Running a Hilborn on the Street

I am building a radical 33 Ford PU with a Hilborn injected SOHC motor. I plan to drive the hell out of this little truck and I am wondering what do I need to do by way of air filtration if I'm going to put serious miles on this thing? I love the look of the pipe organ so I would like to consider something that can be easily taken on and off as the situation dictates. If you've every swallowed a June Bug on your panhead you know what I'm thinking? Thoughts, suggestions, pics of clever solutions. Have at it.

 

Here is the answer to all your questions.....

http://www.hilborninjection.com/

PS... They are very nice people to talk with.

 

If your going to keep it mechanical,run it wide open and you will be fine ! here's my brothers

 

Ah, what do they know

 

if the overfueling wash will not overbore it whats a little dirt and dust ?, just put screens over the organ pipes to keep out rocks , bugs, birds,low flying planes and small children that might get sucked in there .

 

I do have some K&N clamp on filters that were used on a BBC dirt track car I could sell. Or you can buy new ones from K&N

 

I use a big slab of 1" thick open pore fuel cell foam. A lot of guys just use heavy stainless wire mesh curled over the edges of the stacks.

 

Can you pm me a pic?

 

Sorry, can you pm me a pic?

 

I may be interested in it when you take it off.........

 

It's EFI, NICE fab work on your air cleaner! To see my set up check out the thread "sometimes just because you can" Thanks for the input.

 

Real men go mechanical fuel injected on a street car!!!

 

Couldn't find your thread easily at "just because you can" so I will go off generalities. My avatar is what I ran. Yep, unfiltered and we often cruised the "great" by Ocean beach. So, when I tore down the engine there were score marks made by ingesting the blown and airborne sand. Ok, so is your engine exposed? Then I would imagine that the filtration should be minimized to retain the Hilborn cool factor. If the engine is not exposed then by all means construct an air filter system. You might want to try something like these Inglese systems if your engine is exposed
http://www.compperformancegroupstor...N&Product_Code=NG1752-8&Category_Code=Filters

or

http://www.compperformancegroupstor...N&Product_Code=NG1754-8&Category_Code=Filters

I went filterless for the cool factor and paid the price.

 

Try "Sometimes just because you can" that should find the thread. Thanks for the input, your response is exactly what I was looking for, what happens if I throw caution to the wind and run them open. I'm running an all aluminum SOHC 427 so its not like thrashing a sbc. Now the question is, how good are the little rubber booted screen air filters? Still maintain most of the pipe organ cool factor, air filtration...? I may need to have a discussion with the good folks at Hilborn. But, as Werner VonBraun said..."one test result is worth a thousand expert opinions". Thanks for taking the time to respond, there's no knowledge like first hand knowledge.

H.A.M.Bers are the best, to hell with the rest.

jim

 

Same as when you run your HAWG wide open you do a top end every year.

I would not stuff anything in the stack anything in the stack can end or will end up in your cylinder. You can buy a manufactured air cleaner that will clamp to your stacks and looks like the oval air cleaner from an old webber carbed SOHC. Or you can clamp on K&Ns like rich suggested. If you want to know what is redily available take a look at what the Sprint car drivers are using.

 

To give our discussion a bit of context, I've added a couple pics of the SOHC motor in situ. After viewing the pics I think you can understand my desire to run the stacks as open as possible. This thing is about as in your face as you can get, I'd like to keep it that way.

 

I have run street engines with no air filter. It's surprising how much wear it causes.

I have had several jobs where I rebuilt engines. One place that's pretty much all I did. The worst bore and piston wear I have ever seen was an industrial engine run one season with no air filter.

In the '60s I knew a guy who ran a sprint car with no air filters. With very little use the engine would be down on power and have noticeable and measurable bore/piston/ring damage and wear.

