I have been readin posts on this site for more than a year and rarely provide feedback. This crankshaft debate is about all I can take. Without knowing for sure that the cranks are not steel, some people are condemning ford for being cheap. Let me tell you what I see on this site. Some of you are apparently willing to modify your trucks and live with the consequenses. Others believe that they should be able to modify their trucks to whatever level they feel necessary and if it develops a problem, Ford should warranty it and appologize for not making it strong enough to handle the level of boost they are at. Having been a lifelong Ford owner, I have to say I am embarrassed to say I own a Lightning after reading some of these posts. If you are truely that unhappy with Ford products, go over to the other side of the fence (Dodge/Chevy/Toyota/Nissan) where the grass is greener and the warranties are unlimited????? Otherwise, maybe you should man-up and deal with whatever problems your modifications have caused. Really, 21 pounds of boost on a stock bottom end????? I am sure most will not want to hear this, but, it needs to be said.

 

The problem here is the fact that Ford put cheaper and weaker parts in than they advertised. This has nothing to do with warranties or mods. This is about Ford advertising certain forged components and not including them.

 

Nobody has proved as fact that they have either a cast crank or cast pistons. Almost this entire thread is hear say about what may or may not be in the Lightning engine.

 

Wow! Two posts and the man hit the nail on the head. Very good points. I have yet to see any bonified proof that the cranks aren't forged. I t seems Sal is a little unsure now and is checking into it. It amazes me how some of these guys jump all over a rumor and fly with it. Before I shoot my mouth off like CYNthia or some of the others, I would want to get some absolute proof.

 

Hold on, here, folks. SANITY CHECK TIME!

As I stated before several times, there is no credible evidence that anyone got a cast crank or cast pistons. Everyone should just take a deep breath and wait for evidence.

My posts were clearly qualified as "what ifs" in relation to "what if" questions. Nobody is suing anybody yet. And I would not even participate in, much less file, a suit not grounded on substantial evidence.

And for the record, I am not complaining about any part on my engine (except for the annoying but apparently harmless piston slap).

 

It appears that two other people were thnking what I was thinking at the same time -- all three posts within 120 seconds of each other.

 

People grounded in reality tend to think alike

 

So far I havent seen anyone say they have a cast crank from the factory build except Alphadoggy. So Id agree. Check it again. Is that your original crank?


Steve

 

And after rereading his post, it sounds more like he is assuming that he has a cast crank based on another thread on the board rather than actually checking his crank.

 

I stated the issue, not whether there is substantial proof of cast vs. forged cranks and pistons in our trucks. I guess we will wait and see how the cookie crumbles.

 

Looks like you have already found Ford guilty by the above statement. You need to learn to make sure you have some facts in place to back up your accusations. To fly off on a whim and accuse Ford of something that nobody knows if they did or not, only makes you and others that have followed, look foolish. I'm not saying that the cranks are forged or cast, but I'm going to wait and see some actual proof before I make accusations towards Ford.

 

You're right Maxine, I should've used a qualifier. My bad. However, I do think this issue deserves some investigation. Check out Sal's original thread. I don't personally plan on dissecting my motor just to see if I have a cast crank or forged crank, but I will consider Sal's and alphadoggy's words...

 

George, one thing to remember if you, indeed, did get a cast crank.

Cast cranks can be very durable if they are prepped right, and balanced properly.

If you keep the RPM within reason, it will probably live long and prosper. It's RPM that kills them.

I've run cast cranks in many high performance applications, and have yet to break one. On my short stroke motors, 6500 RPM has proven to be a safe level.

With our long stroke motors, I probably wouldn't wind them up that tight.

 

Bull puckey! It seems to me that you are the one who is jumping to conclusions. The money for this project is coming out of my pocket, not Ford's. $3000+ to Sal for rods, pistons, balancer, pumps, rails, etc. $6000+ to JDM for heads, cams, exhaust, etc. $3000 to JL for blower. Mucho bucks to other vendors for the rest of the parts. Not one nickel subsidized by Ford. But damnit, it says there in black and white that my truck is supposed to have a forged crank. If it doesn't, and that issue is still in question, Then Ford did misrepresent their product. We will see.

 

Everyone can ease back to DefCon 1. Sal has posted information that the cranks are all indeed forged.