Pondering about flathead potentials

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pdq67
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Re: Pondering about flathead potentials

Post by pdq67 »

Edelbrock "R" head??

I hope somebody posts back a picture of one's chamber design because I have never heard of them?

Are they just angle-stepped, small chamber flatheads?

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Re: Pondering about flathead potentials

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Pete1 wrote: Wed Apr 17, 2019 3:22 am "Do you have some pictures or diagrams of 14:1 combustion chambers and pistons for a flathead Ford?"

No pics but , flat top 2 ring gas ported pistons.
Combustion chamber looks like a smaller Edelbrock "R" head one.
Like this?

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Re: Pondering about flathead potentials

Post by Pete1 »

"R" head is are the common ones available for the early blocks now.
They require ALL long studs.
The "S" head, which they do not make any more used all stock length studs and had lower compression available.

My heads do not have a dome over the piston and a minimal transfer area. Most of the transfer area is in the block.
My engines have a 4.5 inch stroke. That helps a lot on compression.
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Re: Pondering about flathead potentials

Post by Kevin Johnson »

This one?

Edelbrock-1115-1949-53-Ford-Flathead-Finned-Cylinder-Heads-65cc

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Re: Pondering about flathead potentials

Post by Pete1 »

No, that is an 8ba. 49 to 53.
The "R" heads were for the 48 and earlier 24 stud.

The transfer area in my heads is similar to the 8ba though much shallower.

Before CNC machining became available, I used to weld up the combustion chamber completely on R heads and machine it to what I wanted.
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Re: Pondering about flathead potentials

Post by Kevin Johnson »

How about this one?


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Re: Pondering about flathead potentials

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That is the one.
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Re: Pondering about flathead potentials

Post by Pete1 »

I haven't bought any of those in some time but I think they have machined combustion chambers now.
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Re: Pondering about flathead potentials

Post by Nikolas Ojala »

Kevin Johnson wrote: Wed Apr 17, 2019 9:45 pm How about this one?


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How much valve lift?
"Adding power makes you faster on the straights. Subtracting weight makes you faster everywhere."
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Re: Pondering about flathead potentials

Post by Pete1 »

A bit over .500.
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Re: Pondering about flathead potentials

Post by Kevin Johnson »

DaleHays wrote: Tue Apr 16, 2019 10:22 pm ...
2) Dependent upon the engine, RPM range, port size etc --- the engine design may not actually be able to use the flow and/or the fuel. An extreme example would be my old Flathead Ford race engines - even in a totally ported and full race prepped block, just can't get any more flow above about .500 lift in almost any situation. So - what to do . . . we then think about opening the valve faster (opening ramp profiles) and also about adding duration.
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Re: Pondering about flathead potentials

Post by Pete1 »

Dale is a good friend of mine.

I found many years ago on a flow bench that after .600 you could take the valve completely out of the port with no increase.
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Re: Pondering about flathead potentials

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Well then, "BLOW", it!

To increase air going through it.

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Re: Pondering about flathead potentials

Post by Pete1 »

Not allowed in circle racing but it's possible to get over 600 hp that way.
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Re: Pondering about flathead potentials

Post by MichaelThompson »

To Nicholas Ojala, I’m rejoining this conversation after a long absence. I don’t remember if I posted a couple ideas I’d like to try on a Ford Flathead someday.

I know everything under the sun has been done to them and it’s amazing really, but two things that have crossed my mind I’ve never seen.

First I think the ultimate Flathead Ford should probably be “dry decked”, (if I’m using the correct terminology) much like the Boss 429 Fords were. In addition to that the heads should be doweled to keep them in the right place.

I believe there are several aftermarket aluminum heads you can special order with not combustion chamber at all. I think I’d copper wire around the cylinder and valves, locate the heads precisely and dowel them. With the pistons and valves out I’d spray tracing paint or dykem up through the cylinders and valve pockets and get to carving the best most accurate combustion chambers possible.

Backtracking a bit though I wouldn’t do any of that ^^^ until I put the valves way closer to the cylinder itself. Matter of fact if the intake valve seat slightly intersected the cylinder itself all the better.

This could be accomplished in one or two ways. First and foremost a larger intake valve will get you closer but even more effective would be a locked in valve guide with an offset guide hole. Then moving the entire valve seat over and which will effectively improve both the near side (short side radius) AND the far side port wall.

These things will tighten up the chambers and free up breathing simply because you’re no longer just trying to bounce the mixture off the cylinder head and down the hole.

It’d be neat if we found something that worked that hasn’t been tried after all these years. Or maybe it has.....
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