351w swap 1988 ranger

[Bruce2]

The shaft part that connects the universal joints is 3/4 inch cold rolled solid steel, we machined the one end to go into the stock steering shaft. The aluminum bracket in the middle has a roller bearing in it, in which we machined the custom support bracket for the bearing to fit and height, we still had to ding the header tube just a little bit...Those headers are the tri Y's which are stainless steel that I got off of ebay for 95 bucks...universal joints where bought from speedway motors, the double joint was 126 bucks.

The starter fit right in with no issues..the right side header flange is up against the pan rail on the AOD but a friend has a muffler shop and he said no problem fixing that....Going to use the electric fuel pump in the tank since it's a low pressure pump hooked to a fuel pressure regulator with bypass. I hit the junk yards and found a 1988 Ford Ranger with out air conditioning and got the air box for the heater part and had to modify air box some what..

Next up is the wiring up the motor so stock gauges and everything works...

 

[Bruce2]

A little update on progress.. motor all in all wiring done, waiting on carb..found a heater box for a non ac ranger and got it modified to clear the valve covers and dipstick, fuel lines are all plumbed in and using the fuel pump in the tank which i replaced with a new sending unit and pump, pump spec's are 4 ponds minimum pressure and 9 pounds max pressure so we are installing a regulator with return, fuel pump is wired thru the inertia switch in the cab. Here's a couple of pics..

 

[benhojnowski]

Get a set of weld up headers from Speedway Motors. Make your own headers that exit outside the frame. They will be better in the long run and much better. The kit is $115 right now on sale. I can post pics of the ones I made if needed. Passenger side was easy. Drivers side I had to make the rear 2 pipes go under steering shaft. The fwd pipes go above the steering shaft. Then I cut the fwd 2 pipes and welded in a couple cheap collectors from autozone. That way I can remove the header without disassembling the steering linkage. link below
https://www.speedwaymotors.com/Small-Block-Ford-289-351W-Header-Kit-1-5-8-Tube-3-Inch-Collector,3842.html

 

[Bruce2]

I have this fitting pretty good and installed, just have to make a few minor bends where the collector flange is hitting the pan rail on the AOD....Thanks for the link..