Quote Originally Posted by mike223 View Post
I think in the short term - you'll be fine if you modify your pickup (or buy a pickup) that gets you down to 3/8" - 7/16" off the bottom of the pan.
So long as you bear in mind you can't thrash it around like a race car in that condition - you know what to watch for.
Quote Originally Posted by Yama-Bro View Post
I'll chime in here and agree with the others. This is to far from the bottom of the pan. I've designed a few pickup tubes here at work and our rule is .25" to .38". All of the ones I've done are for Chevys (BBC, SBC and LS), but I wouldn't think Fords would be any different.
Got some smart people here and I heeded your advice. After beating the tube and heating it up as I went along I came out with 5/16 taking into account the pan gasket. When I stick an allen wrench in the oil drain and adjust for some thickness of the pan and the threaded insert I come up with a little more but its hard to tell with it being off to the side. I have to say I am very happy with it now and will feel at peace knowing its getting oil from as low as I could make the tube and still not restrict flow with the additional bends. Torqued the main cap bolts one last time to 75 ft lbs just for good measure and sealed it back up.