Aree the new aluminum flathead locks in production yet? The king of adapters is undoubtedly Wilcap. About H&H Flatheads: Founded in 2003 by Mike Herman, H&H Flatheads is celebrating its 15th anniversary. An alternative are Pertronix conversion kits that fit inside the original distributor; they retain the classic look, and versions are even offered that function on 6-volt power. Large-diameter, unshrouded valves combined with a proper combustion chamber configuration and piston design are needed to promote the proper transfer area from the flathead's valves to the far end of the chamber over the piston tops. Isn't Don Ferguson making an 8BA aluminum Flathead block? Yes, you can have a classic flathead with modern fuel injection. Apparently, the old boys network doesnt want any youngbloods crashing their exclusive country club. Flat-O Products sells well-designed, complete kits to install the Ford C4 automatic and T5 manual behind either 8BA or 59A engines. Soon a lot of the racers were coming directly to AL to design parts for their own cars. Research has shown there's relatively little air movement over the base of the block. This improves airflow, but the resultant effective combustion-chamber-volume increase lowers the compression ratio, in turn decreasing horsepower and fuel economy. At around the same time, old-time hot rods gave way to modern musclecars and street machines. Fabled Stromberg 97 carbs are back, but you can also upgrade to modern Holley four-barrels or even electronic-fuel-injection systems. But with modern solid cams and big stroker cranks, overall engine rpm and piston speed is considerably higher than the old stockers. Austin Lincoln 337 Heads The stock flathead oiling system is marginal for performance use. The pinnacle of flathead tech, this Dick Landy-built 700-plus-horsepower motor powered Ron, The 38-48 59A block (right) has an integral cast-in bellhousing. It was a statement, in effect saying, I am not a cookie-cutter rod.. As the story goes, the owner really didnt want to part with the coupe but six months of perseverance finally netted Amie the decisive weekend of negotiating when a deal was made and the coupe was brought home. What's right for your engine differs per application. Stay tuned for further updates on this project. About the longest arm you can throw in a flathead, this Scat custom vacuum-melt 4340-steel. He offers spark plug tubes in two diameters: a reproduction of the originals, which will fit the original plugs, and a new style, narrower tube that accepts contemporary plugs and offers a little more room to clear the rockers, should you want to get more radical with the lift. Tony Baron runs 10 degrees of base timing and 23 degrees max at full advance. It should be remembered that, although the Ardun has gained cult status over the years, the Arkus-Duntovs didn't have the money for fancy engineering and were working to a tight schedule as well as the restraints of the Ford engine block. Mullins, a leading purveyor of surplus Jeep and other vintage military parts in Texas, accidentally discovered a warehouse full of brand-new French blocks about to be junked during a European trip searching for Jeep stuff. Traditional flathead airflow management practices call for relieving the block-removing metal between the valve-seat sides closest to the cylinder bore. With such a small difference; it's relatively easy to take a little off the Ford snout then slightly hone the inside of a Chevy balancer so it slips over the Ford crank. If theres one thing that we all have in common its the miles we travel and the time we invest in finding the right project. The current incarnation is 3 inches taller than the originals and has smaller 1 1/2-inch ports (vintage versions had 1 3/4 ports, but the new casting is thick enough to hog 'em out). Edelbrock, Wilcap (Sharp), and Offenhauser continue to market a wide variety of intakes. Some fuel-injection setups even run distributorless coil-ignition setups. Our experience and rigorous assembly procedure is what makes our engines trusted throughout the industry. But it didn't take long for the hot rodding community to learn about these conversion kits and how well they hopped up the flattie. But remember, we are talking about a seriously outdated engine design favored by a bunch of nostalgic old coots. The king of adapters is undoubtedly