Looking for some info -advice on putting a supercharger on my 40 merc flathead as I know nothing about them, just they are expensive &cool looking . in the stage of getting my motor parts , as my block is checked ,all is good. all I have so far is pistons&rings from egge. as I may just get the motor done to accept one later on ??? so I asks all the expects here for advise &and direction . so what all should be done an what do I need for parts first to get the job done rite the first time ?not looking to do wheel stands or go racing just want to enjoy another flathead........ thanks a bunch.
We have three flathead cars. Have another engine in the shop that's a builder. Would like to do something special. Maybe a turbo like the one we just got for our OT 90 Chevy. Or maybe an affordable supercharger from some domestic or import? The classic could be a S.C.O.T. original or repop. But not many can afford that. Keep us posted we are on the same quest....
I know practically nothing about installing blowers but I believe the HO Mustangs came with a version in their stock form. Perhaps one of those could be modified, or not.
If you are seriously considering a supercharger, either now or later, you should use some forged pistons. That's just my .02 which may or may not be worth that.
Call Mike Herman at H&H Flatheads. He has the new SCOT blowers as well as 4-71 GMC set ups. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
When I was learning about the French block I picked up, I understand guys use the French blocks for huffers because they are relieved in the valve area.
joe abbin of roadrunner engineering has a couple of great books out on the subject. he sells blower setups, too.
Do the research before spending the money. Blowers can and do get expensive fast, and even more so when you put the wrong parts together and stuff starts breaking. Dan C is right on. Start with Joe Abbin's books, and then move on to his kits.
Been running one of Joe's kits for about 15 years now and still runs strong can't say enough good things about Joe and his company, great person to do business with....... over 30k miles on her still kickin strong.....
The big temptation is to use too much boost. As long as you don't go over 5 or 6 pounds there is very little worry about overstressing internal parts. Go over that and you have to think about heavy duty rods, pistons, bearings, valves, etc. This goes for every engine not just a flathead. The good news is 5 pounds boost will give you about 1/3 more HP without lousing up drivability. Long stroke, low compression flathead engines take well to supercharging especially the centrifugal kind. They are the simplest, they take less power to drive, and work well on a stock engine. The classic is the McCulloch VS57 which was originally developed on flathead Fords. The modern version is the Paxton which is nearly the same but smaller and simpler. Lots of them were used on Mustangs and Camaros and used ones turn up regularly. If you don't mind shelling out the money a new one is about $2000. Used ones $200 - $500.
Tinkering with this idea myself. Hope to try this out shortly. As others have said, Joe Abbin is a great resource. Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
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