Please clear some questions I have about aftermarket flathead intakes. Can an early intake be used on a late block? The later (8BA) intakes have front ports for road draft tube and oil filler. Most people plug these and then convert the fuel pump stand in the rear to an oil filler. So to avoid plugging the later ports at the front of the intake, could I just use an earlier intake (that doesn't have the ports)? I plan to run an aftermarket 2x2 intake with heat riser, but haven't decided on which particular brand or model. I am also going to run early heads on my 8BA block, and I like the cleaner look of the earlier intakes. Any suggestions?
You can do it, but it will screw up crankcase ventilation unless you work around this by hooking up a pcv system of some sort. Otherwise you will develop leaks around low pressure joints/gaskets. Lots of creative approaches to this. I've been thinking thru this for when I put an old Thickstun on my next 8BA. One 'invisible' approach I saw involved tapping the bottom of the intake for the pcv valve, capping the 8BA chimney where it comes up from the cc and running a tube from the chimney to the pcv. Needs to be something that can slip together as you install the intake.
That should be pretty easy I'd think. The tube is just slip fit with a slight taper, right? Cut it in half and find a larger tube to slip over it, plumb it to the valve and make a minimalist bracket to hold the whole thing to the bottom of the intake so you can lower it in place and bolt it up without too much hassle. That should work?
I've seen 8BA intakes that have been plugged up front and a long filler tube installed at the rear. I assumed that the filler tube also acts as a breather. So I guess one breather is not enough for crankcase ventillation?
I run an 8ba manifold on my 59A engine. I plugged the oil filler tube and road draft tube holes with feeze plugs and I use a 59A fuel pump stand for oil filler / breather. No road draft tube, just like a stock 59A set up. Not the best ventalation system, but certainly acceptable. The main issues I found with mis-matching early/late style after-market flathead intakes and engines are generator mounting (late style usually mounts on intake, early mounts usually on cyl head) and fuel pump mounting (late style fuel pump pushrods are taller and larger in diameter than the early ones). I ended up going with an electric pump on mine.
thought I would add my 2 cents worth... on my motor I am running an early fenton intake on an 8BA. as mentioned , I am using an early fueul pump stand so I get the breather, I also did the PCV valve thing. On the riser that comes from the sump that is located at the front of the block, I just got a piece of flat plate, welded it over the top so to seal this breather tube. Then I got a piece of 3/8x3/4 bar and welded it on the side of the breather tube, drilled and tapped this and screwed and aftermarket pcv valve into it. I then drilled and tapped on of the runners on the underside of my intake and screwed a male male bronze fitting into it, added an elbow to this then a barb into the elbow, so when you look at the intake underside, you have a brass fitting comming out the botton of one of the runners that takes a sharp 90 degree bend and has a barb on it. Then I just used fuel hose between the barb and the pcv valve barb , just remember to make the tubing about 6-8" longer than needed, otherwise its a bitch to fit! I dont have any photos of that instillation but I will attach a photo of the early intake on the late motor. I will be pulling the intake off soon, so I can grab some pics then if you want??? Oh, I have about 4000mi on this configuration with no hassles that I know about flatoz
59A has draft opening (vent exit) integral with pan at bottom of tube, 8BA exit is at top of tube. To get flow on 8BA with early manifold, stick pcv through at front or back whereve fit and hook is easy and plumb to that tube, which can be done with a length of hose from PCV. PCV is in my opinion a great improvement keeping the oil clean and preventing sludge and acidic problems. Thermostat needed too--most engines, yes, even flatheads, will runn too cool much of the time without, contributing to wear and sludge in several ways. Thermostats are OEM here, by the way--all flatheads got them after about '33.
Flatoz, I think I understand the idea behind your routing, but I can't picture it. When you get around to snapping a photo of it, please let me know. No hurry. I'm just curious to see how you did it. Bruce -- same goes for your set-up. Any chance you can show me where the PCV was placed and how the hose routes? I'm surprised none of the flathead books I have discuss this. Thanks, don
not many things I will plug , but I suggest you visit www.fordbarn.com as there is a wealth on info and knowledge for all flathead people
I can't help out with your question too much haring, but here are a few other another sights you may be interested in. Very good stuff and very friendly people. http://groups.msn.com/FordFlathead1932to1953/messageboard.msnw http://www.btc-bci.com/~billben/flathead.htm Check that second link out first.
"Bruce -- same goes for your set-up. Any chance you can show me where the PCV was placed and how the hose routes?" The flatheads I have run had no PCVs, the one I am building now ('39 Merc) will--I now believe it is an essential part of the oiling system and not an evil yankee smog device. Routing and place ment depend on two things: Where can you punch through in front or rear of manifold into valley without interfering with generator placement, linkages, etc., AND where you can tap into both sets of manifold passages. Just hope those don't conflict... Right now I am working on the EASY part, a single-carb setup that will be on the engine as the start-up rig--no duals or triples until engine is sorted out. I am using a Canadian aluminum '41-8 manifold with a four bolt Lincoln 94 variant. This manifold, like many stockers, has the vac tap all set-under the area where the rear carb stud would be on a three-bolt 94 is a 3/8" pipe hole drilled into both barrels. Neatest routing would be to a hole with PCV grommet in area in front of fuel pump. Front area also possible. Most stock manifolds have either the vac hole I mention or a boss to drill it (big shallow hole for the pipe threads, two small holes within into passages), beneath rear of carb on Holley type manifolds, atop rear runners on Stromberg manifolds. Most multi carb manifolds will take more creativity to avoid a mess of separate fittings to the two runner sets. Most would take the beneath-carb approch, but with shallow threads since they won't have a dedicated boss. Red Hamiltons site discusses the alternative of mounting the valve beneath manifold with tubing to each of the two runners, but I want mine up top through a grommet so I can easily mess with it. PCV is one that has a nipple at lower end that will take about 3/8 hose, and a chunk of hose will run to the tube and far enough down to be secure against falling out. I may run it through a rubber plug big enough to seal it to the tube but probably won't. Also, PCV will remain blocked for engine's first running so any mixture problems it introduces can be dealt with after engine is known to run right. Intake will be through normal '35-48 oil filler with a paper filter replacing the old brillo pad in a can.
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