Shame you can't ask "Smokey Unick " (Daytona ), Quote: "Best Damn Garage in TOWN " He Raced THEM on The BEACH, Ran lik'a Cat, just had scalding water poured on IT ! _____________________________________________ Off tha' subject (a little ) Smokey had HIS GMC Franchise Pulled in tha' 70's , cause HE was spending all HIS time racing/ Experimenting.......Got Things "Off HIS Chest, by running Full Page ads in Daytona Paper......One ad Read, "You all know what a "GNC" Truck IS, Chevy designs the Truck ! , an, "GMC" designs.....The Emblems and Hub Caps " For Sale; GMC Truck, Toro Flow Diesel......Good for Haulin' Potatoe CHIPS, or Feathers !! Nuff fer' Now. Good nighty ! Smoke'
gee vodo thanks for th info. I read the post and found the story interesting. why don't you fine a college forum to correct inglish on. I think it's a bit uppity to trash fellow HAMBERS. if he gave you bad info on adjusting braks or valves I could understand corrections Have a good day.....Gim
The true 7X factory to dealer option had the same specs except the engine block was machined around the valves to create a relief to produce the venturi effect. The port area was hand finished by the factory race team. The valves were bigger, the inlet was 2" and the exhaust were 1 11/16" the head options were a reworked 232 head in either iron 8.7-to-1 or aluminum 9.2-to-1. This engine was only offered with Twin H and delivered 210 hp. The pistons were a special knurled type and had a chrome compression and oil ring. The head bolts were 1/2" studs with special thick washers to hold the head gaskets. The exhaust was a tuned dual outlet manifold. Info is from a very good hudson forum. I typed it in there but it didnt work. I could have explained it the same way but it would be in a more california slang. I work on alot of 7X engines for Bill Albright. I even turned some blocks into 7X engines, Oh yeah and i have a 7X engine in my chopped 49 coupe. Here's where some of the confusion about the 7X engine comes into play. The factory 7X engine was a racing engine and was designed to run fast on the track the use of the 232 head gave it a higher compression and both the head and the block were hand finished to produce the most horse power. The cam offered in 53 was the 311040 which was designated "super 7X" this was not a street engine unless you liked a rough idle but if you liked to race this was the engine for you, it was produced as part of what might be called a factory skunk works to support the Hudson racing efforts, which were by no means a formal effort. You can tell a factory 7X as the engine number will be prefaced with a State so for example the California dealers used CALXXXXX to designate the engine serial number. These engines were hot and they liked to eat timing chains but as evidenced by the track record they performed nicely on the track. Most engines were pulled down after 500 miles and new timing chains installed. This is the true 7X, the factory hand finished, dealer installed bear of an engine. Most of the 7X engines you see out there are a little different, mostly to produce a street driveable powertrain. I guess a purest might say its not a true 7X but its close enough to be really nice. This 7X was built by the industrious owner who got his hands on the 7X spec and had a talk to Jack Clifford who pioneered the aftermarket Hudson performance market. Jack spent a lot of time working out the rough spots and produced parts that could give you a lot of the horsepower of the 7X without the rough idle or tuning problems. He realised most owners wanted more horsepower but also wanted to drive there cars daily. He produced a variety of cams and parts that could help you build anything from a mild street 7X to a screaming race track 7X.
The VAST MAJORITY of Hudson Hornets advertised as having factory 7X race motors don't have any idea what they are talking about. HudsonJoe gives a thorough description and I owned one of those dual outlet original exhaust manifolds decades ago. If you are thinking about buying a 7X Hudson, don't pay a dime extra unless you do the homework or see some documentation. Pics of my 7X exhaust manifold after application of some high heat paint back about 1972 or so.
