mine is center steer and i will put the advance/retard on the left side of the dash. a cable could also be rigged up.
Damo You retard to start, then advance as engine speed builds up. 27-28 dizzys automatically do this for you. Also a good idea to retard a little when pulling hard at low engine revs. Too many drivers now days only retard the spark to start and then put it to full advance, and leave it there. Principle cause of cracked babbitt in rod bearings. Herb
Thanks Herb. What would you recommend for a track car/hill climber? Happy to fiddle about in the pits but after that it will be kicked in the guts a fair bit. Should I just look for a later dizzy? Is there any way to spot them from the earlier ones? (sorry for the noob questions) Cheers Damo
Correct me if I’m wrong, but I don’t think the later distributor will fit the earlier engine. The early engines used a side drive, and the later engines used a conventional distributor hanging out the side of the block. That’s why the earlier blocks are considered to be stronger, as they don’t have the distributor passing through the main web. Yeah, I think maybe stashing us so far away from the Four and Early Six guys hid us from anyone who might have an interest. Even the guy whose thread got moved didn't find us for a while. Edit: There, I tweaked my signature to include a link to the speedster forum. -Dave
Damo- I think that most of the people that hillclimb and build drag cars with Ford engines just leave the timing at what ever advance position they have determined that the car runs best at, since the revs are kept up, and the motor is never lugged. Ask "Crazy Daddy O" on the banger forum- he does quite well with stock Ford dist., no reason why Chevy should be any different. Dave-and anyone else interested Up to and including 1925, Chevy dists. were driven off the rear of the generator, which was driven from the timing gears. These were Remy models 350A, 351A, and 360A. Some, if not all of these, had diecast housings, and also the rear of the generator where they plugged in was diecast also. Due to using contaminated material these have all decayed, and most of the restored cars have repro pieces made from aluminum billet. In 1926 they moved the drive to the center of the the block, and the dist., now with a cast iron body, became Remy model 374A. In '27 the first dist with auto advance was used, which gave 20 degs. advance at 2400 RPM, in addition to the 25 deg. the manual lever on the steering column-- this is Remy model 635B. (these are crankshaft degrees). 45 deg. total advance sounds like a lot, but because there is no turbulence in the stock Chevy combustion chamber it is needed. I use one of the 635B distributors. Most modern 4 cylinder dist bodies are too large to fit, but there is a Bosch dist.- used on VW's up to '79 (only the early air cooled ones are suitable, the 40 HP and up have a wonkey cam that retards cylinder #3 by a couple degrees) Volvo's from '58 into the '70's and early Mercedes (170,180 & possibly later) What is needed in one that is clockwise rotation, and preferably without a vacuum can. Not a drop in, at the very least the Chevy gear has to be installed on the shaft- but not impossible, either. I have a book which lists the various Bosch dist. numbers, but it is hiding from me right now. Herb
That Bosch disributer also came on 2000cc Pintos. That is what I used on my Plymouth and have one in the Dodge right now.
ebtm3 and Richfox, I have several 26-28 Chevvies I am in the process of tuning, and just noticed these comments regarding the Bosch disty. Are you referring to the classic Bosch 009 style disty, because if so, a whole new world just opened up.. but first, I would like to verify which Bosch disty you are referring to. Thanks, Jay
I am referring to the distributer that came in Ford Pinto 2000cc cars. The points and such are the same as VW. I am told. Here are some on a Plymouth. And One from a Pinto set up for a Plymouth and one from a VW set up for a Dodge Bros. Dodge has gear, Plymouth has blade drive.
Alfaromeo-welcome to the HAMB- would love to hear more about what you're doing, so feel free to share away!
