Technical Ford V8 Flathead 4 main bearing convertion

Hi people

Any one out there know of anyone who has converted a Flat head Ford V8 bottom end from three to 4 main bearings ? And also I need a cam that the exhaust ports in the middle are able to fire seperately

 

5 mains has been done. Never 4.
There are several different firing orders that will work and have been tried. Some require a single plane crank.
Stock firing order still works best for maximum hp.

 

Curious, how do you add mains to the block?

 

Either bolt in or weld in. Both have been used successfully.
2 intermediate cam bearings can be added also.

 

Any idea who done this conversion ?

 

Sorry, can't help there.

 

And what , did the cast or forge a new crank ? I cant see how this is an improvement.

 

I had heard that a DeSoto had been used in the early '60s. Don't know if it is true.

 

The DeSoto crank will work with some modifications. As I recall the Red Head ran this set up with the extra mains on a custom girdle when they ran a Flathead. Its the same way George Parker built his girdle for the GMC 6 to run 7 main bearings and extra cam bearings. Unless you are racing and winding the motor up, why?

 

I am as you say going to wind it up ! Belly Tank Bonneville etc ! And up till now you know what a Flattie can do without a supercharger or Turbo on it , and I wanted to see how much I could get out of one without breathing and blowing extras ! Its going to be Normally Aspirated .Its going to be a underhead Cams engine Yes two cams ! No pushers ,cam direct on the valve buckets
Why ? Because Im old enough to know better

 

Any idea what model DeSoto the crank was in ?

 

@zurferjoe , you KNOW that you have to post a detailed pic thread on this engine build if you plan on go forward with it.
This is the kinda stuff I’d never venture into, but love the ingenuity of those who can take that on.

 

@zurferjoe; @Budget36

In no way are my comments intended to discourage or disparage such an undertaking. I think it would be very interesting to see the engineering involved in making the modifications required.

My question is, at what point in such a major project would/could the resulting engine no longer be considered a hopped up ‘flathead Ford’ and in actuality be a new design?

By all means, bring it on!

Ray

 

No new design ,its called Hot Rodding , I think you know all about this on your side of ther pond ? I
want to put the engine in a Belly tanker , but I know if I follow whats been done so far then I know how fast I can go .So Im going beyond , its just good old hotroding tradtion .Just like my early attempt with the V8 Flattie , 4 Sidedraft 40DCOE Weber conversion I did , it was then I thought this things got to rev to go fast so here I am . And I have to use an original block for the Unblown Gas lakester cl*** . As for the engineering , you wont even see it ! Yep it will be that fast !

 

Man,,,,,I like that Weber conversion on the flathead,,,,,,,really different !
That’s thinking outside the box .

Tommy

 

There was article on how it was done in one of the magazines about 60 years ago.

These are some pictures of my GMC girdle that George Parker designed. It uses the same concept and incorporated the extra mains and cam supports to the girdle. The mains are also cross bolted for extra support.

He made a casting (GMC 6 is long), but you can machine yours out of big piece of billet and use the pan rail to bolt it all down like they did originally. If your are making a pan dry sump it and off to the races. The last pictures are of George Parker's pattern.

Post pictures of your build as you progress.

 

Thanks a million for these great photos ! Gives me a clue how grown ups do it !! Will get in all on this site when I start cutting metal

 

I’d still consider it a FH Ford, same as a Model A body built on all aftermarket/hand made stuff. I/e different ch***is, rearend, SBC, etc. Still a Model A

 

A small block Chevy would be easier to build.. And I'm a Ford guy....

 

I can answer that. I tried it. They will not allow you to take some pieces of a vintage block, in my case a model B Ford, and tack weld them to the side of an Olds Quad 4 and call it a model B Ford.
Creative thinking only goes so far.

 

Added mains are great for engines running a power adder, nitromethane, or can breath enough air to need it. Stock flatted and stock head GMC’s have built in streamliners along with many other engines especially in liners

 

Delete

 

I will not be using pieces of the block , it stays in one piece.It will have 4 main bearings instead of 3 , its not rocket science just plain old Hot Rodding .I need a reliable bottom end that stays in one piece .And allows me to up the rev band a bunch .And apart from that internal alterations are allowed ,I read the rule book too .

 

But this is more fun !!

 

Tell me about it ! Thats why I designed and built an alloy head to take 3 40DCOE Webers For my Ford straight 6 .That put some wind in its sails !!

 

Since you are able to provide a rendering of the head, do you have one for your flathead idea? I have a hard time picturing a 4 main conversion. What you have done already shows that you are very capable.

 

Good luck!

 

So, I'd suggest you first talk to guys that have built high HP flatties. Billet cranks, steel billet main caps, girdles, heck, even a well built center cap strap can help tremendously and much easier on the engineering side of it. Cunningham or H-beam rods and forged pistons should also be considered.

If you want to take this project on, by all means. The only reason I mention these is because you don't need 5 mains to keep the motor together unless you plan to run a ton of boost with a high load of nitro.

RonnieRoadster, Pete1, and Bored & Stroked are three guys I'd definitely seek out. They may not share their secrets, but they have made some serious flatheads and continue to improve on what they've learned.

 

Go Germans!!!

 

Nice! Which Ford 6 is it for? Make me one for a 200.