Projects FlatCab: 1932 Cabriolet, Hot 1941/42 Merc Flathead Build

Dale that thing sounds damn good for a flathead

 

fantastic, sounds awesome, can only imagine cutting laps in that at sunset on a country road somewhere. Congrats sir.

 

That thing has some serious bark, I sure as hell love open exhaust on a built flathead!

 

Hey Gang - thanks for all the kind words . . . very nice of you all. Just shows we all have a passion for stuff that looks and sounds good. Hopefully it will go down the road as well!. Having some issues with the clutch at the moment - not disengaging. This was an old racing clutch that Long Beach Clutch and Brake built for me 35 years ago. It worked just fine with the same 39 Box, but with the SHORTER clutch cross-shaft lever. Now that I've had to put the longer 32 lever in, isn't releasing. I'm going to screw with this later on today. Hopefully there will be enough pedal travel for it to work - other wise out comes the engine and a new clutch gets put in! Always something to fix on new startups!

 

Bummer, I was ready for the first drive vid already.

 

Thanks for the update. Love the sound of it.

Dit dit dit dit diddle-it
Dit dit dit dit diddle-it
Dit dit dit dit diddle-it

Beautiful!

Mart.

 

He will have some of the best country roads on the planet when he gets settled out here!

 

Hey Randy - what are you sayin?

 

That's probly the best 200 hp you could get out of that thing lmao

 

If I'm lucky it makes 200! LOL BUT . . . you show me a 400 HP SBC that sounds even half as good . . . and I'll quit building flatheads!

 

Clutch Update:

Well, given that I couldn't get it to go into gear (clutch wasn't releasing), decided I needed to look a bit more into it. I pulled the inspection cover off of the 39 transmission and took a looksee. Ah Hah! I can see where the clutch release levers are hitting the clutch disk (faint little marks). Well, the new clutch adjustment rod that I made is a a bit too long and when I pressed the pedal to the floor (without floorboards in the car), then it went too far and hung up the clutch disk.

So, I adjusted the linkage and got it so that I could rock the car back and forth with the clutch in (and in gear) - and it was free. This is a very special racing clutch that I had custom made about 35 years ago - only needs about an inch of pedal to engage/disengage it . . . is really nice to shift with. Given that it is releasing now, I like the longer 32 clutch lever - makes the pedal pressure a LOT less!

I've put all the floorboards back in - looks like I'll be ready for a maiden voyage tomorrow - God willing and the creeks don't rise!

Stay tuned folks . . .

 

Nothing like a maiden voyage...... say out to the west coast?

 

Test Driving the New Engine:
I took the car out on the highway Sunday and leaned on it a bit - needed to make sure the rings broke in. I didn't want to screw with a video on this trip (as I was alone and didn't have anybody with me). On Sunday a buddy came over and we took a borrowed GoPro out on the road at the end of my long driveway - but we forgot to clean the windshield and the video looked like crap.

So, today - I cleaned the windshield and the neighbor boy came over and I told him he could be my official video crew - so I said "jump in and lets go for a short ride". I just took the car down the road for a couple minutes - putting it through the gears and enjoying the ride. I think he enjoyed his first ride in a traditional hotrod!

1) First Impressions and Original Concerns: I had a few concerns with the engine/drivetrain combination - and until I put it on the road, who the Hell knows if I was going to have issues:

a) Really Big Cam, Big Valves, Huge Ports: Given the big-ass roller cam - with 320 degrees of duration @ .010 and 280 @ .050 - with .420 lift . . . was worried that the cam would be a real dog at low speed and the engine would have no power until higher RPM. This thing is very heavily ported and relieved, has 1.72 intake valves and the intake manifold has been extensively ported as well. My thought/hope was that this Eddie Meyer manifold with the raised carbs, might just work as the carb riser should act as a kind of ram-air device (hopefully getting the mixture velocity up). Truth be told, this thing can probably use more carb - but I only wanted to run 2 (which was pre-WWII style).

b) 14 lb Aluminum Flywheel and Lightened Racing Clutch: Light flywheels can rev fast and sound cool, but they don't store a lot of energy - so they can make it really hard to pull away from a dead-stop without slipping the hell out of the clutch.

c) Lincoln Zephyr 25T Gears - 39 Trans: These are really steep gears as compared to the typical 28/29 tooth varieties that we're all used too. The close-ratio combination can work, but only if you can pull them.

