427 W vs. 428 FE: Which Engine is Boss?

On top, the 427W is equipped with Edelbrock Victor Jr. Stage 1 cylinder heads and induction, including an Edelbrock 750-cfm carburetor.

All CHP small-block Ford builds get screw-in freeze plugs at these oil galleys. The factory used pressed-in plugs. Why chance it?

Whenever possible, opt for a late-model 351W block with the one-piece rear main seal.

Plenty of assembly lube at the main bearings and on the cylinder walls ensure lubrication during start-up.

We like the 351W huge main bearings, which make the Windsor a great candidate for displacement.

To keep this comparison fair, we're giving the 427W a flat-tappet hydraulic camshaft.

Anatomy of an FE stroker for the new millennium: a cast-steel crank, H-beam connecting rods, and forged dish pistons. This assembly is dynamic balanced for smoothness. Slugs are custom Probe pieces.

Our foundation is a '61 vintage 390 block that has been bored .060-inch oversize.

The nice thing about an old FE block is the support system-five main bearings in a Y-block configuration. Lots of support going on here. This makes it stronger than the small-block.

Good old-fashioned hydraulic flat tappet tech here. Edelbrock's Performer camshaft, .572L/236D/108LS, will deliver an ever-so-slight lumpy idle with good, crisp throttle response.

As you might expect with any professional engine build, ARP fasteners are the only way to go when it comes to keeping an engine glued together. Both big-cube powerplants are held together with ARP.

This is a Scat cast steel crankshaft with a 3.98-inch stroke. What may surprise you is the main bearing size. The FE has smaller main bearing journals than the 351W.

A dual-roller timing set is fitted to the FE big-block for solid reliability at all rpm ranges.

The bottom end and camshaft are dialed-in as shown to determine integrity. Here, we are looking at camshaft specs and piston position mostly. We did this on number one bore, but it's a good idea to do it on all eight.

A high-volume oil pump feeds the FE's healthy oiling system. The FE-series big-block was blessed with a good oiling system to begin with. When Ford went racing, it learned the hard way where this system needed tuning. For street engines, it is more than adequate.