Well never had a flathead. Got one now. How much cam can I run with the stock heads. Not looking for power,just that they sound so sweet with a big cam. Thanks a lot. Ted
ted on a flathead heads dont make a big difference - there is no real power gains to be had by putting on aftermarket heads - in fact some stock heads give better perfoemance than some aftermarket heads. the cams which seems popular is an isky Max1 or a 400jr - the 400jr might be a bit much for the street but a max1 would be perfect.
This is incorrect, aftermarket heads may limit flow slightly, but what they do is increase compression ratio. That is the one thing that you would notice more than any other single mod on a flathead. Also, you didn't answer his question. I'm not sure how much lift the stock heads can take, I'd have to do a little research before I could recommend a cam lift that will work with the stock heads. My Dad has a completely stock engine and is running a straight dual exhaust, it sounds plenty good to me.
Ted, you have no idea how much lift the motor will tolerate until you clay the valves. The heads may have been milled in the past, so you can't rely on anyone else's measurements or advice. Clay the heads....here's how.... http://www.flatheadv8.org/clayhead.htm
You'll have to get the cam. install it and either clay it or use tinfoil to make sure you have valve clearance. As weemark said, the 400 jr would sound nice, while raising the compression would help a lot. Butch
Hey man, I'm running a souped up flathead with a 400jr and stock heads, works great, sounds even better.
Oh, everyone has their own idea of what is best. I , personally, would go for heads , and manifold , before going to cam, if you are money limited . Pull the heads and give them a cut of 1/16th inch, and put on a dual manifold, and you will do more than a cam. but when you put a cam in with heads and manifold it makes a bigger difference. I ran 8-1 Edelbrock heads and had no trouble at all. traderjack
Thanks you guys. I have the dual carb manifold. I just like the looks of a flathead with stock heads and nut covers. But I have to have too much cam or it would not be the way I do things. I am just looking forward this motor. Ted
There is an old time flathead builder used to post on the HAMB under the screen name something like 296 flathead v8 but I can't find his exact name in the member list. I believe he is from New Jersey. I think he posts frequently on the Ford Barn v8 forum. He preferred Schnieder cams. Bruce Lancaster might know his HAMB screen name. Schnieder makes many different cams for flatheads. I'd sure try to get hold of him to get his opinion. Good luck. Ted
You don't say what model of flathead you have. Are the hoses leaving the heads going to the radiator in the middle of the heads or the front? Where is the dizzy mounted; front of motor above crank or at an angle right front? Also what numbers are cast on each head? Used heads are available fairy cheap so if they have been milled too much you could replace. How many studs (bolts) on each head 21 or 24? Valves on any flathead Ford pre 1944 are angled different than valves on a post-45 so valve pocket clearance in the heads are different side to side which will affect cam valve lift available. Best to clay the heads first before you spend the money on the cam. You'll need to buy a set of head gaskets and remove the heads from the motor. I run the 400jr. and just love it.
If all you want is a lope then a cam with big duration will do that . Now if you want it to run right , start with better compression with the heads , a 2x2 intake and headers . Now if you have the money the invest in a good cam . First you need to know what your driving the most , city , daily driver or what , what trans you have , the rear end gear ratio , tire size then you can decide the cam you need ! Sorry if I get you up set but just to stick a cam in to get a lope is not the way to get you engine to run better . So if you do go that far then do it right and get the engine rebuilt ! Flatheads are not like a Ford or chevy where you buy a cam and stick it in to get a hot rod sound . Isky , Schiender & Clay cams are about the best around ! I do agree with a couple other replys that when you want to check your clearance for a cam put clay on your piston to see if the cam has too much lift so you don't hit the valves with the pistons . Also don't put your head gasket on either when you check for valve clearance . The head gasket is your cushion for error ! I would call H&H Flatheads for the information you want . They are the best in the business for flatheads ! Just my 2 cents .
"Well never had a flathead. Got one now. How much cam can I run with the stock heads. Not looking for power,just that they sound so sweet with a big cam. Thanks a lot. Ted " No matter what cam you change to, you should clay the heads. There have been several different stock cam grinds over the years. Any cam bigger than stock that you put in a stock engine will hurt low end performance and mileage. To answer your question, .360 lift can be gotten away with in many cases without machining the valve pockets. For your application, you would probably be very happy with a 1007B. It works good with single or multiple carbs. It has a lopey drive-in idle. If you eventually do other mods to the engine it will make it a winner. The 1007B was one of the most popular cams for short track and street use back in the 50's because of it's low and mid range torque. It has a higher RATE of lift than ALL of the other cams of it's class. "Been in the cam business 53 years"
I guess I was just after a simple answer. Anyway it is a Canadian 8BA engine out of a 50 pickup. I have a dual manifold, headers etc. Like I said I want to run the stock heads by preference. It goes in a 50 coupe. 3 on the tree. I am not expecting nor wanting big power. This is for fun right? Is there any advantage-disadvantage to the Canadian block. Thanks Ted
You just want a lope? run the idle jets rich! You want to improve the performance, mill the heads. You put a cam in, and it it a lot of time and money! traderjack
Cam duration and compression ratio are closely related. The intake valve on a long-duration cam remains open a long way up the compression stroke, so it's necessary to squeeze the remaining cylinder volume tighter just to maintain the same comprssion pressure as a stock engine. If you get a bad mismatch between the cam and the compression, your performance will go to hell and a stock engine will be able to run rings around you. Anything with more than about 260 degrees of advertised duration will need a compression boost to go with it. That's about where an idle lope begins, also. If you want a lumpy idle, use a cam with about 270 to 280 degrees of advertised duration and bump the compression up to about 9.5:1. Jerry
all very true and good advice i feel the answer to your question is to go with the max-1 its a big improvement performance wise over the stock wornout old cam and unless your heads are milled (AWAYS CLAY THEM) clearance should not be an issue
Also, you need to change to EAB heads off a 52 or 53 car engine. Had highest comp ratio of all stock heads. I run a stock cam on a 239 French flattie with Offy heads. Pulls hard from idle to 4500 rpm. Butch
I run CC'd EAB heads instead of aluuuuminuuum. ALWAYS clay the heads to check for clearance. If you don't have a high lift cam with a long duration you can always just pull the choke out when you pull in to the local hang out.
I'm looking for the same thing as Tedster.. some good tips here. Only difference with me is I'm running a Ford O Matic.. will the Ford-O handle the Max 1 Cam in the idle department? or will I have to idle up the engine for the cam too high for the torque converter to handle.
You guys are giving serious answers. He just wants a sound. Dual exhaust, no or minimal mufflers and run it too rich, that oughta do it.
as far as stock heads go, the max 1 should work with 8ba heads (.375 valve clearance), but to use the 400jr, you'll have to flycut 8ba heads or use 8cm heads (.425 clearance). but, as the others have said, your best bet is to check with clay. a set of bent valves is a real bummer!
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