Customs taildragger motors? what was common?

I've been searching a lot lately on taildraggers from the 30's and 40's and as bad *** as most of them are they really dont go into detail on what powers them. Obviously the goal of a taildragger was the looks but i was wondering what was a common engine or swap or did they just use stock and dress it up a little?

 

The engines are/were not mentioned because most of them were stock, or very mildly warmed over. Common engine swaps in the late 40searly50s would have been a stock olds/cad in place of a flattie, or stovebolt.
Milled heads and a couple of carbs would have been a big deal in the 30s-40s for a taildragger in most cases. Not to say that guys didn't have built motors in some cars, but most taildraggers/customs were not 'hot rods'.

 

thanks, that is pretty much what i was thinking. I know a commom merc swap is the cadillac for the '49-'51s but im new to the "taildragger" era so didn't know what was traditional. As i stated i figured the cars were more about the look then the engine, as it was just something that moved it.