Posts by frank.herbst_old

All good advice.

I would also use desiccants or a dehumidifier in the capsule. I use a dehumidifier in my garage; you would not believe the amount of water that gets removed. The result is really nice, simple things like the brake rotors to not get surface rust.

The idea of having a full tank of gas may come from the desire to remove air that can contain moisture. With current pump fuels you may be better off with a small amount of fuel during storage and getting the moisture out of the area the car is being stored in. Current pump gas starts turning very quickly. Also use a modern fuel additive that is formulated for fuel that contains methanol if you are using pump gas with methanol.

Once winter sets in the humidly becomes much less of a problem, but you still want to control moisture. You really do not want a full tank of old gas unless your plan is pump it out next spring. Even during the winter I like to start my cars once a month to keep the seals in good working order. You may not be able to do this in your location; here in VA we usually get a couple of days each month that are nice enough to start the car. I don’t go out of the drive way if salt has been put on the neighborhood roads.

These are a set of old Cobra valve covers.

Several of you guys on this site have been a lot of help. I thought maybe letting you know of a recent problem might help someone else out.

After getting our HiPo 289 running after it had been sitting around for ~25 years I noticed a sound coming from the driver’s side valve cover. It sounded just like a loose lifter. After checking the valve settings several times (with the noise still coming from what sounded like a loose valve) I luckily found the cause of the noise to be a loose oil baffle for the oil filler tube on the driver’s side valve cover. Don’t know if anyone else has seen this problem.

All,

Thanks for the input…

The car is scheduled for the paint shop after we get back from VIR. Paint will probably take a month or two. Olaf is doing the paint at Southern Auto Body in Fredericksburg VA. He does a very nice job…

Richard – looking forward to seeing you. Maybe you can come by after we bring the car back from the paint shop.

Frank

My son and I got our 66 HiPo engine running yesterday. This is a video of the first turn of the ignition key. It had been in storage for ~35 years.

Thank you all for helping with my questions.

The informaiton on the automatic starter working for original HiPo engines was correct.

Frank

I picked up a rebuilt 66 289 starter for an automatic, then checked all of the measurements against my original starter and all measurements where the same. I can only guess that maybe the HiPo flywheel was the same number of teeth and diameter as the automatic flywheel or maybe they are just listed wrong by the rebuilders. I’m also having my machine shop rebuild the original starter. If anyone needs any type of machine shop work I highly recommend Ralph at (540) 659-3797. He is absolutely anal when it comes to precision. Other machine shops around the country send him specialty parts (for crack/damage repair) that have to be saved. Mostly very rare car parts that are not available. He has done several 289/302 and 428’s for us. The last 428 he did for me held 22 on the vacuum gauge at idle. Pretty good valve and cylinder fit/seal going on there.

Thanks again for your help with the starter questions,

Frank

I’m learning about 66 starters as we go along. Right now I think what is being written is the re-manufactures are selling a starter that will fit the small flywheel 66 manual cars, they just list it as an automatic starter.

What I can tell you is my car had what looks like an original starter. It has a C3## nose on it. The opening in the starter plate (mounted between the bell housing and the engine) measures 4 3/32”. The starters my local parts guys are selling are approximately 1/8” bigger (the diameter of the part of the starter the fits into the starter plate) than my original starter so it will not fit into the starter plate. I ordered a starter for an automatic car (it comes in tomorrow morning) so I will measure everything on it compared to my original starter. Two different sources have confirmed the automatic starter is what I need.

I’ll let you guys know how this works out.

Frank

We are hoping to start our HiPo engine up in the next week or two. This engine has not been on the road for ~35 years. Thanks to knowledgeable people like you, that have been willing to help out it just might run again.

Thanks for the information.

Fred,

I exchanged email with Bob and will work out something through him. Either get him to rebuild mine or see if the has a good one for my car.

Thanks for the information, starters usually just plug-in and work.

Fred,

I’m curious about production dates. Was there a size change on the nose after 66? And I guess from your input the bendix gear is the same regardless of the number of teeth on the flywheel. The reason I ask is I think the 289 small block had two different flywheels (by number of teeth) depending on the year it was produced.