Given all of the above, was worried that I'd doomed myself to a real PIG at a stop light . . . and that I might not have enough low-end torque to pull the beast and get it rolling - without major clutch slipping and revving the crap out of it. I was seriously wondering if I'd made a mistake in trying this combination on the street. But this is one big experimental engine anyway - so if I didn't try some stuff, how would I ever know if it had the potential to actually work? Screw it . . . try it . . .

Well - I'm very happy to report that the above combination appears to be working really well! I noticed no issues taking away from a dead-stop, it just wants to take off and go! It has plenty of low-end power and is a pleasure to drive (even at this early - non-tuned stage). I have not done any work with the timing or the carb jets - will get to that at a later date. Also, I'd love to try a set of the new 'Big 97' carbs from Clive - we'll see if I can make that happen.

Drum Roll Please . . . From Behind the Flathead Curtain . . . The FlatCab - With a New Heart!

So - at long last . . . here is the video that we took of the old girl going down the road. I got on it a little bit - nothing too dramatic as I don't have a tach in it as of yet and really want to break it in a bit. I think you'll like it!

Enjoy:

 

Very cool, sounds like it should be in the pits at a drag strip, even the dog likes it.
Al.

 

Man Dale, maybe it's just the camera, but it seems like you guys are flying around like hooligans, I love it!!!

 

Really great Dale. guess ya are grinning from ear to ear!!!!

 

Yes sir, that is EXACTLY Awesome !

 

Great Job Dale. Sounds great and looks like it's got a LOT of get n go!

 

Thanks guys - appreciate the support and camaraderie . . . it is a fun car to drive . . . even at this un-tuned stage. I think the two Stromberg 48's are too small for this engine, so I'm going to try a set of Holley 2110's that I have and may also see if I can get Clive to work with me on a set of those new 'Big 97's'. I'd like to do a dyno run with all three sets of carbs - just for shits and giggles!

 

Must be very careful Dale........

 

Hahaa, ^^^^^ that's funny.

 

Dang that engine sounds beefy, really nice!

 

Dale since I'm so terribly going to copy your engine build... I've got some Packard 440 wire on the way. Thanks for all the inspiration to drain my time and wallet.

 

It sounds great - really crisp. It picks up cleanly when you blip it going into second. Nice even spacing on the gear ratios too. Never really listened to the cadence of gearshifts on a set of Zephers before. Thanks for posting, the engine build up series was great to follow.

Mart.

 

Thanks again guys . . . all good stuff and get em' running!

 

Do you have any updates? I've been really interested in all the new tech you sneaked into your traditional flathead build. I will be really curious to hear how the engine does next summer on a really hot day.

Thanks for documenting everything as well as you have.

 

Just finished reading your build. How I missed it, I have no excuses. Awesome thread and really appreciated the detailed information. You really know how to pass the knowledge to others. Thank you!

 

Hey Gang - no important updates at the moment, was gone for a couple weeks and had to get the 32 into my heated garage. The ancient starter died on it, so I have that all apart on the bench and will get it rebuilt (I don't have a growler or any of that stuff). I'll probably not be back to the car until January - and will be starting on the bullet-proofing a Columbia for a 32 project. Should be a LOT of fun!

 

Great work Dale. Like you i was a little concerned re that roller stick and the alum flywheel but she runs and pulls real well.

Should be interesting to see what she does on the uno with the bigger carbs after getting dialled in.

Top job !

 

Thanks! Yes, those two things and also the LZ 25 tooth gears - they are hard to pull from a standing start . . . unless you have enough torque to get the car under way. I was surprised how well it performs off a standing start - expected to have to slip the clutch quite a bit. Somedays, one gets a bit lucky!