rebuilding after the crash

The nitro chaos events I want to run requires a minimum of 85 percent. The car sounds great with that percentage.
I came home from work tonight and found this at the door.
Enderle bug catcher with the vintage three ribs on top. It has a high flow nitro spool inside of a K valve. It was ordered with a number ten inlet. The Hilborn barrel valve it replaces only had a number eight inlet. This was always a concern of mine. With the extra volume it will be needed for safety. You never want to go lean. They go boom or lift the blower.
I heading to the shop to see how it looks. The butterfliesI View attachment 5895189 will be sent out to be anodized green to match the car.

 

I save the shine for me. The car doesnt like peach. I might just have to tip this jar tonight and stare at the new stuff for a while. Guys can do that for hours.

 

I just got mine yesterday. Almost twins. Mine is setup for efi.

 

I had to set it on the hemi for a look. I got in the car and it's so much easier to see in front of the car. It looks good. Now fuel lines and a throttle cable can be made as soon as it gets back hone.

 

Brian, my hat is off to you! Thanks for going after the dream and taking us along. Will be following!

 

A different look for sure!

 

It's back at Chassis Service. They said they would get right on it. The weather is now coming in to play around here. I hope the upgrades are completed before the snow arrives.

 

Beautiful parts,,,,,I see you purchased from Alkydigger,,,( Mike Chilando ),,,,he sells great stuff out of Nashville .
He knows a great deal about racing,,,they were running the U.S. Nationals back in the 60’s .
A really good fuel injection man .

I know some people swear by Hilborn,,,,,but I always preferred Enderle,,,,,,,I just think they are better,,and better looking to the eye as well .

Did I read that tag correctly,,,,80% leak ?

Tommy

 

I like them both. The k valve is the way to go. I actually put one on a hilborn gmc-e model unit years ago. It was on the left side. All hilborns were on the right side. Only one guy ever caught that.
80-85 leak is normal. The pipes need to be wet about 6 inches down the pipe. If it goes lean at the hit a burst panel will pop or it will lift the blower.

 

The bug catcher is fantastic, I am drooling all over my key board.

 

Yeah, the three rib Enderle just screams vintage big show bad assery.

 

Brian glad to see you back at it I dig the 3-rib enderle I built a new engine for my afx and it now has a supercharger and a bitchin old 3-rib enderle hat next season is gonna be awesome

 

Just asking Brian , Is the Bug going to big enough ? Seems maybe @ it max cfm, with all new up grades ,, A Bird needed ?
On my shelf I have Bug ,Bird Buzz , Barn & few Hillborn's.
You mentioned the Chang from Hillborn lack of barrel valve line size 8 , Why not go back to K , or make a Hillborn style barrel valve with a bigger body , spool to run the 10 line & flow needed .
( for original set up /combo) Also can relate to taller Hillborn for vision.
I sat so low in my ride , Sight / Vision was between valve cover & side of blower case.
Also just asking & I know its $$$ & Lot of work & dedication..
( you gotten further then me in 90 doing the dual fuel project)
The Question , Did you give up on the dual fuel mainly because head gaskets
( wet heads) or having issues with happy split between ring packs
( Gas & Nitro)

i really feel the separate cooling , dedicated water through the heads & block would work , would of eliminated milkshake / water in cylinders ,
alot of time in R&D
not having a dyno in back pocket .
Again you was able to do what you did,
Im not aware of any one else ,

Same trains combo with converter or
Multi disks ?

I still personally a logger a must @ this level,, if some thing was to go south

 

Nitro produces some oxygen when it is burned, so you do not need to take in as much air as an alcohol engine would.

 

The simple answer on the hilborn barrel valve is it won't work. The hole is offset to one side. There is not enough material to make it bigger. Even if it would work the spool doesn't have a big enough ramp cut in it to flow the volume. Remember this was designed in the 60s. They didn't have the big pumps that they have today.
Enderle had a square bv originally. The main casting stayed the same they upgraded to the modern hi flow k valve. As far as bug or bird. I'm only running a 8-71 so it will be fine.
A bird is needed on a 14-71. The blower opening is larger requiring the long casting of the bird.

 

Nitro is partially made up of oxygen. Just like nitrous is a oxygen enhancer. You are putting liquid oxygen into the engine per say. That's one of the reasons why you can inject a huge amount of fuel. Of course this big load under pressure requires a big output mag. This ties into the barrel valve again. In the past they didn't have big mags to fire the big loads seen today. So the bv wasn't a issue. Now that it's possible to run a 90 gallon pump with the big mags. The little hilborn won't work with today's pumps. I run a 29.5 gallon pump.