Thanks for the help…

I bought a rebuilt starter yesterday and asked for a 66 289 manual transmission starter. It does not fit into the plate between the transmission and the engine block. Its diameter is about 1/8 inch to big. The starter that came with the car (C3##) fits fine it is just old and I did not want to clean it up and then have it quit working later.

How can I find a rebuilt starter that will fit?

Thanks - Frank

Edited by - SixT5HiPo on 05/27/2011 00:37:00

Fred,

I bought a HiPo pump you rebuilt from one of the guys on the forum that no longer needed it. Do you know how long ago you started rebuilding fuel pumps with ethanol safe parts? The pump I bought was done within the last year or so and not run on an engine.

Thanks...

Thanks for all of the good information.

zrayrichter - provided great details.

Hello again,

Several of you guys answered questions that help us with our HiPo rebuild. In the next week or two we are going to put it on our engine stand and attempt to run it for about 20 minutes.

I would like to use a BOSS 302 style rebuild-able Carter fuel pump. Has anyone already done this? Can I use a BOSS 302 fuel pump on a HiPo 289?

Thanks…

What advance setup do you guys like for street use on a K-Code engine that will not see much use above 6000RPM? Would an initial setting of 12° with 24° centrifugal advance (giving 36° total) be good? The engine is stock but built to much better tolerance and balance standards than the production line.

Thanks…

Fred,

I have been getting confusing information on flywheels. With the information you provided all of the confusion goes away. You where correct, our flywheel is 160 teeth.

Thanks…

Reading from the High Performance Mustang book HiPo flywheels and flex plates can have 157 or 164 teeth. Our flywheel is a C3 number with 164 teeth.

1. Was there a different starter for 157 and 164 teeth flywheels?

2. Does anyone have a HiPo flywheel they can measure the thickness on? My engine guy wants me to replace our HiPo flywheel because it looks thin to him.

3. Has anyone replaced their HiPo flywheel with an aftermarket unit that works well?

Thanks…

Edited by - SixT5HiPo on 02/04/2011 01:08:44

Fred,

I know some people don’t reuse the hatchet. I’m thinking if Ford went to the trouble to use it they had a good reason to do so. Problem is Comp Cams doesn’t have a new timing gear set listed for the HiPo engine. Can you recommend a place to purchase a correct timing gear set for the HiPo engine?

Thanks,

Frank

Does anyone know what the hatchet on the lower timing gear does? I’m going to check with Comp Cams this morning to see if it requires a special lower gear when replacing the timing gear set. Has anyone dealt with this recently?

Edited by - SixT5HiPo on 01/27/2011 00:44:45

"HIPO" specific parts list with forum additons:

1) BLOCK was standard 289 production engine block that has passed several manufacturing tests (sonic, dye check, etc.). Oil galley plugs are the same as production 289 engines, theaded at the bellhousing side and pressed in on the cam gear side.

2) Crankshaft was a standard crankshaft that has passed manufacturing tests (Brinell Hardness Number (BHN, standard 289 crank was ok at less than 50%, HP units were held to a 90% minimum spec).

3) Heavy Duty engine block main caps.

4) Heavy Duty rods and rod bolts.

5) High strength pistons.

6) Timing chain and gears, also extra balance "hatchet".

7) Harmonic balancer and bolt / washer.

Camshaft and lifters (solid type).

9) Cylinder head assemblies used different springs, screw-in rocker arm studs, valve spring seats cast into head and adjustable rocker arm assemblies. Cast in push rod guides were used on all 289 heads. All other specifications of the cylinder head are the same as standard production cylinder heads given the year of manufacture.

10) Larger venturi autolite carbs were used with a spacer plate as standard equipment. Holley carb with manual choke and aluminum manifold on Shelby.

11 Low restriction air cleaner assembly

12) Oil pump assembly.

13) Dual point mechanical distributor, steel core wires and HP plugs.

14) High volume fuel pump.

15) 6 fin 3 hold water pump.

16) Flywheel or flex-plate.

17) 4” alternator pulley

18) Light weight 4 blade fan and different fan shroud

19) Low restriction cast iron exhaust manifolds, headers for Shelby.