[Vic in E-TN]

If I were producing heads I would produce what would sell. I would be leery of designing something that is mostly unproven. I posted a question yesterday about the "crows foot" design and Jim Brierly posted an answer saying that the design is better because of better flow. I can accept this at face value because of Jim's reputation.

If I were designing a completely new head it would not be for an old design flat head engine. The Riley 2 and 4 port heads and another overhead type is available for several thousand $$. I have been a passenger in a sedan with a Riley 2 Port and I can report that it is almost scary fast. At the time all I could afford was a Lion head.

With the constraints of fitting a combustion chamber to the existing block, I doubt that there are many degrees of freedom available to anyone who wants to design a new head. I think that we are much better served by someone who can replicate design that have proven themselves over past decades but are no longer available at reasonable prices.

I think that someone well versed in Model A theory and application (MikeK of the Windy City for example) would be able to think combustion chamber design through and come up with some realistic thoughts and ideas. It probably would not make economic sense to secure a patent ($$$) and produce a prototype (more $$$) and test it on a dyno (more $$$). As Brent Terry has said many times the return on investment would probably scare away almost everyone.

Vic