distributor and oil shaft lengths 302cid

[bourbon]

ya

how many different lengths are there for the oil pump shaft thats 1/4 inch hex going from the oil pump to the distributor for a 302cid? i ask because im doing a swap and cant figure this out. ive been all over the web and get conflicting info. ive been to auto parts stores on the web only to find they dont list the lengths, just what vehicle it went into.

heres the deal. im putting an 88 5.0L from a crown vic into a 67 cougar. i wish to use the duraspark box. the 88 has a roller cam. i know all about the steel gear distributor for an 85 mustang gt manual.

if i pull the TFI distributor out of the 88 5.0L and compare it to one i got out of a 79 mustang 302 i got from a junkyard the distributor shaft is longer on the 88 by about 1/2 inch. if i put the 79 mustang distributor in the 88 block it sits down on the oil pump shaft about 1/4 inch approximately. i dont think this is adequate. both distributors are the same length from the o-ring to the gear. its after the gear that the 88 is 1/2 inch longer.

i have been all over the web looking for info about this. on one site someone said that all the oil pump shafts were the same length. on another site someone else said 86 and newer oil pump shafts were shorter. i pulled mine out of the 88 5.0L to measure it. its about 7 1/2 inches long by 1/4 hex. now it seems to me that if i put in a distributor from a pre 1985 model the oil pump shaft needs to be 1/2 longer. i cant find anything out there that is 1/2 longer. the only other 1/4 inch oil pump shaft ive found is for a 67 390cid that is 8.53 inches (NAPA site) 1/4 inch hex and im seriously thinking of buying it and cutting it off unless someone has more info on this.

again, im worried the 1/4 inch or so that the shaft goes into the distributor isnt going to be enough, maybe even float up and come out of the oil pump? i dont know.

help me before i go insane.

[WildWheels]

Look in a Summit Racing catalog and look for the oil pumps there u will find the ford motorsport (a-302 & b-302) these are the two oil pump shafts you will need to look at. the a-302 is the carb shaft and the other is the EFI shaft. please check the summit book i could be wrong.

[bourbon]

yep i see them. i bought an oil shaft for a 79 mustang 302 and turns out its the same length as the 88 EFI original. so im going to assembly the pieces another day and check again how much of the hex oil shaft actually goes into the end of the distributor. i dont think the block changed over the years as far as the length from oil pump to distributor (kind of doubt it) so i think its prob. going to be ok. i just wonder why they made the newer distributors with the extra 1/2 inch shaft length after the gear and then used the same oil shaft.....

[WildWheels]

Sorry for reading your posting so late. Did you get the problem fixed?