Get a contour gauge and profile the dome of the piston. Transfer it to some tough cardboard or metal, cut it out and do the same for the head. Compare the two to see whether they conform or not. If they don't, get out the grinder and start grinding the head to match the piston. Time consuming, but worthwhile. It helps to have the pistons installed, so you can check clearance periodically with some aluminum foil peas or rolled tubes.
I subscribe to (gasp!) Street Rodder mag and this month there's a fine article on flathead oiling system which is a prime example of being worth enduring the gold chainer features for the tech articles. Dave
I might have to pick up this months issue. It seems to be hit and miss but usually some good tech. The oiling requires some machine work to the block though right?
Just got the mag and haven't as yet read the article, just sorta scanned thru it, but I believe there is some machine work mentioned. Also explains difference between pre and post'49 oiling systems. Just to remind, I have subscription, doubt it's on stands yet. Dave
Sure can, but the aluminum foil balls are easier to measure. The clay can get kind of sticky. I've done both, but much prefer the foil.
I'm just starting an 8BA too. I'll be watching this thread closely. So far I paid $150 for the block, some disassembly of stuff I couldn't do, and hot tank and mag for another $250. My 48 has a running flathead in it now, so I'll probably yank that motor over the winter and try to re-use as many parts as possible. My plan is stock stroke, Max-1 or Schneider 260 cam, 4bbl intake and carb and Edelbrock heads (mostly for looks).
I must have missed this info the other day. I'd heard the oil pump is kind of a waste and that's why I posted the parts list basically to verify what I had heard, so that's perfect. I'd like to try and find out more on the 95% oiling system as well.... I'm for sure going with a 4" stroke and have been trying to figure out what pistons to go with to compensate , so this is great info.
3 5/16 Ross pistons for the 4" stroke. 1.5 valves in and ex 400Jr is ok Reds adj. lifters with Zephyer springs Buy everything from Reds Header and get good parts for a good price. If you build it by yourself , you know what you did
First of all thank you everyone for the input, as its all been very helpful. I believe at this point I'm going to opt for doing it myself. It'll be an undertaking but I think it will pay of in the end. I do want to ask about machine work and balancing. What typical machine work should be done on the flathead prior to assembly? Should balancing be done, how crucial is it? What is all balanced when folks talk about their motor has been "balanced"? Any idea on a modern day estimate for this?
Balancing and blue printing an engine adds a few hp as well as prolongs engine/bearing life Worth the money. When your machinist assemblies the engine, he will match weight all rods/caps and pistons with pins. The complete crankshaft with front pulleys and flywheel must be supplied to the machinist so he can balance everything as an assembly. Last balance/blue print I got added ~$100 to the total and that engine (sbf) ran smooth as silk while producing excellent torque. An engine that is not balanced wastes hp in that those vibrations you may or may not feel rob you of available -on tap- hp. In stock form Flatheads are torquey, they will generally produce almost twice as much torque as the rated hp. If stock hp on a new 53 Mercury was 125 then the torque was over ~200 (don't have specs in front of me). Torque is what gets you down the track and wins races. Hp, as in a factory 1953 Mercury with ~125 doesn't seem like a lot but don't let that number fool you. If balancing an engine unleashes 3 hp than you will have gained ~3% over stock. With only 125 1953 factory hp on tap, unleashing an extra 3 here and 4 or 5 there all adds up. Your list of speed goodies all add 3, 5 or 15 hp with your goal of making as much out of all your part$ as possible so why miss out on adding a couple more hp that your cam, pistons, expensive heads & intake can use. Again, as mentioned earlier, above and beyond the "speed parts all add up" bit, engine longevity and smoothness of idle/operation are improved (not to mention the fact that you aren't wasting those 3 hp in pumping in extra gas/foot peddle to move from a to b everywhere you go). This of course translates into applying your hp at speed to your advantage and this in turn saves a little bit on gas money as your not wasting those few hp in fighting an engine imbalance/vibration over and above holding 65 on that twisty highway. Oh, and as others have noted, don't bother with high volume oil pump. The choice of 1.6 valves may be worthwhile if you were going to add a blower/forced induction where in the larger valves would make a good match to the 7 or 8 pounds of boost that the blower would give you. jmho moe .
You definitely want to balance that engine, remember there is no harmonic balancer on these engines (of course now days you can put one on, you can even use a converted small block Chevy balancer) so there is nothing to absorb the vibration, but you, the car and the crankshaft. If you use a stroker crank it becomes even more important. I went with a full flow oil system and have been happy with it, but it is more complex to put in operation. If you want I can give you some details about how it's done. I used a converted GM points ignition with an adjustable vacuum advance. I reduced both the mechanical and vacuum advance because the Flathead engines do not need the total advance of an overhead engine. I don't remember how much I reduced it, but you can probably find out what you need from other sources. I went with 3-3/8 pistons and and a 4" mercury crank for a total of 286 inches. I haven't had any issues with the 3-3/8 pistons, but you had better have a good block for that size bore. Now a days I think I would just buy one of the new stroker cranks. I used a 390 Holley from Speedway Motors that was supposedly calibrated for the flathead engine mounted on a four barrel Offenhauser intake. I made an adapter from 1" aluminum plate because I didn't like the one that folks normally use. It all seems to work very well. I have all these books, and they are an excellent resource: Ford Flathead V-8 Builder's Handbook 1932-1953: Restorations, Street Rods, Race Cars by Frank Oddo The Complete Ford Flathead V8 Engine Manual by Ron Ceridano Rebuilding the Famous Ford Flathead by Ron Bishop Thunder Road Ford Flathead by Bill Sinclair ( I think this book may have a slightly different title now, the version I had was not edited very well, but still had some very good information)
All good advice, 40 years ago I was building flatheads and bought adjustable lifters for the old 8N ford tractors thay came stock that way. They are the same and MUCH cheaper. You may want to check this out. Build it, they are GREAT FUN and almost scatter proof. Even in the old stock car days with flatheads very few were toasted " Hell Of A testimony" to being TUFF.
The tractor lifters are quite a bit heavier than the good hollow adjustables, but are fine for a mild street engine that is not run at high revs.
I am also wondering if there would be a way to make a stock Ford OEM lifter into an adjustable lifter. Ayone ever tried this?
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