Wilcap. Instead, air wants to go over the front of the valve and hit the chamber roof. Most of these parts became the foundation for the Sharp Speed and Power Equipment company. . Austin Lincoln 337 32 Barrel Intake Manifold, Monday to Friday, 7:30am to 3:00pm Well, what kind of motor do you want? The company they formed to produce these heads was named "Ardun," an acronym derived from their last name. Tom Roberts' new two-piece crossflow utilizes the latest in airflow technology. Flat-O Products sells well-designed, complete kits to install the Ford C4 automatic and T5 manual behind either 8BA or 59A engines. If anybody is following Terry Bertz and his five main bearing cast iron Model A block, you'll know the heartaches and headaches he's been dealing with and the only solution to his problems was to go across the Pacific. The downside was, as Flathead Engineering's Charlie Clark puts it, street rods "began to look about as exciting as a belly-button-everyone had one. York and his staff used their substantial talents and blended a Roadster Shop chassis, an ARDUN Enterprises V-8, and a beautifully massaged 1936 Ford coupe with just the right number of modifications to bring this hot rod to life. The '39-'48 flatheads used a direct camshaft-driven front-mount distributor; '49-'53 engines use a gear-driven, vertical-mount distributor on the right-front of the engine. 1937 1938 1939 Ford Merc Flathead V8 Block Street Strip Custom Original Crank. Tony Baron says that a good-running flathead should have no less than 0.400 lift and about 250 degrees duration at 0.050-inch tappet lift. superchargers, which, like the heads, look period-correct and the case is filled with todays technology and outfitted with 4-71 helical-cut rotors. ", Among this herd of sheep, a few original hot rods were brought out of retirement, complete with gennie flatheads as the powerplant. For even more protection, install a crossflow radiator and increase coolant system pressure to 17-21 pounds. It was at this point in the journey when Ben York, of Roseville Rod & Custom (RR&C) in Roseville, California, entered and he and Amie linked up. Cast in Los Angeles from the highest quality tempered A356 aluminum and CNC machined, the DIXON heads are designed to fit the desirable 1938-1953 59A and 8BA 24-stud flatheads. There was a time when Ardun overhead-valve cylinder heads were incredibly rare. Anyone know of any updates? We are now the exclusive distributors of Navarro Racing Equipment, Sharp Speed Equipment, Wilson and Woods Cylinder Heads, Dixon Overhead Valve Conversion, and a complete line of Austin Speed Equipment for the Arudn, Lincoln 337, Lincoln V12 and V8 60. A recent test of a prototype set of Hammerhead's castings bolted on a 427ci small-block stroker produced over 600 hp with a streetable hydraulic roller camshaft and 600 lb-ft of torque. At present, the only aftermarket custom oil pan available is from Ardun Engineering. Here you can find some details and specifcations for the newly engineered flathead block, not sure how old this information is? You need the right amount of plenum volume and runner length to complement the engine size, camshaft, cylinder-head flow, and operating range. He also made many improvements to his cylinder heads as well. (Pardon me if I'm wrong about this.). MCF's born-again flatty will come standard with a 3 1/2-inch bore and 1/8-inch-thick cylinder walls, thanks to special insert sleeves. La Crescenta, CA 91214 Just where did this engine come from? With modern flatheads routinely putting out 250-300 lb-ft of torque, the original trannies obviously arent up to the job. And, how about 382 hp at 5,300 rpm, roughly four times that of a stock Flathead? Fast-forward nearly half a decade. According to Baron Racing, the limiting factor is not piston-to-head interference, nor even valvespring coil-bind-it is running out of cam bearing clearance for the lobes. You need lots of timing to make a flathead run. I wish I could have stuck around for the next couple of years. The Flathead in the five-window coupe is the test mule, and Motor City plans to begin production soon. The oil, water, fuel, and amp are N.O.S. 226: Big News for The Custom Car Revival! In the old days the hot ticket was dropping a 49-53 Mercury 4-inch-stroke crank in place of the Ford 3.75-inch-stroke unit. Tony Baron runs 10 degrees of