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Im new to this website and thought i would stop by and say hi. I just bought a what im assuming is a 429 but i don't know what it is. I got the casting number off of the crank its 4u the casting numbers off the heads are d3ve a2a and the numbers off the block are dove a. Its a good running motor i paid 900 dollars for it the transmission and truck. Im wondering if i got a good deal? what can all be done performance wise to this motor to give it more power?.

Welcome to CHR! Not really a casting number guy, checking the bore and stroke IMO is still the best way to determine exactly what you have... Many performance options for the BBF, kind of depends on what it's going in and how you intend to use it for suggestions on how to improve it... 429 or 460, both have a world of potential performance wise!!!!

How do you measure the bore and stroke?

Measure the bore by measuring the size of the cylinder diameter. To measure the stroke, run a piston to the bottom of the stroke and measure from the cylinder deck to the piston, then run the piston all the way to the top and measure the distance from the cylinder to the top of the piston. subtract the height from the deck to the piston at tdc from the distance of the deck to the piston at bdc, the result is the stroke.

welcome to chr whatisit

It's a 429.
Check out this list of numbers....
http://www.raceabilene.com/kelly/hotrod/engine.html

Is the 429 a good motor?.

I guess that like everything else, that is subject to the personal opinion of whomever you ask. Personally, I think it is a great motor that can be built fairly inexpensively to run for a long time at 500/600 foot lbs of torque levels. In other words, the beef of the block, crankshaft and associated parts are fairly sturdy and will support these levels of power without breaking. Speed parts will cost more than those for the more popular Chevrolet motors, but there are quite a few diehard Ford guys out there, so parts are not impossible to come by. To build one on a budget, you would want to build for torque from idle to maybe 5500, rather than for high rpm horsepower.

Others on this board may see it differently, but that's my take on it.

Originally Posted by whatisit?

Im new to this website and thought i would stop by and say hi. I just bought a what im assuming is a 429 but i don't know what it is. I got the casting number off of the crank its 4u the casting numbers off the heads are d3ve a2a and the numbers off the block are dove a. Its a good running motor i paid 900 dollars for it the transmission and truck. Im wondering if i got a good deal? what can all be done performance wise to this motor to give it more power?.

The 4U casting number on the crankshaft denotes a 429, the D0VE block makes it a 1970 or 1971 model. However the D3VE heads would not be original on such an engine and would come from a 1973-1985 460 or a 1973 429. It's as if the 1970-1971 D0VE heads were swapped out for 1973 heads.

If you are mistaken and the block is actually a D1VE (not D0VE), then it is more than likely a 1973 429....a complete turd as delivered from the factory but has the potential to be a lot more.

Paul

the 429 and the 460 are the same motor, same 4.360 bore.....the difference is in the stroke.
the 429 had a 3.59 stoke and the 460 has the 3.85 inch stroke.
If its a D0VE D1VE block.....1970 the D for 70's and 0 and 1 as the exact 70's year (70, 71)
If you have D0VE or D1VE heads, these are the 10.5:1 compression....motor would be rated at 360HP
If you have the D2VE, D3VE heads....D2VE have the 8.5:1 compression and the D3VE have the 8:1 Compression. It would bring the HP down to about 212HP & 200HP.

with out changing the heads, if you change the cam to a Comp Cam 256 or Summit Racing 262, change the original retarded timing chain, you will add about 100 HP and it will breath much better.
these blocks are capable to withstand 1200-1500HP all depends on how deep your pockets are.

I spent 1500$ on Summit Racing parts on my 460 and now has an estimated 525HP. I have a D0VE Block with D0VE heads.....original rating of 365HP

Hope this helps some as well