255/260/289/302 crankshafts feature 2.25" main journals & 2.125" rod journals, while 351W cranks use 3" main & 2.375" rod journals. Also 302 blocks have a shorter deck height than the 351W. The 221/260/289" engines all use 2.870" stroke & 5.150" long rods with differing bores to acquire the CID. 302 cranks use 3.000" stroke & 5.090" long rods in a 4" bore block. 289 & 302 blocks & pistons are the same. 351W rod length is 5.956". The 351C is completely different. It uses reverse coolant flow (coolant exits through the block), a flat steel plate timing cover with the timing chain inside an extension from the block front, 2.75" main journals, & 5.78" connecting rod length. The 351M was produced from 1974 through about 1980. I can not find an official end date, but I have not seen 1980 on pickups equipped with 351M but instead with 351W engines. It must also be noted that I was repairing farm/ranch owned pickups in northern Montana & have not seen many from 1980 through 1982 due to Ford attempting weight reduction to achieve better fuel economy by having a series of fairly large holes in the frame rails. However, the 400M was installed in pickups through 1982 & discontinued in 1983. These engines used the Cleveland block design with raised deck heights to accommodate 6.580" long connecting rods. The 400CID version used 4.000" stroke with shorter compression distance pistons. The 351M main bearings are the same as 351W while the rod bearings are 351C units.
Nice video. It points out most of the details I wanted to know about the block. It looks like I'll be running one. I don't want to sound like a jerk, but one thing I wanted to point out is "freeze" plugs are not design to pop out for any reason. They are "casting" plugs to fill in the holes required by the sand molds used in casting the block. Nobody knows where this misconception comes from, but as experts you should really know the true use for the holes and plugs installed in them. -a mechanical engineer's point of view.
+Sam Iamnot Thanks for pointing this out. In Australia, they are known as Welsh plugs, never heard of freeze plugs. AND most old motors has steel plugs, not brass. At least when I built up a 351C, it did have. Australia got the tooling for Clevelands from Detroit in the early 70's, when your big oil crisis, and emissions rules kicked in. In Aus, we made a 302 Cleveland as well, you didn't have these. It was just a shorter stroke, and the only difference to look at was the 302 or 351 stamp on the crank. It was impossible to tell the 2 with the hood up, unless you took a plug out and measured the piston travel with a bit of wire or such.
The misconception come when Ford started using core plugs. Then people would find them popped out from freezing. Never mind the rear of the block most of the time had a crack 5" long running down it. Which made the engine useless. Which is why it seem Ford is using the old Screw in plug. Which they used for many years in race prep engines. I still prefer Side lock cap bolts. It gives it more strength. One reason the Ford 4.6 can take 900 HP...
As a few guys point out, the "Freeze Plugs" (actually they are "Core Plugs") are not "Designed" to fall out when the engine coolant freezes, rather they are holes that are utilized to remove the Sand from the Casting after it is cast. the plugs are there just to hold the water in. In a race motor using a Standard crank driven Water pump, it is possible at high RPMs to generate enough pressure to push the standard Core Plugs out of position, and cause Coolant leakage. threading them for screw -in plugs is just insurance to prevent leakage. Also it is common practice to stake the stock style block to help prevent the plugs from pushing out at high RPM. Also...The Crank Main Journal size on the Z351 block is not just some arbitrary size to be a happy medium between a 351W and a 302, rather that size was chosen to match the Crank Main of the 351C, of which there is already a regular supply of Crankshafts for the Iron version of this block, which has been in service with NASCAR for many years.