base timing and 23 degrees max at full advance. The flathead blocks to get are those with a 3 3/16-inch bore. However, the main caps are beefier than traditional stock flatheads. You will also find one of these resting on top of Amies 294-inch Flathead. Although new aftermarket iron blocks are reputedly under development, right now a real-world solution to finding a good core for your flathead is to start with a brand-new French block. Different top-halves are available for mounting a variety of induction setups. There are builders on the left and right coasts and all points in-between who assemble reliable, powerful, 150-200hp engines, or you can buy new parts and build one yourself. Also check out Speedway Engineerings offerings. The block is cast from aluminum and features a great number of changes from the original cast iron design. At the other extreme are dry-lakes, Bonneville, and nostalgia drag racers who have applied modern technology to the point where in some instances it is questionable whether the engine still remains a true flathead: Once-85hp engines now produce over 400 hp on gas and have exceeded 700 hp on fuel-all this on an engine with only three main bearings. The arms have an internal oiling system that Don has set up with stainless lines, a compact banjo fitting on the edge of the head, and a drainback plug plumbed to a finned oil pan of Don's design. Flathead gurus like Don Ferguson and Tony Baron strongly urge that hot rod engines run a harmonic damper. The flathead blocks to get are those with a 3 3/16-inch bore. His manifolds and valve covers graced the of the famous Hurst Hairy Olds twin engine car and he helped Craig Breedlove with the Spirirt of America record setting run. Recommended bottom-line street-gas-friendly compression ratios are between 7.5-8:1 on naturally aspirated engines and 6.5-7.0:1 with a blower. BlockNew 356 high-grade aluminium by Don Ferguson at Ardun Enterprises and polished by The Polishing Shop in Oxnard, California. Don was interested, but his approach would be different from Orosco's. With that motor, the Chrismans won the B Comp Coupe class and set a new class record of 160.178 mph. "Flat-Heads Battle Rocker-Arms for All-Out Supremacy" blared the Nov. '53 HOT ROD. Steering is under the watchful turn of a Maval rack, which controls the rolling stock consisting of one-off EVOD wheels (reminiscent of 50s Indy racing), measuring 166 and 167 with Diamond Back Classics radial rubber measuring 6.00-16 and 7.00-16. For improved cooling efficiency, original 49-53 pumps have more impeller vanes than earlier models. He is now replicating S.Co.T. This lateral flow severely restricts flathead breathing capability, although it does promote what today's high-tech engineers term swirl and tumble, which enhances fuel mixing and combustion. The 270-F, Tatom's best all-around cam, is said to work well on normally aspirated or blown, stick, or automatic cars, with good idle quality and 18-19 inches of vacuum. This lateral flow severely restricts flathead breathing capability, although it does promote what todays high-tech engineers term swirl and tumble, which enhances fuel mixing and combustion. Most hot rod engines use oversize valves. Tom Roberts starts with the Speedway pump, modifies it for even more flow, and also redoes the snout to accept modern, bolt-on, serpentine-belt pulleys. Relieving a Flathead, which is the process of removing material from the block between the valves and the cylinder for better breathing, is a subject unto itself. Although it sounds weird in this modern age of thin-wall castings, the 3 3/16-inch-bore, U.S.-built flatties can be bored 0.125-inch (1/8-inch-over). TCMP #538: Pro-Touring Update with Larry Callahan: How To Create a Garage Studio and Upcoming Pro-Touring Events! Available in black t-shirt or white t-shirt. Tom Roberts new two-piece crossflow utilizes the latest in airflow technology. Not many of the heads were madebest guesstimates put the number at 200 to 250 sets, with another dozen or so made for the smaller V-8/60 enginesand a few more were built in England during a short association Duntov had with Sydney Allard and his J2 sports car. The Thickstun two-carb high-rise intake (today marketed by Baron) is an excellent street setup and it even provides clearance for the stock generator. With a 4.5-inch-stroke aftermarket