Agree, until he's seen the inside, all which can be said for certain is it has the Twin-H Power intake. As can be imagined, they do move around. Does his have 1/2" head studs? IIRC the 1952 7X engine was not installed in the factory. You ordered your Hudson and the engine came in a crate and the dealer or your race team installed it.The block was relieved around the valves. The ports were hand finished by the factory race team. The intake valves were 2" and the exhaust were 1 11/16". The head options were a reworked 232 head in either iron 8.7-to-1 or aluminum 9.2-to-1. This engine was only offered with Twin H and delivered 210 hp. The pistons were a special knurled type and had a chrome compression and oil ring. The head bolts were 1/2" studs with special thick washers to hold the head gaskets. The exhaust was a tuned dual outlet manifold. You can tell a factory 7X as the engine number will be prefaced with a State so for example the California dealers used CALXXXXX to designate the engine serial number. Most of the "7X" engines you see out there today are a little different, usually to produce a street drivable idle. (hudsonjoe49 and I should give credit to The Hudson Motorcar News article "Guide to the Hudson 7X engine") jack vines
yep .It's all bullshit until you open it up ad measure and inspect.I can't tell you how many flatheads I see are a mercury because the heads say mercury on them.yea right.
7X in a Hudson is akin to every 350 Chevy being a Corvette motor... That said,a stock Twin-H 308 is no slouch and should motor the 52 down the road nicely. I'm incorporating some 7X style mods on my 55 308 build though.
that's some good info hudsonjoe, i may have read it before but i sure forget a lot. they are still out there i guess, i remember the post a year or so back on the hudson forum about someone finding one. i hope it's one!
Here's a couple photos from Miller Motors, note the letter signed by Vince Piggins whose achievements later at GM are pretty well known;
Just another common Hudson with a flattie 6. I'll take it off his hands to get it out of his way. Just kiddin. Nice find is a HUGE UNDERSTATEMENT!!!
the hudson is blasted and away for paint and some bodywork.the motor is out it needs rings maybe crank shells.where can i find these any one prefer hamb vendor.im told its a 7x motor allright
Put an HEI on it with 8 mm plug wires and it will really fly. Good strong engines. They ruled the Oval dirt tracks for years even against the V-8's. I mechaniked for a guy who had five 307's built up and all had one thing in common. They ran great! Normbc9
you might check out the hudson forum on classiccar.com for the parts. do you need std rings or oversize? i bought 2 sets of std 308 rings from folks in the white triangle news and on the hudson forum. if your pistons are the pinned type they will have to have those rings. kanter sells the non pinned style pistons and rings. i think egge machine in california makes/sells pinned style rings but they are a little pricey. they have bearings on ebay all the time. and in the white triangle news. good luck and glad it's a 7x.
My dad and granddad were Hudson dealers in the 40's and 50's, so they told me a lot about the 7X engines. Dad told me of one car that came in with a 7X cam "by accident" in about '54...probably the 311040 cam. While Dad claimed that Hornets were rough on timing chains to begin with, Dad said this one would wipe out a timing chain in under 10,000 miles. One day Dad got a telegram from Hudson; they wanted him to get the car in and change out that camshaft, PRONTO! Hudson sent a replacement stock camshaft, via special delivery. As the story was told to me, Dad got the car in, and pulled the camshaft. It had a large "X" stamped into one end...which he assumed identified it as a 7X camshaft. So Dad installed the new cam that Hudson had sent...and pulled the stock cam out of the Hornet HE was driving, and sent THAT one back to Hudson. He replaced it with a stock camshaft he had on the shelf, and eventually sold the used 7X cam to a local guy who was racing then at the Salem Speedway in Salem, IN...but never told me who that might have been.
cool story! do you have any of your dads stuff from the dealership? you might want to post some pictures on the hudson board on classiccar.com if you do. also the hudson club has a book of hudson dealerships, you might want to make sure your dads dealership is listed. also someone in the club is doing another book on dealerships soon if it's not already done.
i visited my friend yesterday to see the car the floors had been repaired and it was painted some light green colour.it looked really nice.however he has a problem with the piston rings.who is the best source for rings.
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