MegaScott This Guy Makes It Sound Like There Fall Out When You Start It Up.. He’s A Hack Selling A Product.. Its a Nice Block.. But There’s Been 351 Fords Turning. Over 750 For 40 Years. Sooo HES FULL OF SHIT
The cored holes filled with welsh plugs they are indeed used for core removal after casting but their purpose isn't for the removal of sand as there is cored holes in the front of the block that would be perfectly adequate for sand removal. The cored holes are next to the bore pairings in most block layouts there is an water jacket between these and even when there isn't they still share the outer water jacket. The sand core is very thin here and needs support to prevent deflection. Remember even though the metal when cast is molten it doesn't get any lighter and even the action of the molten metal flowing past will bend/break the core. The hole is only for a part of the core to be held securely outside to prevent deflection. As for the now required plugs only being a push in fit it is actually to allow the coolant to expand and push out when it's on the verge of freezing. It needs to cover the last area in the block water jacket to freeze, this in the biggest volume of coolant by the smallest surface area usually at the bore pairings. The cores could be adequately held with a much smaller hole but are not due to the required surface area for the water to push out the plug before it becomes ice and cracks the block. This is why you should never glue in a shouldered welsh plug only ever a disc. You can seal them with silicone but that's all. The size of the welsh plug should have been calculated and tested to ensure it will release at the correct moment before cracking happens.
That's funny how this guy is saying a stock 351 block is so weak but yet there's an article online done by mustang 360 where they made 1000 hp with 21.5 psi on a stock block. Of course the motor blew up at 21.5 psi but it was holding up around 17.8 psi making 943 hp. On a reliable stand point you could easily run a stock block around 700 hp and not have it crack or blow up like is mentioned in this video. Now of course if you had the money the aluminum alloy block would be a better option for racing but for a person on a budget a stock block will do just fine.
+Nate Karg - I agree with you. The Windsor is much better than the Cleveland and as good as any small block GM or Mopar. The inherant weaknesses he points out are there on all the other brands... He is not that educated about Ford stuff. I've built quite a few...done right they last as long as anything else!!! I like the Z351...great item!!!
Finding a good roller cam 351 block is the problem. A lot of them have very very very small cracks near the cam bearings. Honestly I didn't even bother looking for a roller cam 351 block BECAUSE of that. You know it's bad when fordstrokers.com to issue a PSA about the stock blocks. I am the proud owner of a dart shp 351 block. Going from a production 68 302 block to dart has been great. :)
@@I_like_turtles_67 Yeah I got lucky with my 351w stock block. Machine shop that went through mine said everything looks good. I'm only running 450 hp est. in a foxbody so should be fine but I would love to have a dart block just for the piece of mind and quality. My biggest issue is the msd atomic efi is nothing but problems. I'm going to take it off and put a 750 dp holley on and hope for the best.
Awesome; wish I could afford it. I decided to build a barra instead. 902 hp I think you said. I’m hoping to get about that. Without having to spend that much money and still have a more drivable car. That’s what I’m aiming for anyway.
Was a electric eye burner(CNC Oxy/fuel gas) heavy plate burner. Had a clients regular order of 500 or 1000 count bearing caps for racing engins. When burned from rolled plate the molecular alinement of steel base elements far exceeded forged or cast. Once the delivery trucks from this customer had the finished engine blocks on their truck when they picked up(if memory serves me the outfit was in Bellville ,Michigan). Everything i saw was Aluminum everywhere. Drivers i asked gave such a high hourse power # they had to be badass. Order paper work routinely was labeled 302---351--- then Chevy #'s 427 ect. The front main bearing caps were what was called a double burn; ie. "C" shape 1st then i put them in a jig fixture burning notches out of a flipped view. Everything had to be so dialed in on the 5 torch rig i used as tolerances were so tight to maintain minimum machining on that customers end.
All the way to the wood...NICE haven't heard anyone use that except for my pops and his racin pals! Thanks for that you just made my day! New subscriber just for that
...Now I wonder what a one-piece main cap set would be like on the Z351 block. Like the 4-bolt mains with a built in girdle. Capable of running 8k+ RPM if destroked with a beefed-up high-flow top end?
The Z51 block reminds me somewhat of the Ford 427's side oilers I ran years ago except it is not in a Y-block configuration. Looks very strong.... Wish I still had the 427's......sigh.....