crank, that yields 334 cubic inches. The home of the Ford Flathead rebuilding specialist from mild to wild. There is also an Australian outfit, Flatattack Engineering, offering plenum-style, TPI-like systems controlled by either GM Delco or MoTeC computers. However, the main caps are beefier than traditional stock flatheads. There are builders on the left and right coasts and all points in-between who assemble reliable, powerful, 150-200hp engines, or you can buy new parts and build one yourself. There are kits to install Weiand and Magnuson superchargers, or even one or two GMC 71-series blowers. Parts Only. He was basing his calculations on the assumption that a coefficient of friction of over 1.0 could not be achieved. You can now build a brand-new flathead. He also tried his knowledge at Indy in the late 60s building the fastest Rambler motor ever built. Phone: (818) 248-2371. Theres no doubt we love our Flatheads here at Honest Charley, and we had a visitor this morning that loves his, too. The times they were a-changin', and change was happening fast. The aluminum blocks used on the various all-aluminum Ardun builds are from Don Ferguson and are Ardun-only items. He was the first to run a roots style 371 blower on a destroked 24 stud motor 176c.i. Starting in July 1938, the blocks went to 24 head-retention studs. You can now build a brand-new flathead. The frame was fitted with brackets to accept a blown ARDUN V-8, TREMEC TKO five-speed, clutch pedal, power brake booster and pedal, and plumbing package, which includes stainless steel brake lines. Available with center water neck. For that, you're getting cylinder heads with a ton of development work and premium-quality pieces. Guys who once dreamed of owning a flattie back in the '50s but who had neither the time nor the money were now in their 50s, with lots of disposable income. The solution is to raise the boiling point by upping coolant-system pressure to 17-21 pounds, using a modern crossflow radiator and higher-pressure cap. Enjoyed this Post? Maybe they are only for dragsters. DD. TBI injection through billet Stromberg 97 carb-like throttle-bodies is available from Flathead Engineering. Written by Mike Herman and Tony Thacker, foreword by Ray Evernham. The fastest guys both naturally aspirated and blown run high-dome pistons. With modern aftermarket cranks and rods using modern insert bearings, 5,500 rpm normally aspirated is not a problem, even with only three main bearings. Trying to gain back compression ratio by using popup pistons may improve airflow provided proper attention is paid to the transfer area and overall piston-to-combustion chamber interface. Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements). Strombergs were the favorites, but Chandler-Grove/Holley, Zenith, and Rochester two-barrels were also in use. This grew into 6 different Ardun, V8 60 intakes, Lincoln 337 heads and intakes, Lincoln V12 intakes and heads and ford flathead intakes. Flathead gurus like Don Ferguson and Tony Baron strongly urge that hot rod engines run a harmonic damper. He apprenticed as a pattern makers helper when the war broke out. Relieved blocks must have the reliefs filled to use Ardun heads. The first-design '32 through early '38 engines had only 21 cylinder-head studs and until mid 1936 even used poured babbit main bearings. After getting a good dose of sunshine and warm temperatures, they decided to pay us a visit on the way back home. The sight of this engine certainly drew a crowd when Mark Kirby opened the hood of his full fendered 34 Ford five-window coupe. Schneiders 278F solid (0.420 lift, 250 degrees at 0.050 duration, 110-degree lobe separation angle) is one grind that falls within these specs. Starting in July 1938, the blocks went to 24 head-retention studs. He bought the entire French stock, and at last count still has at least 500 blocks, 120 complete engines, and over 2,000 rods. The front fenders were then modified to allow for valve cover clearance. Besides, multicarb setups look cool. The foundation for this 1936 Ford three-window coupe is based on a Roadster Shop 1935-1940 Ford REVO chassis engineered for optimal street ride and handling performance. Dressed with up to four carbs and that unique flathead sound accentuated by glasspacks, the old codgers were suddenly the rage again. The 2-inch rod journals are very popular