Hot Rods How to make your flathead faster for 2 cents

I'm sure most have heard of this, but I thought I'd post pics for the younger guys. I've been rebuilding carbs this winter, so I dug this Fenton intake out of the shop & sent it out to take a bath. I knew the heat risers were blocked off, but I didn't know they had 1953 pennies in there! This is my second flathead intake with the front milled smooth. Any idea why this was done?

fenton 2x2 by 1pickup posted Mar 27, 2017 at 6:41 PM

fenton2x2bottom by 1pickup posted Mar 27, 2017 at 6:41 PM

fenton2x2penny by 1pickup posted Mar 27, 2017 at 6:42 PM

fenton2x2shaved by 1pickup posted Mar 27, 2017 at 6:43 PM

 

Ummm? Because they fit and they only cost a penny each??

 

Yeah, I was askin' about the front being modified, but thanks for playin'!

 

Ive seen them milled to accommodate an idler pulley setup or shortened generator/pulley/fan setup. The stock generator doesn't clear the front carb.

 

Most of them broke from weak castings & misuse. Instead of repair they were smoothed off & an offset bracket used.

 

Aaron Fenton used to melt down aluminum pots and pans, aluminum doors, and whatever scrap aluminum he could find lying around to cast his flathead intakes and heads. Some of his intakes and heads were good, others not so much. 302GMC is right; the generator mount ended up being broken and was then machined smooth instead of trying to repair it. Ever wonder why you see so many Fenton intakes out there, and if you see a flathead intake for sale it is almost always a Fenton? The Fenton intakes were the least expensive flathead intakes that were available at the time and hundreds were sold, (maybe into the thousands) because of the price. They were the cheapest because they were made the cheapest.

 

Interesting, that's the first time I've seen the pennies in the intake. I normally see them brazed into the block.

 

One of my blocks (I forget which one and where it is) has heat port holes that are too big for pennies. It takes nickels. Anybody else encounter a block that needed nickels?

 

Will new pennies melt I wonder?

 

They're mostly made of zinc now but the melting point is still like 700 some degrees.

 

I put them in the block...heads up for luck.

 

I was dazzled by your thread title and the first set of photos which caused my reading comprehension to lock up.
To err is human; to forgive is divine. I'll try harder to be a good neighbor.

 

Rather than mill the stops off, the slot can be filled with a plate so the gen or alt can be tilted out of the way. A xler alt might fit straight up. Jack E/NJ

 

The pennies block the heat riser chamber and also alter the sound.