Agreed. I started out with a 1968 F100 fitted with a modified 352 in high school. Swapped it out with a 390 & later with a 428 with medium riser heads & port matched sheet metal fabbed intake. I loved to show all the SB Camaros the taillights in drag racing. It amazes me still that some say the FE's are boat anchors. In comparison, though are the similarities between the 390 & the 400M. I have a +0.060' 400 with KB177 pistons (raised top FT w/1 relief floater hypereutectic 351C) in a decked block with ported & decked heads, custom grind Comp cam & valvetrain, roller rockers, port matched intake & exhaust 11.2CR engine in a'79 F-350 4X4. Unreal torque! She's tired now, so planning a 521 big block.
@@donnatalielucasheimbigner7598 how on earth were people able to afford engine swaps in high school? I worked from 16 and could never afford to do more than a few bolt ons and just keeping my truck running on mostly stock.
@@usaa300 I had worked since I was 11 during summers. Dad had a '68 F100 he was going to trade on a newer F150 but he couldn't get what he wanted for it. He felt sort of bad because I had spent a week after school cleaning, waxing, & detailing it, so he gave it to me. From there I traded work for parts & donor vehicles, with reading & much effort, I learned to fab, weld, do bodywork & paint(not as well as I would have liked), & engine, drivetrain, steering, suspension, & brake work. The 352 engine that was in it got a 4V swap from a donor 390 & served until the 390 was rebuilt. I worked on people's vehicles & regular jobs. I did the mid buck stuff in college where I had access to a full machine shop (I majored in auto tech). The 400 in my '78 F250 (now registered as the donor '79 F350 was done after college. I worked fulltime & moonlighted working on people's vehicles. I have done all work on the engine myself, except the boring, balancing, & mill work. I also owned a '68 Torino GT after college.
I always wondered how you would test to see if the main bearings stay round with aluminum block and steel main caps. Thermal expansion is not the same. 🤔
The main thing here is that its not a racing 351 engine but a stroker engine upto 452 cubic inch, which is not the same as a 351C racing engine which will not produce 750HP naturally aspirated full stop. Also guys i dont know if you noticed that the Z block has piston sleeves and not the normal piston hole, which means that you can replace the sleeves just like a diesel engine has, cheers :) also the welsh plugs are normally made out of steel and no brass and sometimes even aluminium, which is as the person who commented below is to remove the casting sand out of the block when its made and engine coolant is the only thing which running in those areas and to have a welsh plug fail due to hi pressure which i have never ever seen one do that at all when new or even after a couple of years unless the wrong type of coolant is used and electrolysis is happening thus the brass or steel is reacting to this, but to have screw in type welsh plugs is a good idea, but not so much for those on the block but those behind the head and on the heads as well ?
7071t6 ~ You are absolutely wrong man. Both 351W & 351C will make 750hp without power adders. I’ve done it with excellent reliability and just about every Ford Performance engine shops offer them for sale every day of the week.😎
It’s not a freeze plug, it’s a core plug and its not there to save a block in the winter it’s there to let out the sand of the core when it’s cast, hence it’s called a core plug,
The last injected 351s out of the last 80s / 90s 5.7s out of F trucks and E series vans, I don't know who it was , it might have been Glidden but he said they will handle 900hp right out of the box, and they are the blocks you want if you want to build a hot cleveland on a realistic budget / not using super exotic parts.
I just can't not say anything! There's no way a cast iron Windsor block weighs what he's saying, if 4 bolt heads are so inferior, why did GM go to 4 bolts/cylinder on LS motors, Hemi's have 4 bolts/cylinder and those are casting holes, they aren't for expansion during freezing temperatures!