Hi Mac, Well, right now, I am just working on the easy stuff, but let me explain. My first antique, several years ago, was/is a 1926 Model T Coupe. My Grandpa had one, and drove it from Boston to Mississippi back in 1927, with his wife, and of course back again. I always wonder why he did not take a train....and Grandpa stayed a Ford man all the way. My dad was, of course this way, till 1960, when I purchased a lemon Ford new, and then went over to GM, and he stayed that way. So, I found the T over in Canton, Ohio and made a plan to drive it from there to Oglebay resort just outside Wheeling, where it would be trailered back over the W. Va mtns. back home, just a touch south of Hagerstown, Md. http://www.oglebay-resort.com/ Well, on a cool Oct. day, it took 4 hours, running flat out, to drive from Canton, OH to Wheeling, in the T. I think I averaged 30 mph, at a distance of 120 miles, and most of the drive was not at all hilly. I suppose I was very dismayed. Then, the local redneck Model T club freaked when I began to modify the car from stock, to try and help it run a bit better. The final straw was drilling holes in the T's dash, to mount some instruments. Haven't spoken to any of the Ters in years now. But, they did help, as they constantly said : Don't buy a Chevy. It was almost a mantra. Naturally, I did buy a Chevy, and then a couple more. The 26 Chevy Coupe came from Avon, Ohio, just outside Cleveland, a year ago. This time, the car was trailered from Avon, down to Wheeling again, but then, I drove it from Wheeling, via Route 250, Route 310 and Route 50, over the W Va mtns, and made it home, probably averaging 45 mph. What a difference. I will tell the next installment in another post, but at the moment, I have been experimenting with exhaust systems on the 28 Chevy coupe, and have settled on a 2 in dia 10 inch long, flexi pipe, followed by a 12 in long glasspack, and a constant 2 in pipe for the rest. Sounds good and is sure flowing a lot better. Ciao, Jay
Yes the Bosch is the 009, although most of the ones that I have come across seem to have a letter code. They come both rotations, for a Chevy you want one that turns clockwise looking down on the rotor. Ford A&B turn counterclock. They come with different amounts of centrifugal advance also. I have even modified one in the past to give auto advance for my stroker Indian Chief-- had to make a two lobe 42 degree cam, and used a std. Indian cap and rotor Herb
Hey guys, I was just reading an old thread on the MTFCA site that mentioned a '28 Chevy speedster that ran Model A rods and 361 pistons... nothing else was mentioned- any thoughts? Don't know if they were Ford or Mopar slugs...
I thought about that, just wanted to throw out the idea- I need to look at the specs on Ford/MOPAR 361 pistons and get back to you.
Kind of off track, but I was looking for engine paint for my block... the Filling Station has it for (gulp) $16.50 a can! Has anyone found a good/less expensive engine paint for their Chevy 4? Wish this were mine, but it's the Spurgin/Giovanine roadster
You're looking for the stock color, Mac? This is probably a good time to have a VCCA Chat account. I almost didn't see your statement that we were looking at the S&G roadster. Man, that's breathtaking. -Dave
Dave, I didn't bother asking on VCCA- the last time I asked about finding a less expensive alternative, I was sent the "sure, they have that at The Filling Station". I'm all for supporting them, but not at over 3X the cost of a can of paint.
Oh, here's Jimmy B's thread on the Spurgin/Giovanine roadster from Pebble Beach- plenty of eye candy for the bowtie lover! http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=516625&highlight=spurgin+giovanine
Back in post 889 I mentioned having a shot of the counterweighted crank for the engine in my avatar--found it-- Herb
You do nice work Herb- did you ever figure what you gained in hp by adding the counterweights? I'd love to find a Ford B crank, but the last one I saw was $500...
Nothing in HP Bill. Counterweights add a little smoothness by virtue of getting rid of some of the crankshaft whip, but most of all make life easier on the main bearings Herb
I have gone to 3800 RPM through the gears, with the engine feeling smoother than the one in my '30 Ford, but that could very well be the difference in the way the engines are mounted in the chassis. So many small factors are involved that without computer simulation of the engine, chassis and the mounts, it is--as far as I am concerned-- pretty much of a luck thing to design a winning combination. One thing I am convinced of though. If you have two wide spaced mounts at the front of the engine, and a single central mount at the rear of the transmission you stand a better chance of having a smooth running car. Ford A's had it the other way around--one front, two wide spread at the bell housing. Even with Float-A-Motor mounts all the engine vibration is transfered to the frame in the cowl area. This makes the vibration much more noticeable. My Chevy (avatar) is much smoother than my Ford, even though both have counterweighted cranks, and balanced rotating parts. Ford figured this out in '32, and changed to two front one rear. My sons '32 Ford pickup is smoother than my '30 sedan--even though the pickup engine was not dynamically balanced. If you rev the truck engine at a standstill, you can see the whole front of the truck rotate slightly from torque reaction, but that movement is dampened out by the frame before it gets to the driver. Just something to think about if you are building a car. Herb
Another question if I may. Would anyone think it is possible to put a uni joint on the end of a 28 gearbox? I have a Standard Flying 10 gearbox I was going to use with a 28 chev bellhousing using the tips in this thread but it is about three times as long as the chev. I took a picture of my gearbox to show you where I am talking about.
Can it be done? sure! You need a smooth diameter on the output shaft somewhere near the rear surface of the box for an oil seal to run on, and a machined piece that bolts to the rear of the box to keep the output shaft bearing from walking out, and also to hold the outer diameter of the seal--you have a U joint that fits the spline already, it looks like. Easy job if you have access to a lathe, and know how to use it. Herb
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