Featured Technical Best Flathead Build for a 150 HP+ Cruiser

All good stuff, except...... He's doing this for a '53 Mercury Canadian pickup, which changes a couple of things.

Point 10. CharlieNY is still the guy, but have him do a converted SBC distributor, not a crab. I personally prefer using a flattop Mallory for an SBC, but that's just me.

Point 13. Personally, I would keep a stock car flywheel, but that's because I tend to use a truck as a truck from time to time.

Point 9. On a late model truck like this I'd go with a 4BBL or a 2G, but that's more a matter of personal choice.

Since he'll be starting with an 8BA engine anyway, a few more of the steps will be unnecessary, but overall, it's a good plan.

 

I like this thread.

 

^^^^, yeah me also. It inspired me to pick up a 49-53 Merc intake. Now to just figure out which 2G to put on it.

 

Keep your eye peeled for the aluminum Canadian version.

 

You will need a small-base 2G; the large base versions are just enough bigger to not fit, but small enough so making an adapter is impossible. It'll work best if you bore it out to 1 7/16" all the way down. I use a tool called a Rota-Broach and my cheap bench-top drill press. I have guide I made out of 1" aluminum to keep everything on the straight and narrow. Believe it or not, the Rota-Broach cuts the cast iron intakes as easy as the aluminum ones. Merc manifolds and small-base 2G's both come in regular (choke mechanism on the carb) and divorced (choke mechanism on the manifold) choke versions. If you can match the choke type, everything drops into place and things are a lot easier.

 

At risk of being bombed: Flatheads look great & historic. Save the flathead for an open hood roadster. For what u want to do - cheap; get a ford 300 6 cylinder match ******, rear gear & rear tire size. Can’t kill them & last forever with lots of torque. Pls don’t throw rocks

 

300 Ford 6's are also a great engine, but have nowhere near the panache' of a dressed flathead. I had one in an old Winnebago. When I got it, the engine was real tired. We re-ringed it, put in an Erson RV cam, and had a engine builder friend do his magic on the head (which included welding up the rotators) and topped it off with a Holley 390 om an Offy manifold. I used it mainly to haul my vintage dirt car to races. I had no problem cruising at 70 and it would p*** the guys with 440 Chryslers, no problem. The best thing is it got 8 MPG loaded and 12 MPG unloaded.

But a '53 pickup? Flathead, no question?

 

Good point! I missed the 49-53 part . . . so the crab is out. On the intake/carbs, really becomes more of an aesthetic issue - what appeals to you the most? I tend to like the Eddy slingshot with two 2's . . . looks great, runs great . . .

Flywheel - it all comes down to the gearing and weight of the vehicle. The stock flywheel is just fine for most setups, but I do like one a bit lighter and having a really nice clutch setup that doesn't kill your left-leg is not a bad deal.

Lots of ways to skin the flathead cat! LOL

Happy Thanksgiving to all you flatheaded *******s!
B&S

 

I agree on the flywheel. I would also suggest ditching the 11" clutch set up. It is not needed and its heavy as hell. Switch to a car 8BA flywheel and use the 10" set up. Better yet, go with a diaphragm clutch. I love the Centerforce set up in mine. Works so well.

 

The best flathead is a 53 to 65 Buick "Nailhead", had to say it I'm a "Nailhead guy"

 

John get out of here with your OHV BS...

3blap.

 

I think it’s best to have both - a Nailhead AND a Flathead powered car “in the barn”!

 

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...2-throat-2gc-with-flatty-merc-intake.1205124/

 

Where the hell's my bag o rocks?

 

I don't doubt the longevity and usefulness of a straight 6, but I'd rather not see one in an old Ford. It's like opening the hood of a '69 Charger only to find a slant 6. Instant softy.

 

Everyone should post #1 again. 53 pickup 30 years with no engine ( sitting ) wants a daily driver 90 miles to work & back each day on highways ( 65-70 ? mph ). Not sure a brand new 53 pickup be good for this much less a hopped up flathead. Suspect Needs rebuilt suspension & brakes ( disc front ) & comfy interior. Want a/c? Or tough it out in summer. Modern cars built for this with a/c, overdrive trans, modern sound system, nice quiet interior. Being tough & living 1950 fun on the weekends but can be overdone. How many HAMBs drive flathead car over 450 miles a week every week, 1800 miles a month? Oh ya, stop off to tune 2, 70 year old carbs. Ok, throw rocks

 

AmishMike... carbs don't just fall out of tune, and even if they did, there's plenty of leeway. The biggest culprit with carb performance is debris in p***ageways and sitting with old fuel in them... leading to crud in the p***ageways. Drive them daily and you have very little problems. Cars ran for decades everyday all across this country with carburetors. They also did it without all the accoutrements you're describing... OD, stereo, A/C... yadda yadda yadda. I personally don't see any reason why he can't make that his goal, if that's what he wants to do. To me, it's like living off grid... can you do it, yes. Would I want to do... I don't think so. I'd definitely consider what he's doing before I went off grid.

Don't the Amish use horse & buggy still? Is it worse than that?

Please advise.

3blap.