 

It's a delicate balance between mixing old and new parts. The whole parts combination needs to be carefully examined to determine if everything is compatible.
While guys have fond memories of the old days thinking the cars were really fast they were not. A 8.5 won top fuel in 1966. Today that's barely entry level street car times. Granted they didn't have the parts we have today. The whole combination needs to work together. Small details make all the difference.

 

Not to modify a Hillborn barrel valve ,
Machine & make new bigger one that resembled /Looks of Hillborn & cut a spool to fit with ramp needed ,if the K looked to modern then Hillborn .

The standard Bug & Bird have Standard mounting & opening 6:71-some 10-71s
Buzz & Barn 12:71 bigger

 

The biggest issue with anything Hilborn is support. The Hilborn that we all remember died when Holley bought them. They shit canned everything but the name and one EFI BBC stack intake. Enderle is on the same path now that Goodvibes owns the name. Machining this and machining that isn't always the answer.

 

Need to go to Nick Smithburg for the Hilborn stuff now.

 

Modifying the hilborn stuff isn't worth it. Besides the bv is under the scoop. It's not user friendly. The valves come off the pump. Again not user friendly. The enderle adjustments are up high. So easy to work on.

 

One call to Mike at alky digger is all you need for anything.

 

Hey Calkins ,
Does Goodvibes own Enderle now ?
Or just rights to use the name ?

Tommy

 

I can not find a 100% answer to that. Either GV bought Enderle or they are the sole distributor. I have been told/read both.

 

Amen. Mike is good people. He also understands Aussie English

Cheers,
Harv

 

Alky Digger is the go to, bar none. Great folks working there.

 

I heard from a inside man at Holley today that they are now making new parts for mechanical injectors and will be more coming if a person is set on a Hilborn 4-port I have seen a k valve adapted to one it requires a custom mounting bracket and a special linkage but can be done I have ran a dragster on 90% that had this done to it it worked perfectly it also had a big pump like Brian is running I really like the enderle 3rib but if I had a choice I would rather run a e-type hilborn hat as I just like it better someday I will find one I can afford lol keep up the good work brian can’t wait to see this car really step it up

 

@racer-x


Hello,

Every time I see a Mert Littlefield yellow sticker, or photo, my mind wanders back to the teenage years at our old high school in Long Beach. During our old high school/drag racing days from those past early 1960s moments, those memories just stay in our brains for quite some time and pop up when something sparks it, to show itself.

Those were great times to experience hot rods and drag racing. Some folks were just starting and did what was necessary to succeed with their talents. It is an impressive thing that some of those old drag racers from "back in the day" can still be remembered through stories and memorabilia.

The local area had produced a ton of people involved in all sorts of drag racing history. Some had early hot rod/drag racing history already in place. Others got involved and over time, became part of that history themselves. Mert Littlefield was one of those people.

I would see Mert at school almost every day as we had classes together. But, what we learned in those early, practical technology classes helped us develop in different ways. His practical skills were at the top of our technology classes and we all respected that. But, his friendly demeanor was always nice to be around when he was doing his class projects. It was never a secret way to get a better grade. He always helped others do better in all forms of auto mechanics and in the metal shop classes.

His machining skills were top notch and we usually watched how he did his projects. After high school, we drifted apart until our drag racing adventures were over and his was just beginning to get some notoriety. Those articles about his skills and builds were always impressive as the years rolled on for all of us. He is gone now, but his work skills, designs, and supercharger business is still going strong in So Cal.

Mert Littlefield was in several of my high school classes. We were in the Autoshop, Metal Shop and others that don’t stand out as well as the mechanical tech classes. We both liked hot rods and drag racing. He was someone with a lot of hot rod skills, but, was for me, a quiet person that was a friend to everyone. His welding skills made mine look like a beginner, until I kept at it so I could get a good bead for strength. But, welding was not for me in the future, as I could not see what I was doing, using the standard dark protection shield glasses.

As all sorts of friends come and go during the years of high school. We were all impressed that many years later, he became well known in the field of drag racing and supercharging. His history in hot rods and funny cars started it for him. We did not see him during our foray into stock car drag racing with the Impala or the 1940 671 SBC Willys, B/Gas & C/Gas racing days. But, when looking at editions of Drag News, the OC papers, or the various magazines later on in life, his name popped up frequently.

Maybe had he started his drag racing career a bit earlier, or in our next phase, if there was going to be a next phase back then, a cool Littlefield Supercharger would have played a big part in our future build(s). YRMV

 

Littlefield blowers are great. My 8-71 retro makes 25 lbs at 9 percent over and over 35 lbs at 19 percent over. I send it back to them every few years for a check up.
Something that's rarely mentioned is sanding the manifold deck prior to bolting the blower down.

 

To true the manifold square/flat, or to roughen/smooth the surface?

Cheers,
Harv