The Ford Barn

cobratwo · 03-01-2015, 10:26 PM

hello forum. as you can see i am new to this forum and i am looking for some expert advice on a project i acquired from my father in-law. first off i am a complete novice when it comes to what combinations of parts work and don't on these ford flatheads. to the best of my knowledge this a 49 to 53 255 block bored 60 over. it has 8ba heads which are not the original heads, a mercury 4 bolt carb flange intake with a stomberg model ww 2 barrel carb. the dist. is ford motor co. vacuum only with a pertronics ignitor kit. autolite 216 plugs with a yellow top 70's era coil. this engine is basically stock except for the after market headers dual exhaust and converted to 12 volt. now for my problems, first i can not seem to get the vacuum advance to work properly as in it comes in to fast and advances way to far. i installed heavier springs with no luck and as for advancing to far i have yet to figure out how to limit it. i have read that most carbs do not have the correct ports for this kind of dist. is there any way to modify the stromberg ww 2 carb so the vacuum advance will work properly?
i have read about the GM dist swap which sounds really trick but my funds are extremely limited and that is why for me the DIY approach is my way.
any advice is certainly appreciated...

scooder · 03-02-2015, 02:40 AM

The advance should be limited by the slots in the advance plate where the pins stick through for the springs to anchor on.
The loadamatic ignition will never work correctly without the correct carb. The vacuum port on the correct carb is a mix of throttle plate and venturi vacuum signal. Not the same as ported or timed vacuum. It's a much weaker signal.
Guessing your vacuum line from the ignition goes to manifold vacuum, judging by the fact it comes in to fast.
No you can't really modify a wrong carb to work with this ignition easily, maybe not at all.
Your real options are, get the correct type of carb or change the ignition.
Martin.

36tbird · 03-02-2015, 09:34 AM

Dos Snake, may I suggest that you put your geographic locale with your avatar info and maybe you will have someone near you offer some help.

For vacuum I have drilled into the manifold and installed a fitting or I have used the carb plate for the Southwind heater. You can get the Bubba Chevy dizzy with just mechanical advance and it works well. Vacuum advance may be added later in order to enhance performance and mileage.

cobratwo · 03-02-2015, 09:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scooder

The advance should be limited by the slots in the advance plate where the pins stick through for the springs to anchor on.
The loadamatic ignition will never work correctly without the correct carb. The vacuum port on the correct carb is a mix of throttle plate and venturi vacuum signal. Not the same as ported or timed vacuum. It's a much weaker signal.
Guessing your vacuum line from the ignition goes to manifold vacuum, judging by the fact it comes in to fast.
No you can't really modify a wrong carb to work with this ignition easily, maybe not at all.
Your real options are, get the correct type of carb or change the ignition.
Martin.

thanks for the advice martin, i thought maybe, just maybe someone out there might have found a way to modify a carb to work with the loadamatic dizzy. as for the advance limit both pins are there but at max vacuum advance i hit more than 30 degrees on the crank. i guess i have one of two options, new dizzy or new carb

Bruce Lancaster · 03-02-2015, 09:44 PM

I think you must have it hooked to either ported vac or manifold vac, since your carb doesn't have the split feed from venturi and ported. This means lots of advance until engine is pulling hard, at which point you have no advance at all or close to that...
Even with right carb this system is weak. Replace the distributor with one that has centrifugal advance and if possible normal type vac to supplement that so you get full power at part throttle too.

Tinker · 03-02-2015, 09:55 PM

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

Really sounds like you know more then the average bear... I would echo the previous post and suggest the same. Not from years of experience but from hundreds of posts asking the same question. One experience I have gladly had is with a certain member that does a fine job fixing your situation... Jim.

Ol' Ron · 03-02-2015, 11:21 PM

Disconnect the vacuum, put a chalk mark 3/4 of amn inch to the right of the dot on the crank pulley. start engine, set dist on chalk maark. Go for a drive. Probablu work pretty good you'll have to spin the engine before turning on the ignition. Might be able to add alittle more. Now you have two optionsput the right carb on or buy a dist from somebody.

cobratwo · 03-03-2015, 03:44 PM

after reading all the posts and researching more flathead sites i believe i am going with the dizzy replacement. i have read a article about using a GM dual point mallory and having it machined to fit the flathead. the dizzy they used had mechanical advance but NO vacuum advance. my preference would be to have both mechanical and vacuum so i guess ill be getting a point style GM dizzy and have it machined and install a pertronix ignitor and go from there. thanks to everyone for taking the time to help out a flathead beginner!