 

Understand your comments^^^^ similar to what I was saying. I drove old jeep pickup to work then manual ford truck ( 300=6 ) 8 miles their 8 home. Loved those old trucks. Sometimes no top jeep - fun. Still have old trucks ( son used car dealer ) 5 in our shared driveway + manual dump truck & old tow truck. Best is dodge d-100 was leaning tower of power 3 speed now 360 5 speed. Yes lot horse & buggy around they travel less then 5 miles. I gave my opinion. Trust OP keeps that 53 truck safe & have fun

 

Waiting to hear miles driven in a week/month by flathead lovers

 

Dude, seems like you've got a bug for those straight sixes. That's cool and we get it. OP's ***led his thread best FLATHEAD cruiser. Us flathead guys are chiming in to give him advice on it. By keep jumping back in to sing your praises of those 300 sixes is making things muddy.

Like someone said previously, before OHV's, flatheads of all sorts and makes drove daily, with 6V, and stock three speeds. Good news is today, you can mate modern transmissions and rears to them if you so choose.

I also agree what 3blap said about carbs. Worst thing with carbs is today's gas, but modern products and fuel filter can help that situation greatly too. If someone is so concerned about having to tune multiple carbs, run a 4 barrel.

 

Amish Mike... you win bro! You know the best set up all around and have all of us beat with our underpowered incapable engines! We're going to take your advice now and do what you recommend, because all the other options apparently aren't possible.

An air pump is an air pump. I just got done catching up on a '34 Tudor thread that's up top... seems like it's possible to traverse long distances in a flathead without OD, AC, stereo... albeit, it isn't done daily, but there's zero reason it couldn't be done... unless you're gonna cry about creature comforts.

3blap.

 

While I don't commute to work any more....
I have taken my flat head powered F1 pu on several 1000+ mile trips. Solid axle, 5 speed, drum brakes, and 6 volt even. No problem keeping up with traffic.
Why are we even here if modern cars are so great?
Because we like old stuff!

 

Ronnie Roadster has over 100K miles on his Ardun powered '32 roadster. He has taken many cross country trips with this car.

 

Ronnie Roadster is my hero - my avatar has had its fair share of long cross country trips. It’s all about the challenge gents. If it were easy/cheap everyone would do it!

 

I get @AmishMike 's comments and he is not wrong. But the OP's question in this thread is not which engine to run or build, it is a question requesting the recipe for a 150HP, streetable flathead. Not a team of horses, an inline 6 or a SBC...a flathead Ford build recipe. Anything other is leaving the intent, focus and aim of the thread.

 

‘Ol Ron’s book is still available, I HIGHLY recommend it.

 

Try to find John Lawson's Flathead Facts book. John has since p***ed, but he does a series of mods and then dyno's or flow benches them to show the real truth behind what to expect from the modification.

Getting 150 hp from a flathead isn't that difficult. Getting from 150 to the 200-225 range is the hard part and lots of secrets, trial and error and a willingness to go big with bore & stroke.

 

I recently built a 8BA and although it has not been on a dyno I believe that it would meet your needs. I’ll tell you what I did and what I would do different if built for your specific desire.
I used new Edlebrock aluminum heads but for a daily driver I would use stock steel/iron heads.
There’s an old saying “If you want to deal with blown head gaskets use aluminum heads, if you want to make horsepower use iron heads.
SBC distributor converted for 8BA.
It’s not as cool looking as a pair (or 3) of 97’s but a 4 barrel would be best. If you want to use 97’s 2 of them are best.
Merc crank and over bored cylinders for a total of 272”
I used a Max 1 cam but I would not use one again, I’m not impressed by it. There are better cams out there.
We kept the original 3 speed so of course we had no OD. I strongly suggest a T5 overdrive transmission or possibly an F150 4 speed with OD and 411 or possibly 370 gears. Because we were not going to have an OD I swapped in 323 gears. I was concerned that 323 would be too much for first gear from a standing start but the motor has more than enough torque to pull the 323.
Red’s tube headers.
I port matched the intake manifold and ported the block myself. Porting the block came out great and although it takes 16+ hours it is not that hard to do. I used a harbor fright die grinder.
If you do as I suggest I am certain that you will get what you need no problem.
The stock 8BA distributor is totally wrong for any carb except the Holley 94 so you will have to replace the stock dizzy.
O’l Rons book “Nostalgia” is still available and is a must read.
Don

 

One thing nobody has mentioned yet and I think is a very important step in rebuilding a flathead engine is to get rid of the core sand that is in every flathead block that was cast. In rebuilding my 59A engine the block was tumbled for a week off and on, in a large container with foam on the sides to prevent any damage to the block. The block was s****ed and prodded to free up any core sand and then tumbled again. This process was repeated a few times. Hard to believe but a small pailful of core sand was removed from the block. My 59A engine runs cool all summer long with no overheating at all. Get rid of that core sand and your engine will run much cooler.

 

I mentioned it, but didn't just limit it to core sand. Rust, core sand, old water muck, etc. is all packed into the water p***ages over time. Only way to get it all, it takes manual/mechanical means: Long, thin screw drivers, frayed pieces of cable chucked into a drill, a shop vac with a piece of small tubing on a reducer to **** it out.

This is an absolutely crucial step in prepping any flathead. No amount of chemical dips, spray washers will get it out. Over time, all that muck gets packed and baked in the water p***ages.