Quote:
Originally Posted by tubman
Now that you mention carbs and ignition, I like a small base Rochester 2G on a matched Merc manifold on a car with a hood. If I ever had a larger engine, I might try a 4 BBL (I had a 276" Merc in a '36 coupe 25 years ago that had a 390 Holley that ran well). These days though, I'd use a WCFB or a small base 4G for "the look". For a car without a hood, I am using a "Super" type of manifold (wide-spaced carbs) and two Stromberg 97's.
As far as "looks" go, I don't think anything says "old flathead" more than a vintage "flattop" Mallory, and they run well, too. I also like Fenton cast iron headers for their sound and longevity. "The looks" are OK as well. However, for the "Hot Rod" I am building, I'm going with a set of "Lakes Headers" with caps and undercar exhaust, again, for "the look".
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I think we need to define what "old flathead" means. A Mallory flattop does look cool and old, but you can't deny it gives a motor a '50's vibe since this is when they were offered.
If a builder is trying to stick to a certain time period, you do need to be mindful of things like this. If one is trying to build a car with a '40's era vibe, using a flat top Mallory or an 8BA motor with 8BA style heads, does throw things off a bit.
In the end, the builder needs to decide if all of these little details matter. To some, they scour swap meets to find just the right part to make sure that it does. Others, it does not matter a lick.
To answer Ron's question, when it came to pistons, I chose Ross with Total Seal rings.
Reason: It took 4 blocks to find a good one. It is a 59L and was already out to 3 3/8ths. Was hoping to would go to +.010 over, but it took +.030" to get them there.
Sonic testing revealed walls were still plenty thick. The decision to go with Total Seal rings was in an effort to reduce drag as much as possible in order to prolong the bore life for as long as possible.
Time will tell if this was a wise choice.