Talk to a guy today that has a 22 bolt flatty. Said it was about a 1946. Is that right. Don't know much about them Except a 48-53 merc is the one to get I think??
did he mean 21 stud Ive only heard of a 21 or a 24 and the 21's were early versions if im not mistaken. and the V8 60 which had 17 studs http://www.vanpeltsales.com/FH_web/flathead_specifications.htm
Yeah, that would be 24 studs, not 22. And on the Merc engine, '49-'53 is the 255 so I guess you could say that would be "the one to get". Bob
here is another one i know its wikipedia but it is pretty accurate i think. helped me identify the flattie in my avatar as being a 239 24 stud instead of the origional 221 21 stud that would have come with the truck http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_flathead_V8_engine
If it has an extended section on the rear of the block,...Like a half bell housing, it will be a 59A,..used thru 1948. if it does not have that extension, it's a 59 - 53 8BA engine. Merc had a 4"stroke, Ford is 3 3/4 stroke. 8BA heads all have the upper hose outlets at the front sorners of the heads, 59A heads have the hose outlets at the center of the top edge of the heads. Stud count, as redzula said, is either 21, or 24. 24 stud came late 30's...Not sure exactly what year. 4TTRUK
To really be sure of what it is check out Mac VanPelts site: http://www.vanpeltsales.com/FH_web/flathead_specs-85to100mid.htm The 24 stud engines were 221 or 239 depending on the vintage.
another way to tell is the location of the water pumps in the heads or in the block i think 24 studs were introduced in 38
Yes, the 24 stud engine was introduced in mid -38, early 38,s left factory with 21 studs, later cars had 24, I also think that early 38,s had stromberg 97 carbs, and the later was improoved with the new holley 94, not sure.
Early Years 21 Stud V8 (1932-38) Ford 1933 V8 Engine Shown (pumps in heads) The first section here will cover the common 221 cubic inch 85hp engines which had 21 studs per head. The displacement remained the same from the 1932 to 1937 versions. Ford started with cast iron heads but changed to aluminum heads for 1933. The aluminum heads were a problem in service and were frequently replaced with cast iron heads. Corrosion made the aluminum erode and become difficult to remove. The engines started out with poured main bearings as earlier Ford engines had used, but the change was made to insert type main bearings late in 1936 production. Production of V8's in 1932 was limited due to initial casting problems with the blocks, causing a high rejection rate. Many 1932 Ford cars were actually equipped with the four cylinder engine for this reason and the concern of the buying public about the reliability of the new V8 engine. The four cylinder engine was dropped in 1933 as production problems and reliability issues with the V8 engines subsided. Middle Years 24 Stud V8 (1938-48) In 1938 Ford made new changes to the flathead V8, the most obvious change being the use of 24 studs per head instead of 21 as previously used. The engine underwent various other changes as years p***ed.In 1939 when the Mercury car line was introduced, the engine's cylinder bore was opened up for a larger displacement in the Mercury car. Changes to the distributor occurred in 1942 and again in 1946. The cooling fan was driven by its own v-belt beginning with 1942 models. The engine continued to be cast with the upper bell housing integral with the cylinder block ***embly. In the post-war production both Ford and Mercury versions had the larger bore (3-3/16"). Water outlets were in the top center of each cylinder head for all 1938 to 48 motors. Water pumps were mounted in the lower front corners of all blocks from this era, and doubled as the front motor mounting pad. Latter Years 24 Stud V8 (1949-53) Major changes occurred to the mid size flathead V8 in 1948 for the new Ford trucks and in 1949 for new Ford and Mercury cars. The new engine incorporated several changes, some obvious and some not. The heads are now bolted to the blocks with 24 bolts (rather than studs and nuts) and the water outlet fittings are moved up to the front corner of the head (rather than the middle of the head). Another major change was the use of the new "Load-A-Matic" distributor, which was driven off the front of the engine, but through a shaft mounted vertically at right angle to the axis of the engine. With this new engine, Ford stopped casting the bell housing integral to the cylinder block, and provided it as a separate component which was bolted on. Internal changes include using a straight stem valve with one-piece valve guide. The belts and pulleys for 1948/49 stayed with the 5/8" wide of previous years, but changed from 1950 on to the narrow belts. In general, the latter year flatheads were commonly referred to as the "8BA" type for Ford and "8CM" for Mercury. The truck version was identified as an "8RT". Later 1952 and '53 Fords and Mercurys were known as "EAB" and "EAC" respectively. These markings are generally cast into the cylinder heads. The truck versions often had different oil pans to accommodate the different suspensions, and some truck V8's were factory "relieved". The EAB's and EAC's did not have the hardened valve seat inserts like the earlier engines. http://www.vanpeltsales.com/FH_web/flat ... ations.htm
I am no flathead expert by any measure. But I think the most glaring thing that marks a '49 from a '48 or earlier would be the distributer. If it looks pretty much like what you are accustomed to seeing and is sticking up on the front of the engine it's '49 or later. If it's kind of a flat thing tight against the timing cover, it's early.
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