Dodge flatheads and 3 speeds were intalled in Bombadier track rigs till atleast 65. Had a J5 for a hunting rig in Alaska till we swapped in a Ford 200/C4.
If you don't sell it tomorrow let me know.... Maybe I'll come up with a cherry 49 0r 50 2dr to put it in
Damnit Jim, Now I gotta make a roadtrip... I'm sure the wife wouldn't mind a couple a days in Arizona...
The GM heritage archive vehicle information kit for 61 trucks shows the 261. Scroll down until your scroll finger hurts or you find the engines 1961-Chevrolet-Truck.pdf (gm.com) It also shows it for 62 63 shows 230 or 292.
I think you may have a solution in front of you! Put the flattie in your O/T Mopar. As an example, if the moderators will permit this very trad engine in an O/T vehicle, I present to you a similar combo which is bound to have the younger generations asking beaucoup questions: A flattie in a Bronco II!
I like the way you think ..... I do have this current project .... problem is, it has a flathead 6 that runs pretty decent .... The old Mopar 6's were known to be a solid motor. They never will sound like a Ford V8 with a cam & headers though. The 51 8BA came out of a truck and I have the 4 speed crash box to go with it .... it would be a simple swap. I guess picking up the 318 I'm hoping I will forget about putting the 8BA into the Dodge
I do not want to take this thread off the tracks. .... My point was we often pickup engines as they come along even though we have no immediate plans for them. ..... @squirrel mentioned he might take his to a local swap meet to find a new home. My flathead 6 runs good, compression is between 90-110 in all cylinders .... been parked for 20+ years .... it needs driven. The only advantage I would have using the 8BA is, they make me smile from ear to ear when I hear them run. I had a 51 Ford truck when I was in high school. Brings back memories. I literally pulled the 8BA out of a s**** pile. It was going in the next trip. I pulled it apart for inspection ... it was stuck. I am convinced the farmer over revved the engine and spun a bearing with low miles on it. .... He had it rebuilt, crank is turned 10 - 10, Stock bores with zero ridge .... couple of new valves, new valve springs ..... Timing chain, gears, Crank is beautiful. The fuel pump was missing. My detective brain tells me the farmer rebuilt the engine, the fuel pump went out and they pulled it off ... got busy with life and it sat for 50 years. .... you never know what you find in a s**** pile. With a good cleaning this will be a running motor again. Shows no wear, just very dirty. The 318 I am to pickup next week from a fellow hamber. All I know about it is it was running ok when pulled, the transmission was noisy in neutral ..... His wife thinks it is a eyesore sitting in front of the garage. ...... Hey it can come sit in my garage any day. Be happy to save it from the s**** yard. Who knows what the future holds for it.
I’d have to see do***entation for this. How did the government give away something that they didn’t own? Who did they allegedly give the Harley design to? Rikuo? Nope.
It was part of the government contacts issued during the war effort, part of what occupation forces did after the was rebuild the Japanese economy. The Allies (mostly the U.S.) gave the Austin design to the Japanese which became Datsun, and finally Nissan. Just as they gave the Blueflame Chevrolet 6 engine to Toyota, and the 45 Harley It's all well known to anyone who has studied history, I suggest reading any number of books about the war in the Pacific, and the occupation.
Look up the A10 and A20 Toyota automatic transmissions. Not sure what this has to do with the 261 engine, but it sort of has to do with the 235 and 230. But they were both long after the war, so I don't fully buy the war tie-in. So was the 4x4 drivetrain.
The Japanese industry was great at copying, then improving things. Not sure there was any giving involved, maybe just reverse engineering. The 50s/60s Toy six looked like a 235/261 but no parts interchange. Even the four used in early models looked like a 235 missing a couple of cylinders.
I've read a lot of history, including WWII history. The blunt reality is that the US government has no ability to give things it does not own. Licensed production of the flathead Harley (45 and 74) began in Japan in 1929. The license fees helped Harley survive the doldrums of the depression. Rikuo built them on Harley supplied tooling. They declined a Knucklehead license in 1937 and built the flathead until the end of production in 1959. The Austin design was licensed by Nissan (already the corporate name) directly from Austin in December 1952. The occupation had officially ended in April 1952. You can read about it here, the license agreement is on pp.26-31. Again, I ask you for evidence, not ***ertions, that the U.S. government gave designs 'to the Japanese.'
Yuppers I have heard that BS that the Toyota six was built off 235 plans but as he said, nothing interchanges. It's more of a case of studying something and going out and making your own version with your specs.
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