Hot Rods Spending the money building vintage engines

I wonder if the SBC would be cool if it had been discontinued in 1962........

 

hahaha, I once was in that circle here. Funny that one cylinder head shot would trigger one of them. @corncobcoupe , twas it you? That shot was as benign as the modern fake mags folks post. Don't get me wrong, this place has a great focus and I will defend it to the end.

 

You are trying to convince YOURSELF that you are not crazy!!??? If you are not somewhat crazy , What the hell are you doing here?

 

It would be more expensive, that's for sure.

 

You know my early hemi addiction. When i started with them i had the same song and dance... Then somehow it became popular and folks started dropping stuff. No more regringing old cam cores etc. On the other hand copper head gaskets which had bern cheep have all but dried up as now ones have been used and new ones are$$$$$

 

Re popping not dropping

 

It doesnt make any sense to build anything other than a bbc or sbc. The parts for both are cheap and plentiful. Nobody is going to spend big money to make an off brand engine competitive, it's just not worth it for little return.

 

I totally agree. For the most part, the parts either go together or they don't, and you can make a lot of progress in a short period of time. Unless you're building something very exotic or with loads of custom parts, I don't see how the assembly of an engine would take more than a few days, provided that you have machine work already done, necessary parts acquired, and everything mics out within spec.

On the other hand, you can block sand a door or quarter for 2 weeks and still not be happy.

 

Couple of months back I saw a 56 Plymouth Fury with the hood up. Now I'm not even a Mopar guy but I know this is the first year produced, only offered in one color and with a hemi.
I walk over and look under the hood and there is a LS3.
It was like the soul was ripped out of that car. I walked up wanting to see something exceptional, I walked away from just another car.

 

That is exactly the point, if it had been discontinued in 62 it would have a seven year production.
Instead it was produced for 60 years and over 100 million were made.

 

That's an interesting thought.
"If"...
And then it would be...

"The very rare, highly sought-after, cool, old small block Chevy engine."
And...
"If only someone would make some better heads for them."
And...
"Maybe I can afford one someday."
And...
"Are they worth building?"
And...

 

"Scored! SBC!" threads.

 

That's an interesting point. But what it insinuates (and frankly confirms) is that the desire to build an obsolete engine is not to be better, but to be different and still within the framework of the traditional mold. One of the hardest parts to come to terms with when building an obsolete engine is that you're undoubtedly spending more money on what will almost certainly be an inferior end product when all is said and done, and definitely so on a value basis. The SBC, SBF Windsor, BBC, B/RB Mopar, and LA Mopar had long production runs supplemented with robust availability of aftermarket replacement and performance parts because those engine designs were objectively better than their counterparts. I'm not talking about a subjective love affair with a particular engine, those engines separated themselves from their contemporary counterparts as better platforms for power, packaging, reliability, etc.

The desirability of the obsolete engine is multi-fold. Because parts are rare, they are expensive. Expensive is desirable because not everybody can afford it. Comparing the common hot rod engine to a decked out Olds, Hemi, Nailhead, etc., is comparing belt from Kohls and one from Hermes. They both hold your pants up just fine, except one is super expensive and not everyone can afford it. There is some status in that, much the same way a Bentley or Ferrari may standout on a road filled with Fords and Chevys, perhaps having those super-expensive parts makes your hot rod a "exotic" of the hot rod realm. There is also currency in doing something hard rather than something easy. Forget finding speed parts, some engines are a struggle just to find basic parts for. MANY people take the easy road and just pick the common engines with parts they can get at the store or through Jeg's or Summit, which you can't fault them for when there is no disincentive in terms of performance. It's much harder to scour classifieds, refurbish old junk, deal with only specialty providers, and gain the specialized knowledge needed to put together an obsolete mill.

So while it may be special and exclusive, it's by no means "better". And that's OK.

 

I don't think that this thread carried an implication that building a vintage engine equated to being 'better'. Do I take pride in building projects with Olds 303 and 324 motors? Yes. I also feel a sense of ??? (I'm not sure how to put the feeling in words) in doing something the hard way.
But I don't feel superior over my brother hotrodder who has a SBC between the rails. (Okay, maybe I do feel a smidge of superiority over the guys who don't know what end of the wrench to hold, who paid to have every nut turned and wire pulled).
But at the end of the day, obsolete engine or not, we have all made the conscious decision to spend money on inferior products (old body styles, old suspension, no ABS, no air bags, loss of creature comforts, etc.) That's just the way we're made.

 

Correct. I was just pointing out that we go to extreme lengths to be different, when it makes more fiscal sense and sometimes HP sense to go a more common route.

 

It's funny, this would have been a "Belly Button" engine in an early 60's magazine, was considered scrap iron in the 70's-80's. It's destined to be in a 40 Deluxe coupe, for a buddy, where it belongs.

 

Marty, please forgive my ignorance, but what engine is that? It sure looks cool!


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Y block Ford

 

They were the only OHV hot rod engine available here in Australia in the 50's and 60's and I know of one hot rodder with a 1961 Compact Fairlane with the new 221 SBF who pulled it and replaced it with a warm Y block for more performance.
Aussie hot rodding owes a lot to the Y block.

 

And doesn’t a Y block put out a beautiful note!

 

Andy, nothing to forgive, it's a 55 Olds, with all of the speed/dress up stuff from the 50'-60's. Names like Edelbrock, Moon, Isky, Wilcap,Cragar, Mallory,Holley, and Schiefer. I have had it for 35 years. I will try to do a thread on the assembly, and will lean on our resident expert Paul for advice.

 

You're ALL crazy.

Another stray thought this morning.
Even when building something like this old mini bike for my little buddy, Zander. I can pick up a modern 6.5hp engine for $100. But I'll more likely use a cool, old, nostalgic, hot rodded, early Tecumseh or Briggs & Station.

Yup... we're nostalgic. We're cool. We do things the hard way.
Cost be damned.
Hahahahahahaha...

 

The Caddy will win the Kool factor hands down. I Love that part of our hobby, building/buying whatever an individual likes/wants/needs to float his boat.

 

Thank you Marty, I’m pretty sure I could recognize a Y-Block, I’ve always been into Fords and Chevies, but the only thing I know about Olds are the common displacements. I’m not trying to be a wise guy, but it seems like all the Olds could be in the uncommon engine category.


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I stand corrected. I just saw the valve cover bolts. My apologies Andy.

 

40's should have come from the factory with Olds engines.

 

Amen to that!

 

For years, I thought Lucas Doolin had an Olds in his shoebox, from the quick glance shown in "Thunder Road". The HAMB taught me the truth.