600 hp. Flathead ! Impossible?

Germ ?? He have been in hidings for years ...
Timebandit :.. He worked at Coles`place .. ( Salinas boys )
Last time I spoke with timebandit, he was back home in Norway ...

" ...Naw. I think you got it wrong. Theese guys has been hard workin hot rodders for decades. They build this beast just for the fact to see if they can get it run. They intend to stuff it in a drop tank and race it a B-ville ... "

If Timebandit reads this , He might fill you inn on how that venture turned out ..

Klaz

 

Landy built that original motor for Ron for over $50,000 and they're friends. How much you willing to put into yours today?

old sidewinder

 

Same idea. No reverse

 

This sort of shit always happens around Full Moon time.

 

LMAO, you just made me spit coffee. You are joking right? Ever put one on a dyno? I didn't think so. Not even close dude. If Mert Lawwill's bike was only making 48 hp in '69, I'd say that was the top of the pile.

 

I can get 85 HP from a 5 HP Briggs & Stratton...

 

I'd read that somewhere i belive harley said it, then again it could be a factory lie too, got me thinking should dyno my 56 or 57 cube wl with a kr upper when I get that motor done

 

You may wish to recheck your math. Wayno

 

The other thing about Mert's is that I believe it was larger than 45 as well. I think by '69 the race motors grew to 52. I would not put it past the factory to lie. Hell they still do. Ever dyno a big twin? Almost laughable half the time.

 

Im 70 and remember reading in Hot rod mag yrs ago a couple of guys did that and ran on the salt. There first run the trany stuck in low gear and they just ran it down the track. If my memory serves me right, she ran 101mph. They fixed the trany and ran 110 in high, but the engine sure looked strange to me as a kid. When you think of the flat head that Henry built, and what has been done with it, nothing is unexceptable. Ice man

 

yeah me too
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been done.

 

All the ports were extensively reworked on that motor -- I heard that Landy had over 100 hours of welding alone on that block. Then there is the super big issue of trying to keep the center web from cracking out of it. His achievement is truly awesome, but you can bet he had somewhere between $100 - 200K in just one engine.

 

sounds like a waste of time and money but as i once heard "a fool born every minute"

 

I don't see how it's a waste of time and money. I assume Ron Main could afford what it cost and having the first and as yet only flathead to go 300 can never be taken away. He will alsays be first. What are you doing with your money that is so much better?

 

I must also be a fool, if i had money to burn, thats exactly how i would do it...................and a gerbil ranch

 

The KH was 54"....900cc (actually closer to 883cc, but called 900cc) - introduced in '54-ish(?) - production ended in '56-ish(?) and the ironhead continued in the "900cc" config until '71-ish(?)...

Then you miss the point completely.

As my dad always said - anything is possible given enough time and money.


Worth noting is the fact the Harley WL/WR/K/KH/KR/KHR/ETC had much different valve inclination than the Ford flathead. Not to dismiss what they had accomplished by the very early '70s (fastest side-valve engine), but not all is readily transferrable to the Ford flatty.

 

Hmmmm..... if hp is a waste of money you should take up bird watching...

 

yes exactly, if you think as neasly 100G's is big money on a race engine consider a Gullwing Mercedes engine restored to stock will $250,000 in partas and machining.
Here in 2008, the horsepower factory in melbourne got 1835 HP from a street driven Holden,and if you ever had anything to do with a sorry shit pile like a Holden you would understand the $600,000 it cost to achieve it!! six hundred thousand dollars...thats spending BIG.

 

very possible 1000 plus ponys

 

Not impossible at all.
Down in NZ we have Gary Grease Martin and Andrew Rea who are quiet toilers in their garage at home!
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=127815

 

how about the 350 up his butt...and lets race the gerbels. much more inventive...don't you think?

 

but they produced the KR racer until '68 so a lot of semi modern technology was applied, really i've looked at the setup seriously and the size of the valves as compared to the cubic inches is rediculious, but on an L- head it also lowers compression significantly also the ports are completly unrestricted, it goes straight from valve to exhaust pipe you can actually see through the valve pocket to the exhaust pipe

It really isn't 100% applicable to a ford because you cant fit as much ratio of valve to displacement in one of those blocks, physicly wont fit

 

It's comments like this and a few others that have me wondering why even bother asking a serious question on this site? Is there any need for dumb ass comments? Must have plenty of spare time.

 

Didn't mean to hijack this thread, but even though this post is really Old, it is always interesting to talk flatheads and HP.
There is quite a lot of knowledge on this site, a lot of talented people, like Bruce L, Flat Ernie, Blown49, JWL, Wayno, Ole Ron, Flat32..................and others. How about a carbureted flathead that would put out 300/350hp on gas?

I know times are hard right now, and I am a relative newcomer, but has the H.A.M.B. ever
thought about building a Bonneville/El Mirage car as a collective group????
I've got an extra "pristine" 8BA block, Doug King mains and bottom end girdle, NOS Halibrand Champ rearend..................just a thought.

 

Hey BURNEDUP...............many "good" racing people don't do it the easy way like some we won't mention. Their test is to be different.........and they usually succeed. Using an sbc,,,is a the easy way out and "just like most" of the easy out people. I love these kind of challenges myself..................thanks

 

This thread is the perfect example of Hot Rodding, you either get it or you don't. The Flathead is pushing almost 100 years old and people are still arguing, errr... discussing how to get more power out of the engine. It doesn't matter if you have $1000 or $100,000 to build one, the goal is to make it the baddest that you can. Anyone can get 1:1 hp/cu from a sbc, but to do it with a flathead, that takes some ingenuity, initiative, and innovation... well that and some $$$

 

What's wrong with theological history? I always wondered why you know so much, now I know. You're "The Librarian"!

 

You just figured that out? Haha!!

I wish I had one tenth of Bruce's knowledge, familiarity with, and access to early Ford pubs...