1969 Mustang Restoration: 393 Stroker Engine

The Engine

The engine is a 393 stroker motor. All machine work was performed by B&R Speed Supply in Verona, PA. The block is the original '69 block. It was bored .030" over. The rotating assembly consists of a 3.85" Eagle stroker crank, Eagle h-beam 351w rods, and Sealed Power hyperutectic Teflon coated 302 flat top pistons. This combination yields 393 cubic inches. The heads are Holley 62cc aluminum heads. Aluminum intake and a Holley 750 double pumper top off the engine. As was mentioned on the car's history page the engine was built six years ago. I merely pulled it to freshen up the appearance of it. This page will show you the transformation from this dirty state to a pristine power plant.

This is the engine just prior to pulling it out.

Here it is ready to come out.

It's out.

Here is the engine on the stand.

It has been a year and a half since I pulled the motor and I am finally ready to freshen it up. This page is not intended to instruct you on how to assemble an engine (although top end assembly will be covered). The main goal of this page is to show you how to take an engine that is mechanically sound, but lacking in appearance and transform it into a something worthy of a serious detailed restoration.

The following images will show the dis-assembly of the engine:

Here is the engine prior to dis-assembly.

Step 1: Drain the oil


Next I removed the valve covers. Be sure to put all fasteners in Ziploc bags and label them appropriately. It will save you a lot of time when re-assembling the engine.

After removing the valve covers the intake manifold was also removed.

Seeing this rust on the block made me believe that the heads were leaking, and it is a lot easier to change a head gasket on a stand so I decided to remove the heads and change the gaskets.

It is crucial when disassembling an engine that you label all parts that will be reused. Moving parts must go back in the same location that they were removed from.

Here is the engine with the heads removed

The combustion chambers show some soot build up. This is due to the fact that the last time the engine was run it was only run for a few minutes just to get the car in the garage. Had I allowed the engine to reach operating temperature this would not have happened.

Water pump and harmonic balancer removed. A harmonic balancer puller must be used to properly remove the balancer.

Here's the engine with the oil pan and timing cover removed.

Here is the short block ready for cleaning and painting.

All cleaned up, and painted in Old Ford Blue.

Side view

Cleaning the Heads

The heads were not too dirty. They just needed a light cleaning. First I hit them with some degreaser in the parts washer. Then I used a copper brush to scrub stubborn stains.

After the parts washer I sprayed them down with Brake Clean, and they were good as new.

Cleaning the Valve Covers

The first task was to remove the old paint. This was accomplished using paint stripper. It took a couple of applications, but it did finally remove all of the old paint.

Next I used semi-gloss engine enamel to paint the entire valve cover (including the ribs and letters).

After allowing the paint to dry overnight I removed the paint from the high spots of the valve cover. I used a 3m scouring pad to do this. I prefer not to use sandpaper around engine parts.

Installing the Rocker Arms with Hydraulic Lifters

The first step is to set the engine at top dead center. To do this rotate the engine clockwise until you notice the intake lifter on the #1 cylinder begin to move. Continue rotating the engine until the TDC mark on the harmonic balancer line up with the timing pointer. Your engine is now at top dead center on the #1 cylinder.

The next step is to set the adjusting nut on the rocker arm of the intake valve on the #1 cylinder. To do this slowly tighten the adjusting nut with one hand while rotating the pushrod with your other hand. Continue tightening the nut until you begin to feel drag while rotating the pushrod. This is zero lash.

Once you are at zero lash you can set the preload on the hydraulic lifter. To do this put a wrench on the adjusting nut and tighten the adjusting nut 1/2 turn.

Finally hold the adjusting nut with a wrench and tighten down the set screw inside of the adjusting nut. Follow this procedure on the exhaust valve of the #1 cylinder. This same procedure is used on the other 7 cylinders. To set up the next cylinder rotate the engine clockwise 90 degrees. This will set the next cylinder in the firing order at top dead center. Set those rocker arms then rotate the engine another 90 degrees and set the next cylinder in the firing order. Continue working your way through the firing order until all of the rocker arms have been adjusted.

Installing the Intake Manifold

When installing the intake manifold always use a sealer on passages that will see water. Also put a dab of sealant where the cork gasket in the valley meets gasket that seals the intake to the head.