I have a 390 w 352 heads and c-6 combo in my 59.It originally had a 430 MEL so the mount are a little different and so are the tranny mounts.
I didn't swap it but it's a pretty simple conversion.
Stay away from the gt or cobra heads their a 16 bolt config.and you exhaust wont fit.You'll have to get custom exhaust to clear the steering box.
I've been contiplating a 428 CJ for Chiquita .

I have a 390 with 352 heads as well ( ´64 ). That engine came from a pickup....( Ranchero perhaps? )I understand all FE engines will fit quite easy, as it should be pretty much the same on the outside. The original 352 ( ´58 ) was changed due to a big crack in the block.

2 great books you might want to look into are:
High Performance Ford Engine Parts Interchange 221-CID to 460-CID...by George Reid
How to Rebuild Your Big-Block Ford
by Steve Christ
Great info and nice to have on hand...You can Google 'em.
The 352 heads I have are pretty rare(EDC)..They are machined combustion chambers which got to costly for Ford and were abandoned for "as cast" chambers.They make little difference in performance.

hey switchblade,another thing you might consider is stroking a 390 to a 410 is fairly easy by installing a 428 crank.

So the 390 Is basically a bolt in it sounds like. Why use the 352 heads though?
Do you know what it took to get the c6 in there? I'm mainly wondering about the linkage with the original shifter. If I have to go ahead with all this I'm totally gonna look into a transmission upgrade as well....

the EDC heads have a slightly smaller chamber size creating a higher compression ratio.Not that big of a deal the car came that way.
The 390 and 352 are so similar that I'm having difficulty identifying the motor in my other bird.The #'s on the block and heads (according to the books) tell me they are a 352/390.
c-6 should be a direct bolt in again mine came with it in so I wasnt involved with the transplant.But mine being a J code car had some obstacles I can tell.

This is a post I found posted by 6TBIRD about C-6 linkage.

The linkage fits right into the selector on the tranny. and then just adjust it at the shift lever on the column at the steering box. and all that is, is to disconnect the linkage put the shift selector in D2 shift the tranny into 2nd gear by pushing down on the rod then turn the end connector until it slips freely on tho the shift lever reinstall the cotter pin and then run the selector the the gears. and your done.

c6

I dont think the c6 is a drop in for a 352 bird. I looked at it briefly and as I remember the transmission mount has to be moved backwards and a new mount fabricated. Not a huge mod but not a drop in. If time is of the essence like it being a driver and your COM is ok I would stick with just engine change. As EG said any of the FE engines will bolt in. Cheap upgrade as EG said is to build a 410 which you can use a 360 block (very plentiful) as well as the 390 block with a 428 crank and rods. I just bought a running 390 and C6 from Youngs auto wrecking and I think I have $750 in it. For what ever reason I wasnt able to find a lot of 390's around here. Grant

390 will drop right in. Mine still has the cruise-O. When it takes a dump, I'll throw a C6 at it.

Originally, my dad had a Hi Perf (68 Mustang - by appl) 390 with (surfaced) 352 heads. Comp ratio was up there. Had a Holley 780 (good for those days - junk now) That motor was run one way for 30 + years . . . With the hammer down. She'd scream. Ya had to run addative in the later years or she'd ping. Whats in there now runs good too . . .heh heh. Lwr compr though.

Regarding 352 heads in a 390, well, the truth is that I don´t know why that works .......
But I got this letter from the previous owner, who explained it like this:
"he car was originally a 352 but had a cracked block as well as other ailments, the 390 came out of a mid sixties pickup and the heads are 352 as they had larger valves, there is a mild cam with forged pistons, it has been ported and relieved, with a competition three angle valve job and hardened seats, the tran, both front and rear suspension rebuilt. the ac has new compressor, dryer and condenser, rear end was not rebuilt but was drained, flushed and new fluids added the current carb is a 750 cfm as the original 500 cfm wasn't adequate for the additional power, has not been dynoed but feel it should be producing upwards of 450 hp. note to the best of my knowledge and information I could find indicates less than 500 were built with factory air.."

Anyone know what " competition three angle valve job " is? Number of angels of the valve? What´s good about that?

The 3 angle valve job is used mainly on hi-performance motors only. It is simply what it is called. 3 different angled cuts are made on the valve's seating surface. A 3 angle cut valve gives a higher & more precise flow pattern, allowing a faster volume of air/fuel both in and out of the cylinder. Most engines have a simple 2 angle valve cut....

Ah, thanks.
I like the 3-cut then
Time to rew her up then and check what´s happend.

The 4bbl heads used on the 352 Thunderbirds did have bigger valves than the 2 bbl heads. We won't call them Interceptor heads because I don't want to open that can of worms again . . . Even though all the old time Ford guys from "the day" called the motors in the 58-60 TBirds (and the police cars) "Interceptor Motors".

Long and short of it, 300 (under rated HP) compared to 250? or something from a 2 bbl motor.

So . . . throw that combo on the bigger badder 390 and LOOK OUT !!
But that was back in the days of 100 octane gas.
This horse **** we're paying $4 a gallon was meant for a Briggs & Stratton. Keep comp ratios areound 9-1.

Can the intake from the 352 be used on the 390 without using the 352 heads? Every 390 I've found is a 2bbl engine, and I don't wanna have to shell out the extra money for a 4 bbl. I'll eventually put the 352 heads on the 390 I get, but I'm thinking I'll have them rebuilt first.

I am sorry but the valves used in 352's and 390's were the same size whether it was a 2V or a 4V. The intakes were 2.04 inches and the exhaust were 1.56 inches (1.57 inches starting in 1961) on all 352, 360, 390, 410 and 428 engines except special performance versions from 58-76. Ford did nothing different on 2V and 4V heads except on some applications they had different valve springs. Also note that non special heads used on these engines were the same for any of those engines for the year the engine was made, that is to say a 1962 352 and 390 used the exact same head or a 1958 332 and 352 used the same head or a 1967 352 and 428 used the same head. It is an old wives tale that there were 2 barrel and 4 barrel heads or that there were 352 heads and 390 heads. Now having said that, in the 60's there were special applications like the HiPo 352 and 390's 428CJ etc... that did have a special head or valve size but believe it or not, even a 66-69 GT390 did not have special heads or valve sizes! Finally, the issue of the Interceptor name, " all the old time Ford guys from "the day" called the motors in the 58-60 TBirds (and the police cars) "Interceptor Motors"." The old guys called them that because that is what Ford called them. It was a marketing tool. The Thunderbird special was a 292 or 312 so they could not call them that so when the new 332 and 352 FE engines came out they were labeled the "Interceptor" and this held true for 1958, 1959, and 1960. In 1961 the name Thunderbird Special was applied to the new 390. The Police Interceptor was new for 1964 I think (maybe 63, my brain is fuzzy and I am too tired to check!). Hawkrod

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