Author Topic: Fordillac V-8 engine running, finally  (Read 8884 times)

Offline metalmad

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Re: Fordillac V-8 engine running, finally
« Reply #30 on: April 18, 2018, 10:00:50 AM »
Happy Birthday George
Your an inspiration, Congrats on the runner!
Metalmad
A little bit every day, sometimes the same little bit

Offline Corrad

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Re: Fordillac V-8 engine running, finally
« Reply #31 on: April 23, 2018, 12:05:53 PM »
Beautifully build. Congratulations!

Offline gbritnell

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Re: Fordillac V-8 engine running, finally
« Reply #32 on: June 19, 2018, 08:43:02 PM »
Gentlemen,
I'd like to post an update on the flathead engine.
Having finally sorted out the engine to the point where it runs well I wanted to go back to the original designed dual carb setup. The manifold looks like a dual plane type but is actually a single plane (all the cylinders get fed from the same main runner). When I designed and machined the dual carb manifold I made it so the front four cylinders would run on the front carb and the rear four on the back carb. An island of metal was left in the main runner to divide the two sections. Individual patches were made and fitted to both halves.
I experimented with the single carb setup that I currently have installed to adjust the air bleed hole size so that the engine would idle and accelerate without having to adjust the main needle valve. Currently I have to richen the needle ever so slightly to get the engine to rev up. When going back to idle I needed to close the needle to it's original position because the engine would go rich and start spitting gas from the exhaust.
I removed the carb multiple times and kept drilling the air bleed hole each time in one size drill increments. While setting up to drill I did the other carb at the same time. I finally got to the point where the engine would idle and accelerate without adjustment so I figured it was time to go back to the dual carb setup. I removed the carb and the single carb adapter that I had made and installed both carbs. I had to remove the needle valve from each carb and swap them carb for carb. The reason for this is because the original fuel configuration had the fuel spigots pointing toward each other to share a common fuel line. Ok so you ask why not just use the front carb with the spigot facing the rear for the single carb setup? Well that carb didn't have the idle adjustment lever machined onto the throttle barrel and they were made and fitted to each carb.
So now I have everything assembled, carbs, fuel lines and linkage, it's time to start the engine. I started with the needle valves close and as I cranked the engine over I slowly opened one carb until the engine responded. I continued to crank the engine and opened the second carb needle valve until I could see that all four cylinders were operating. I adjusted the idle screw to where the engine would keep running and proceeded to adjust each needle valve to where the engine seemed to be running clean. Once the engine had a little heat in it I tried opening the throttle but the engine died.
I then opened the needles a touch and cranked the engine over again. It fired up and would rev up but the idle was way to rich. I thought I had this part sorted out when I was experimenting with the single carb but apparently going to the dual carbs presented a new set of parameters.
I must have played with the engine for almost three hours, giving it time to cool a little between runs but finally got frustrated and called it a day.
The next day I tried to decide what my options were. I really liked the original dual carb setup but without more experimentation I knew it wasn't going to work properly. I could take the manifold off and cut the island out so that one carb could be used and the other would be blocked off with a gasket but then I couldn't go back to the true dual carb manifold without major work.
For the time being I decided to make a whole new single carb manifold and save the original for winter experimentation.
I have never built an engine with dual carbs so this was a first and I learned some new lessons. As with most engines the building is the easy part, if you want to call it easy, but getting them to run as intended is sometimes as much work as building.
Attached are some pictures of the new single carb manifold fresh from machining. Now I have the better part of two days smoothing all the steps off and rounding all the corners.
Talent unshared is talent wasted.

Offline b.lindsey

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Re: Fordillac V-8 engine running, finally
« Reply #33 on: June 19, 2018, 09:18:33 PM »
George, with your tenacity, I have no doubt that you will get it sorted out with the single carb for now and eventually the dual carbs as well. That new manifold is quite complex but sure looks good.

Bill

Offline 90LX_Notch

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Re: Fordillac V-8 engine running, finally
« Reply #34 on: June 19, 2018, 11:37:50 PM »
A very inspirational piece of machining George.

-Bob
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My Engine Videos on YouTube-
http://www.youtube.com/user/Notch90usa/videos

Offline gbritnell

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Re: Fordillac V-8 engine running, finally
« Reply #35 on: June 21, 2018, 02:04:10 AM »
The intake manifold is burred, filed and polished. Now I have to take the engine apart and mount it. At least it will look better than the dual carb manifold with only one carb.
gbritnell
Talent unshared is talent wasted.

Offline b.lindsey

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Re: Fordillac V-8 engine running, finally
« Reply #36 on: June 21, 2018, 02:18:59 AM »
Beautiful George. All the more impressive in it's finished state!!!

Bill

Offline Roger B

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Re: Fordillac V-8 engine running, finally
« Reply #37 on: July 10, 2018, 11:00:05 AM »
In the full size world carbs tend to run richer under pulsed flow but I wouldn't have thought that the difference between 4 and 8 cylinder would be that great  :headscratch: Twin carbs on a four cylinder engine usually have a small bore balance pipe between the two manifold halves to improve idling.
Best regards

Roger

Offline steamer

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Re: Fordillac V-8 engine running, finally
« Reply #38 on: July 10, 2018, 12:20:07 PM »
Thanks for sharing that George!   A flat 12 is sounding a bit scary   :zap:


Dave
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Damned ijjit!

Offline gbritnell

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Re: Fordillac V-8 engine running, finally
« Reply #39 on: October 09, 2018, 03:44:26 PM »
Bump for Don.
Talent unshared is talent wasted.

Offline Don1966

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Re: Fordillac V-8 engine running, finally
« Reply #40 on: October 09, 2018, 04:02:04 PM »
George thanks for reposting this because I had somehow missed it. Awesome job George and an inspiration for us all as to how you stuck to it till you had found all the bugs and finally finished it. Your persistence to achieve results is an inspiration to me and all. A true craftsman at his best you will always be my hero. Thanks again my friend and it had been a real pleasure to have met you...did I say .....I.......like......  :Love:


 :drinking-41:
Don

 

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