03-01-2015, 10:26 PM	#1
cobratwo Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: lebanon PA Posts: 3	my first flathead project need some advice hello forum. as you can see i am new to this forum and i am looking for some expert advice on a project i acquired from my father in-law. first off i am a complete novice when it comes to what combinations of parts work and don't on these ford flatheads. to the best of my knowledge this a 49 to 53 255 block bored 60 over. it has 8ba heads which are not the original heads, a mercury 4 bolt carb flange intake with a stomberg model ww 2 barrel carb. the dist. is ford motor co. vacuum only with a pertronics ignitor kit. autolite 216 plugs with a yellow top 70's era coil. this engine is basically stock except for the after market headers dual exhaust and converted to 12 volt. now for my problems, first i can not seem to get the vacuum advance to work properly as in it comes in to fast and advances way to far. i installed heavier springs with no luck and as for advancing to far i have yet to figure out how to limit it. i have read that most carbs do not have the correct ports for this kind of dist. is there any way to modify the stromberg ww 2 carb so the vacuum advance will work properly? i have read about the GM dist swap which sounds really trick but my funds are extremely limited and that is why for me the DIY approach is my way. any advice is certainly appreciated...

03-02-2015, 02:40 AM	#2
scooder Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Posts: 2,597	Re: my first flathead project need some advice The advance should be limited by the slots in the advance plate where the pins stick through for the springs to anchor on. The loadamatic ignition will never work correctly without the correct carb. The vacuum port on the correct carb is a mix of throttle plate and venturi vacuum signal. Not the same as ported or timed vacuum. It's a much weaker signal. Guessing your vacuum line from the ignition goes to manifold vacuum, judging by the fact it comes in to fast. No you can't really modify a wrong carb to work with this ignition easily, maybe not at all. Your real options are, get the correct type of carb or change the ignition. Martin.

03-02-2015, 09:34 AM	#3
36tbird Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: nw SanAntonio, TX Posts: 940	Re: my first flathead project need some advice Dos Snake, may I suggest that you put your geographic locale with your avatar info and maybe you will have someone near you offer some help. For vacuum I have drilled into the manifold and installed a fitting or I have used the carb plate for the Southwind heater. You can get the Bubba Chevy dizzy with just mechanical advance and it works well. Vacuum advance may be added later in order to enhance performance and mileage.

03-02-2015, 09:44 PM	#5
Bruce Lancaster Member Emeritus Join Date: May 2010 Location: Madison, NJ Posts: 5,230	Re: my first flathead project need some advice I think you must have it hooked to either ported vac or manifold vac, since your carb doesn't have the split feed from venturi and ported. This means lots of advance until engine is pulling hard, at which point you have no advance at all or close to that... Even with right carb this system is weak. Replace the distributor with one that has centrifugal advance and if possible normal type vac to supplement that so you get full power at part throttle too.

03-02-2015, 09:55 PM	#6
Tinker Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: MN Posts: 7,063	Re: my first flathead project need some advice Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements) Really sounds like you know more then the average bear... I would echo the previous post and suggest the same. Not from years of experience but from hundreds of posts asking the same question. One experience I have gladly had is with a certain member that does a fine job fixing your situation... Jim.

03-02-2015, 11:21 PM	#7
Ol' Ron Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Chester Vt Posts: 8,985	Re: my first flathead project need some advice Disconnect the vacuum, put a chalk mark 3/4 of amn inch to the right of the dot on the crank pulley. start engine, set dist on chalk maark. Go for a drive. Probablu work pretty good you'll have to spin the engine before turning on the ignition. Might be able to add alittle more. Now you have two optionsput the right carb on or buy a dist from somebody.

03-03-2015, 03:44 PM	#8
cobratwo Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: lebanon PA Posts: 3	Re: my first flathead project need some advice after reading all the posts and researching more flathead sites i believe i am going with the dizzy replacement. i have read a article about using a GM dual point mallory and having it machined to fit the flathead. the dizzy they used had mechanical advance but NO vacuum advance. my preference would be to have both mechanical and vacuum so i guess ill be getting a point style GM dizzy and have it machined and install a pertronix ignitor and go from there. thanks to everyone for taking the time to help out a flathead beginner!