It has far more to do with the deck thickness and port and water jacket routing. If the block/head was rigid enough it could use a single bolt. As for the cored holes filled with welsh plugs they are indeed used for core removal after casting but their purpose isn't for the removal of sand as there is cored holes in the front of the block that would be perfectly adequate for sand removal. The cored holes are next to the bore pairings in most block layouts there is an water jacket between these and even when there isn't they still share the outer water jacket. The sand core is very thin here and needs support to prevent deflection. Remember even though the metal when cast is molten it doesn't get any lighter and even the action of the molten metal flowing past will bend/break the core. The hole is only for a part of the core to be held securely outside to prevent deflection. As for the now required plugs only being a push in fit it is actually to allow the coolant to expand and push out when it's on the verge of freezing. It needs to cover the last area in the block water jacket to freeze, this in the biggest volume of coolant by the smallest surface area usually at the bore pairings. The cores could be adequately held with a much smaller hole but are not due to the required surface area for the water to push out the plug before it becomes ice and cracks the block. This is why you should never glue in a shouldered welsh plug only ever a disc. You can seal them with silicone but that's all. The size of the welsh plug should have been calculated and tested to ensure it will release at the correct moment before cracking happens.
@@robertclymer6948 in Italian we are used to say something similar, meaning we use the saying "to go to the board" (wood board) when the gas pedal meets the floor pan...or floor board
indeed, it refers to a time when the floor of cars were actually made of wood. a couple may still be. we used to say pedal to the metal as at that time we had never even dreamed a car was actually made with a wooden floor.
Do you mean the 302 w/500hp splitting or were you using Nitrous with his 351? The stock 351 2 bolt main is about as strong as the stock 350 sbc up to 600hp or even pushing 1000hp. That's pretty good! The oiling is pretty good in my 351W but in the 351C was more problematic. I've never seen a 351W block that weighted 280. It must be filled. Does the block work harden because it's aluminum and how long will it last? I think it's pretty cool though.
Cleveland is all most like cadillac block I think the engineer designer worked on both engine the water outlet is the same on the engines and have overheat the same way water as to go up then back down to get out LS Chevy has the the same problem. Chevy had to add steam lines on LS
The guy in the video explaining This is not ordinary Block this is for all out Racing High H.P. Ooh Darn I was going to use Cast Iron small Valve smoger Heads, 2BBL Motorcraft Rebuilt Carb by Jim Bob, Low Perf Cam and Points Distributor for my Swamp Buggy
i want to do a engine swap of a blueprint ford 408 stroker an i want to get it to close to or exactly 500hp is that possible can anyone give me some real advice or can say they have done it
Most of what he says about 351 Windsors is BS. Stock 351 block weighs about 155 lbs and four bolt motorsport block is about 200. I raced them for years. This is a Chevy bigot trying to look smart! That being said I would love to have that aluminum beauty!
So much wrong miss information, the main thing mixing up the the early 221/260/289/302w based block with the 351 block. (As someone already mentioned) The low deck split at around 500 hp, but really how many low deck windsors really making 500hp? Even in Australia the 289/302 rebuilder motors are at throwaway money, my next motor will be a another 302 roller, such a neat, cheap, little, light motor that fits into almost anything :) Leave this motor for the people with throwaway incomes (not me unfortunately)
Basically anything that was fitted with 302 351 windsor engines. That covers almost everything from the 60s to the late 90s. From mustangs, f series trucks, broncos, thunderbirds you name it if it had a v8 option you can most likely use it. Transmissions can be the c4, c6, aod, e40d and the array of manuals. In the video i think he said 3500 just for the block which really isnt that bad.
freeze plugs are not "designed to pop out when freezing" it is where the mold held the casting when they casted the block. Literally 9 out of 10 all frozen engines Ive seen never popped a plug, and cracked.
Ford waz encountering porosity during the casting of these cast iron blocks. But really why would anyone want to make horsepower out of a 351 Windsor. 302 boss blocks have never had a problem. I've been a master tech with over 42 years experience. You guys kill with this shit. Building a 351 Windsor to make real horsepower is a matter of more money than brains club.
Of course they are going to make the aluminum block thicker. Aluminum is only about 1/3 the straight of still . The only advantage in this block is the ribs. But you could ask the question. Can't they just add ribs to the Iron casting of this block. And second question, if 150 Lbs is all you save , can't you just take that weight off from the rest of the car ? For example switching from still body panels to aluminum or even carbon fiber. And anyway if you can make 900 horsepower from a 302 or 351 why not just switch up to a slightly bigger block? After all you are not going to be running that thing as a daily driver?