 

Here are a couple, one of which might be right for your stacks. The white one is on a 2 5/8 stack. The red one would go 2 7/16 - 2 1/2. I don't know what they cost new. I'll sell you 8 of either for $5 each = $40 plus shipping. PS they are sitting on 4 inch bore pistons in a '26 Dodge

 

Love the SOHC in that little truck. That's gonna be a wild piece. Unless you like to constantly tinker with the injection, I'd also recommend converting to EFI. There are a few guys that have been successful with it, but for every guy you find that's made it work, you'll probably find 10 or 20 that got fed up with it.

As far as filters go, here's a couple of examples from Hilborn's catalogue, and a pickup that's running some air filters that Hilborn also offers. I hope you work it out. That's gonna be a killer hot rod.

 

It's an EFI set up already. The issue is how to blend form and function for the air filtration or...idea #2 I build a giant lexan bubble of filtered air that I cruise inside. I wonder how the truck in your pics runs given the unequal length stacks? I appreciate the input guys.

 

Sorry I missed your post on stating it was EFI already. That's an awesome engine combo. You may also want to check out what kind of filters are offered for Stromberg 97's or Weber carbs. You may be able to adapt something from them.

Here's a link to the thread with that purple pickup. There's a magazine article.

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=400590

 

Thanks for the G2

 

Sweet ride.

 

I ran a street car for 9 years with no air filter, I was surprised at the LACK of damage over the years!!?!


Judging by the pics, I would think you are best to run filters... LOL That doesn't look like a cheap mill!!!! I wonder if there would be a way to fab some larger diameter stacks with a filter system slipped down inside the tubes? Maybe a 3" tube with a ring "ledge" that could support a couple screen "plates" which could sandwich some filter media?

Great looking project!!!!

 

My bad. I thought it was still mechanical. Carry on.

 

Interesting idea? I wonder what increased diameter does to the fuel mapping? Good thought, maybe I'll follow up on that with the folks at Hilborn.

 

This may help you out.

http://www.bills-b-racing.com/gallery.html

Good luck.
-Greg

 

I thought about it for maybe 10 min, then I realized I want to drive the heck out of this thing...it is the ONLY thing on this little truck that puts function ahead of form. Drum brakes, cross steer, no heat, air or radio, front leaf spring and THREE pedals. Whoever made the smartass comment about it being a street rod because it had EFI obviously didn't check out the pics.

Love your avatar BTW.

Thanks,

Jim

 

Okay Jim, I found the original thread posted by HRCC. You have a lot of pics in that thread that are not in your album, hint, hint.
So, you want the coolness factor of the exposed Hilborn ram tubes right? Gotta minimize the air filters for that then. Unfortunately, when we try to replicate a race look, for the street, we encounter many compromises because some race inspired parts just don't fit well into street driving. I'd say the little individual filters might be your best choice. You could remove them when racing or showing the truck. BTW, if you ever park it without the filters, be sure to have some setup to block the tubes. I used hand balls that are strung together with thin aircraft cable. I have included a pic for your reference. This will keep dirt and other foreign objects from falling down the tubes and I never put it past some idiot at a show from dumping something down there if I didn't block them off. As one other poster mentioned, your engine is just tooooo valuable to throw caution to the wind and run it without air filtration.
-Contact Inglese with regards to how well the the small screen filters...uh filter. Their number is 1 866 450 8089 and they are in your time zone I think, Memphis Tenn.
-With regards to what happens when using different length ram tubes, it spreads out your torque curve.
-I enjoy helping anyone out that is trying to run mechanical injection on the street. I know, you've crossed over to the dark side but I guess there is an abundance of cool (with your engine choice and that chassis that resembles a bridge), to forgive the minor transgression with EFI. When I was building my system I only had the generous assistance of Vern, with Hilborn, and the former owner of my intake.
-Warn us here in Calif when you are going to start that beast so we can turn off our seismographs.

 

Great pic, your mill looks awesome...shame to put it in an engine "compartment". Mine should look great in 3D, no glasses required...and the surround sound won't be bad either. My rears are 3.90, I have an overdrive 6th gear in the Tranzilla and managed to squeze a 21 Gal. fuel cel in there so I can actually drive it.