QUICK TIPS by: Charlie Morris
TECH TIP
by: Charlie Morris
Being the old school guy that I am in past years when looking for a windage tray for any of my FE engines I automatically turned to the inexpensive, tried and true piece offered by Ford racing. Now that these parts are no longer offered I am forced to turn to the performance aftermarket in my efforts to keep the crankshaft out of the oil and pick up a few ponies. And with established companies like Milodon and Canton offering quality parts designed specifically with our beloved FE in mind that cannot be a bad thing right? I’d like to preface the following experience with something that has become time honored with me when speaking of anything early Ford or FE and that is; “Never say never” and “Never say always”.
With the formalities dispensed with allow me to share my recent experience with windage trays from the aforementioned companies with you. The engine in question is a 1962 406, and it is not fitted with a longer than standard stroke crankshaft. For this application I decided to go with a stock depth Milodon replacement oil pan, pickup, and windage tray. With everything bolted together I went through a rotation of the crankshaft and while doing so heard a slight metallic clicking sound regularly emanating from the oil pan as I did the rotation. Obviously something was hitting somewhere and that can never be a good thing. Removing the pan but leaving the windage tray in place I performed another rotation of the crank and upon doing so not only heard the click but also noted a slight movement of the tray itself as the piston and rod assemblies came around. Removing the tray revealed that the longer than OE length ARP connecting rod bolts were hitting against the stamped baffles located along the tray. Using a marker to indicate where clearance was needed we then went about notching each of these baffles in an effort to gain the clearance needed. In spite of the fact that nothing seemed amiss after notching the tray I decided against using it and ordered up an FE specific windage tray from Canton which, when installed along with the Milodon oil pan, proved to have more than ample clearance for the rotating assembly. Believing that all was now good to go I once again buttoned things up. However, when I replaced the OE dipstick in its tube it proved hard to seat. Another test rotation of the crankshaft revealed yet another ominous clicking sound from the pan. Disassembling things once again I found that the front lip of the Canton windage tray interfered with the OE dipstick in such a way that it was being bent to the point where it would contact the front counterweight of the crankshaft as the assembly rotated. Once again the trusty die grinder was called into action and after the removal of most of the lip on the front of the tray, almost back to the point where the screen is, there was finally clearance for the dipstick to be installed without interference.
The moral of this story is; just because the aftermarket parts catalog lists an FE specific part, and while it may work just fine with the majority of them, don’t be too quick to assume it will work with them all. Taking your time and checking things twice early on could save untold heartache and money later.
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