Only saw that happen to s 351 block once, they shot enough nitrous on it to kill an elephant. Only beef I got is that heavy ass crank with 3" mains. Buddy spun a stock block, stock crank 6900 for nearly 2 years. Got greedy and started spraying it without pull some gear out. It didn't like that! They have a 9.5" deck that gives you room for a good rod to stroke ratio or stroker crank. Question is why do weekend warriors build 302 based motors? Make babies standing in a hammock?!!
NOTE: They are not FREEZE PLUGS they are not made to pop out. Those brass / steel plugs you see are CASTING PLUGS. That cratels the casting frame. Result from the support legs holding the water jackets while casting the engine block. Do you actually think the manufacturer intended to save the engine from cracking in a freeze by making those holes. After the casting those holes are machined out then liquid is pumped through those holes to remove the casting sand. You can thread any block to screw in threaded steel plugs in. I worked for Porsche for over twenty years and yes Porsche did make water cooled engines. I also worked for Mercedes. If you notice when engines using brass casting plugs overheat sometimes brass plugs expand and then cool and fall out and also leak at the seams. On the other hand steel plugs are closer expansion rate to cast iron and give less problems than brass. why do people use brass plugs the so called SHADE TREE mechanic thinks oh I will use water without antifreeze save money that way I have no lubricant for the water pump and I will use brass plugs that way they will not rust out and leak. What is up with that Gomer Pile. If you are a mechanic and this is what your instructor taught you you need to go back and explain this to him so he does not turn out any more people with this idea. and antifreeze should be changed app. every 2 to 3 years. It will create acid and loose its lubricant for the water pump. Brake fluid to should be changed about every two years. Sorry I didn't mean to spoil your day. Ps.Do research before you make a video because bad info will effect a lot of people and go a long ways. Regards; Phillip C.
Greg Warner....Chevy for decade's has been talking crap about Ford's in t.v. commercials, they just can't stand on their own merits. They are like liberal democrats, if they can't win the debate or argument, they start calling name's and lying!
Greg Warner....Chevy for decade's has been talking crap about Ford's in t.v. commercials, they just can't stand on their own merits. They are like liberal democrats, if they can't win the debate or argument, they start calling name's and lying!
@@billboyd4243 Hmm as much as I like Ford, it's not like Ford wasn't making TV commercials talking crap about Chevy trucks. The aluminum beds are garbage compared to Ford's old steel beds so it was low hanging fruit for anyone competing against Ford. I can't believe Ford tries to call their aluminum trucks "built Ford tough".
Stop talking shit about ford that weak block smoked Ferrari 3 years in a row . These chevy guy's. Can't seem to let it go . Love them all American made.
I would send Carroll Shelby avocados from my ranch in Bonsall,Ca.he said the 351 Windsor was the best engine Ford ever made.....it was a hoot to get phone calls from Carrol Shelby.....there is a very good reason we are asked to to sign disclosure dox. From roush ......the south does race engines and Barbecue like no one else...take the time to make friends in the business
I like his comparison info but the wording is where he pisses me off. He makes it seem like the STOCK block is bad but I heard him say 700- 800hp. That is where the problems start. Think; a stock grocery getting 5.8l old tech engine that is good for 700hp is AWESOME. Show me a 350 or dodge 5.9 that can hang. The engine is sturdy and beefy for its intended purpose.
Obviously this narrator is an anti Ford guy who has had his ass kicked by Ford guys. Ford has beaten the world in every racing endeavor they have entered like no other American Auto manufacturer. Period.
course its a ford guy who continues the freeze plug myth, its a Casting core plug, that's literally how they got the sand out of the coolant jackets, they do not save the block from freeze cracking, just the happenstance that the water expanding when freezing pushed them out.
