Hi All, My name is Tim. The picture of those 4 - 2" SUs on the SBF (above) is my car (Rick - thanks for posting the pic.) I am in the process of finalizing the mounting of those the 4 HD-8 SUs carbs on my Ford 302 powered in my 1959 Austin Healey. I have also removed the distributor and replaced it with a 90s Ford EDIS crank timed computer fired ignition system. I have also added a HUGE 24" wide radiator, R&P steering, and A/C. I have not yet started the engine with the new SUs and the new EDIS ignition, but I am not very far away. Probably within the month. HERE is a web page that describes the late 90s build up. There is a large picture of the engine before I added the SUs and EDIS. I'll be happy to answer any questions that you may have. Tim
Thanks for posting Tim. I enjoyed your build up photos. Very nice conversion - purists probably don't like it but I bet it's a hoot. I see that the carbs all mount to a common plenum - is that welded to the original Ford manifold? I think I mentioned elsewhere that 6750cc Rolls & Bentley engines manage with just two HD8s - what are your thoughts on needles and do you plan on using a progressive linkage to bring the second pair of carbs in at the top end?
No use for progressive linkage on su,s you got the va*** controled trottle in them that opens with the engines demand thats the beauty with the su,s
Blackjack. Yes, it is a hoot and a blast to drive. Because the SBF is about 75 pounds lighter than the stock Healey 6, the car doesn't have the Healey tendency to plow into a corner and, of course, I can steer through the corner with the throttle. The commom plenum bolts, not welds, to the Edelbrock 4 barrel manifold and is removable should I want or need to go back to a 4 barrel. Heo is correct about not needing progressive linkage. I have just made sure that the ****erflys ALL close precisely together as that effects the idle. Because my 4-speed automatic overdrive has a pull cable that needs to advance at the same rate as the throttle, the back end of that plenum has a round pulley matching the front pulley. A stainless steel shaft with oilite bushings connects the 2 pulleys. As the throttle pull cable winds up and opens the ****erflys, the rear pulley winds up and pulls the transmission cable through the adjuster shown near 2 o'clock on the pulley. The front throttle pulley has the same adjuster for the throttle cable. The rotary Throttle Position Sensor for the ignition computer is also on the rear and is advanced by the rear pulley. Matching throttle return springs are on the front and rear ends of the throttle shafts. HERE is a picture. HERE is the fuel distribution manifold for the SUs. The electric fuel pump puts out about 7 psi which is cut down to 3 psi by the regulator. Short fuel hoses will provide fuel to the carbs. The electrical plug with the green gasket plugs into the TPS. Tim
Tim - very simple and straightforward but you've still managed to incorporate all the modern high tech stuff. I'd need none of that on a 1957 Pontiac engine. Once I've made an adapter plate it looks like I could fabricate the actual plenum itself over a weekend. I make & sell something along the same lines to put a tiny 1 1/4" SU on a 2CV engine. Linkages etc would take longer of course. The 4 SUs look great. I imagine it's very confusing for show go-ers with the bonnet open! It's got what look like OEM SU's but there are 4 of them and two rocker covers?!?! Surely it's not an American V8 because there's no 4bbl? Tell them it was a Healey factory prototype V8! Do you think the 4 HD8s are essential or have you used 4 partly because it looks so good? I'd be very interested to hear what needles you use when you get it dialled in. Congratulations again - the more you see of this car the nicer it is. Lots of out of the box thinking. It's a credit to you.
I've seen pictures of that - very nice clean and tidy install. Would love to find a tiny little supercharger and replicate it on my 2CV engined trike.
Blackjack, Thanks for the kind words. There is a lot of "imagineering" and custom fabrication in there. I have done all of it myself. The hardest part of making the plenum is making sure that the SU mounting bolt holes line up. There is very little forgiveness in the alignment of the shafts. >>>Do you think the 4 HD8s are essential or have you used 4 partly because it looks so good? I actually bought the plenum and 4 SUs (for the price of an HD-4 core) from a California friend who got them on a SBF in a big Healey. He was planning to use EFI and had no use for the 4 SU set-up. When I put them on my Edelbrock intake, the rear two dash pot caps hit my hood brace, so I cut the base of the plenum, lowered the rear, and welded it back together. A couple of the SUs were pretty trashed, so I bead blasted all of them, before the rebuild and re-***embly. >>>I'd be very interested to hear what needles you use when you get it dialled in. I forget what needles are in there, but I think that they are the stock needles. It's been 6 months since I rebuilt them and my old brain gets foggy. I've had 2 SU "experts" tell me that they ought to do fine. Regarding a small supercharger, I was at a local track a couple of weeks ago and saw a pretty stock MG-TD with an Eaton supercharger from a Ford Thunderbird SuperCoupe. I asked the guy what he had to do for adapters. He replied that he made the supercharger base to stock TD intake manifold and the SU carb to supercharger out of 1/4" ally plate by literally just drilling holes. Those blowers are all over Ebay. Send me a PM with your Email address and I'll send you some pictures of the supercharger on the TD. Do you know any Austin Healey guys there in the UK ? I have 3-4 over thre that I am in pretty often contact with. Tim
Hey Tim (Healeyman59) I don't want to be a stickler but if you are going to spend any time here the fellas like it if you introduce yourself, there is a place for it just start a new thread and let the guys know who you are. Welcome!
Tim - there are various texts on the web about setting up your SU's; one of the best is by a chap called Roger Garnett. Choosing the correct needle is a bit more difficult. The car will probably run OK with whatever's in it now but you will probably get flat spots and hesitation at various points and acceleration may not be all that you expected. These issues are easily resolved by a combination of the right needle profile, strength of dashpot spring and viscosity of dashpot oil. A book called Power Tuning Your SU describes the process very well. The A. Graham Bell book on tuning 4 stroke engines is also very good. The T Bird supercharger may be a bit big - my trike engine is 602cc. I don't know any Big Healey owners personally but they are a very popular car here. I used to get a ride in an uncle's car and I remember getting airborne over a hump backed bridge on a country lane here in Cheshire.
Blackjack, I am VERY lucky in that I have a couple of close friends here, one of whom professionally restores Jags, the other of whom rebuilds SUs as a sideline business. They have been "coaching" me. Sounds as if your trike needs a bigger engine (grin). If you ever get down around Salsbury, Wiltshire, stop in and see Pete Farmer and tell him I said Hi. HERE is his Healey Tim
Hmmm...... I kinda thought that I did that in post #32 in this thread. I even included my picture. I sure didn't mean to break decorum... What do "the fellas" usually want to know ? Tim
Not trying to sound like the "intro natzi" just trying to keep "Decorum" everyone goes here first http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=18 That's all. That Pete Farmer Healey is very nice!
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