'53 Merc. flathead into a '40 frame

[forte]

The '53 Mercury flathead with '40 trans. sits in the frame fine. The issue = the fan will be hitting the radiator big time. I am sure this has been done neatly, but what exactly has been done is my question. Shorten the fan shaft is the first guess. What is the minimum distance between the fan and radiator. Dad says 2" That seems impossible. We prefer to use the '40 radiator but have a '53 F100 rad. as well. Perhaps a past post direction.

[Charlie ny]

forte,
I adapted the '40 crank pulley/fan mount to the 8BA crank. Basically shortened
the mount. It is a neat end product but some what involved since the timing marks

must be re-established. Another method is to weld a plate onto the 8BA crank pulley,
establish the center line and drill and tap mounting holes for the fan, best of the two methods IMHO .I also use a fan shroud which makes all difference...Walker/Speedway for a '40 Ford.
Charlie ny

Charlie ny

[19Fordy]

Another point.
Look at the front of the top frame where the radiator bolts into. I think there are two additional holes that will allow you to move the radiator forward a small amount What type of water pumps/motor mounts are you using? Have you seen this?
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/...coupe.1060915/

Post photos if you can.

[MuskegonFlatheadFan]

[QUOTE=Charlie ny;177372
Another method is to weld a plate onto the 8BA crank pulley,
establish the center line and drill and tap mounting holes for the fan, best of the two methods IMHO
Charlie ny[/QUOTE]
I also did this. But also added an electric pusher fan. The electric fan is rarely used, only when I get stuck I traffic.

[blucar]

Originally Posted by forte

The '53 Mercury flathead with '40 trans. sits in the frame fine. The issue = the fan will be hitting the radiator big time. I am sure this has been done neatly, but what exactly has been done is my question. Shorten the fan shaft is the first guess. What is the minimum distance between the fan and radiator. Dad says 2" That seems impossible. We prefer to use the '40 radiator but have a '53 F100 rad. as well. Perhaps a past post direction.

Did you use '49-50 Merc or Ford truck pumps to adapt the 8BA engine into the earlier chassis?

[19Fordy]

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

blucar brings up an excellent point. Bob Drake makes an excellent fan hub replacement if you are using truck pumps. I made a similar part 20 years ago before Drake made his repro. Wish he had made it sooner. You want your fan to be high enough so that it cools efficiently but does not cut into the upper or lower radiator hoses. The distance of my fan from the rad is 1 7/8 in.
https://www.bobdrake.com/FordItem.aspx?Item=21A-8600-K
Remember, the top water inlets are smaller dia, than the stock 40 radiator.

[forte]

Thank you everyone for the information. Lots to read thru. Our merc. motor came out of a '53 F100. We did attach the '40 transmission. We did nothing to the pumps. It slipped right in lined right up with torque tube and motor mount holes. I like the idea of moving the rad. forward. I have a 8BA and 2 EAB motors and will inspect the pulley system as advised. I feel better and will post end result when its accomplished.

[blucar]

I have installed 8BA style of engines into many early Ford V8's, generally '36 and later.
Several of my friends have done likewise. The engine swap was always done using '49-50 Merc pumps and motor mount spacers... See attached pix of an 8BA engine in my friends '37 pickup.
I know the original location of the '40 fan, mounted to the crankshaft could add some additional problems, but the proper location of the engine should solve most of the problems.

[tubman]

If you're using Merc pumps (not truck), please take note of the spacers mentioned in the previous post.

[V8 Bob]

Originally Posted by forte

Thank you everyone for the information. Lots to read thru. Our merc. motor came out of a '53 F100. We did attach the '40 transmission. We did nothing to the pumps. It slipped right in lined right up with torque tube and motor mount holes. I like the idea of moving the rad. forward. I have a 8BA and 2 EAB motors and will inspect the pulley system as advised. I feel better and will post end result when its accomplished.

The '53 truck pumps are the same as '49 Ford car and would not bolt up to an early Ford without some fab work. The '53 trucks used a front engine mount bolted to the block, not the pumps. Possible your engine had '48-'52 truck pumps installed?

[V8 Bob]

Originally Posted by blucar

I have installed 8BA style of engines into many early Ford V8's, generally '36 and later.
Several of my friends have done likewise. The engine swap was always done using '49-50 Merc pumps and motor mount spacers... See attached pix of an 8BA engine in my friends '37 pickup.
I know the original location of the '40 fan, mounted to the crankshaft could add some additional problems, but the proper location of the engine should solve most of the problems.

JFYI, '49 Mercury pumps use a single 5/8" wide belt, while the '50-'51 Merc pumps are offset and use two narrow 3/8" belts.

[Pete]

I put an 8ba block in a 40 about 40 years ago where the owner wanted it to look as much stock as possible. I blocked the 2 holes in the deck and used stock early iron heads, used all the original front bolt on stuff. (cover, pumps, ignition etc.) machined the nose of a 4 inch Merc crank to take the original fan hub and modified the draft tube to work with the early manifold. He showed it a couple times before one of the judges noticed the tin bell housing.