because their diameter and width permits the use of readily available 215-inch-style Buick/Olds/Rover V-8 bearings. The bottom end is beefed with soli, A potential new kid on the block: Uncommon Engineerings working on a SOHC three-valve F, Mechanical solid and roller cams are available for both early and late blocks. Large-diameter, unshrouded valves combined with a proper combustion chamber configuration and piston design are needed to promote the proper transfer area from the flatheads valves to the far end of the chamber over the piston tops. Isn't Don Ferguson making an 8BA aluminum Flathead style block? Seal the heads to the block using slick new graphite-impregnated head gaskets available from Best Gasket, Reds Headers, and Tatom. I'm not sure but casting aluminum MIGHT be a simpler process than casting iron. He and Gene Mooneyham built and sold some of the first aluminum heads for the Chrysler Hemi. "Look, if you're going to spend upwards of $30,000 on a motor, why wouldn't you get the best components?" It comes with the standard REVO IFS with drop spindles, splined sway bar, upgraded to Penske double-adjustable coilover shocks. Ultimately, you can move up to one of Cornhusker Engineerings custom front cover and late-model water-pump setups. Copyright 1995-2021 The Jalopy Journal: Steal our stuff, we'll kick your teeth in. At the other extreme are dry-lakes, Bonneville, and nostalgia drag racers who have applied modern technology to the point where in some instances it is questionable whether the engine still remains a true flathead: Once-85hp engines now produce over 400 hp on gas and have exceeded 700 hp on fuel-all this on an engine with only three main bearings. Theres a fine juggling act between compression and promoting proper transfer from the offset valves across the piston top. The first-design 32 through early 38 engines had only 21 cylinder-head studs and until mid 1936 even used poured babbit main bearings. 5.0 out of 5 stars. The 39-48 flatheads used a direct camshaft-driven front-mount distributor; 49-53 engines use a gear-driven, vertical-mount distributor on the right-front of the engine. As for cylinder heads, Baron, Edelbrock, Navarro, Offenhauser, and Sharp (now sold by Wilcap) all have their adherents. Some builders also recommend installing exhaust-port dividers to split the siamesed center exhaust ports. All tidier and more efficient than original. With no rocker arms, a flatheads total lift must be generated entirely by the cam lobe. The man behind it all is Mark Kirby of Motor . Apparently, the old boys' network doesn't want any youngbloods crashing their exclusive country club. High-compression is the way to go. Lifters look nearly identical to the originals, except his are made from solid chilled iron. Normally wed title this section Cylinder Heads, but on a flathead, the heads-having neither ports nor valves-only form the combustion-chamber roof. Four carbs on a properly designed intake manifold offer the best distribution short of todays dry EFI systems. 217 and 201 are only 4 bolt which you can see if the lower cover is off the bell housing. Original 50-plus-year-old blocks without cracks are getting scarce. Much has been written about the legendary Ardun Flathead conversion over the years-some truth, some myth, and some hearsay. Back in the day, four-barrel carbs had barely been invented. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. What would you save, 100-150 lbs? Somewhere in the middle is the largest group: Potential street rodders who just want reasonably fast hot rods without having a cookie-cutter, 1-800-car. No one runs the old weak stock ignitions anymore. Finally, there are brand-new aluminum blocks and Ardun OHV conversion heads and valvetrains. However, there are some significant differences in French blocks compared to the originals. He decided to drive the coupe down to Daytona Beach, Florida for the Turkey Rod Run, and enlisted Phil Goller of Gollers Hot Rods to ride shotgun. Melling still makes a high-volume oil pump (PN M-15). In 1947, long before Zora Arkus-Duntov became famous for his work developing the Corvette and performance Chevrolet parts, he and his brother Yura designed what has been considered the ultimate flathead performance mod-turning the engine into an overhead-valve hemi.
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