Cadillac Flathead Tech Contributions

[Big Fins]

Hey Prez. We can "Sticky" this thread, and it will stay up top this way.

You and Stampie have the say in that sort of thing.

I find it interesting to read and learn. I heard my first "Flattie" run, while CF and company were down here. It sounded like a beefy engine to me. Tight and crisp sounding.

Fins

[Fritz66 CLC #23106]

  Not modified, but here are some pictures of my 1939 LaSalle Convertible Flat Head Engine.  It was totally rebuilt by Shepard's Auto in Akron, Ohio.

Fred

[Restomod 40]

And trust me 50V8 as long as my 40 coupe remains unfinished I will continue to post in this thread.  All those mother-boarders act as though they have a copy of the judging standards jammed in their third point of contact when it comes to modifications.  Just put a post on there about converting to twelve volts and see what that gets you!  I have nothing to add to the "flathead tech" section right now because the flathead is working perfectly.  Now if only the rear suspension would cooperate......

[EZ]

  All those mother-boarders act as though they have a copy of the judging standards jammed in their third point of contact when it comes to modifications. 

Those mother what?    BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!  Now that's funny I don't care who ya are!   

[fiftyv8]

So finally we have got rid of the starched collars and are talking sense with folks who see my point.
Yes, I have been on the other site and I guess like all sites there are the good, the bad, and the ugly.
I got a feeling that it was definitely not the site for me.

The title of this site defined my interest and while I dont expect any special treatment, since
I dont happen to own a whole car but just the caddy power plant.

I figured that if I made a contribution others may follow, since I know there is knowledge out there and
it is getting kinder hard to find these days.

It would be nice to document some of it for other who follow this path, since there is still an interest in the engines.
Thanks to Restomod40 for his contribution as all info is of some use.
Up until recently I had never seen decent photo's of a whole complete put together engine and at one time I thought
the exhaust manifold may exit from the rear not the front as it does in real life.

Keep it coming guys and thanks for your support.

[Restomod 40]

Well I will start by saying that this site and the mother board are huge sources of information most of it useful and good.  This one just kicks it up a notch for personality.     Now on to tech help. In my particular case; the 1940 series 62 coupe #6227 in order to remove the rear axle and springs, you must first remove the gas tank and rear stabilizer bar which as far as I have been able to find isn't mentioned anywhere.  The rear stabilizer is retained with single use bolts at both ends which will only come out with the aid if a sledge hammer (weight of your choice, I chose a 5lb)  The FRONT bolts for the rear springs are also weird bolts but these are reusesable if you take care in removing them.  They have a blank face except for two 1/4 inch holes which I thought were for removing them.  Turns out they are for REINSTALLATION instead, I made a spanner tool out of steel stock which will come in handy later. I will post pictures of all of this at some point, I promise.  Most of the preceding blather was information I found as I did the work and hope that it will help others. 

[Rhino]

Just so I don't feel like I have nothing to offer I will post a piece of fairly common knowledge. There are two water outlets on the 322/346 engine. They are NOT the same size. In the case of my '38 322 engine the outlet on the same side as the water pump has a slightly smaller hole in the mounting flange than the opposite side. This is to balance the water flow, so both sides of the engine get the same flow. The smaller hole compensates for the higher pressure found on the near side of the engine. Both sides of the block heat evenly and both heads OVER heat evenly. Just kidding about the overheat. Both hoses are the same size. Both outlet tubes are the same size. I won't swear to it but I think the mounting bolts are different sizes to prevent using the wrong fitting. Different years use different tricks, or so I have been told. I only know my engine.

[born in Cadillac]

Some of you might have seen my query on the non modified forum but I would like to add it to this forum as well.
Does anyone know of any late model (light forged or hypereutetic) pistons,( and rods to match), that could be used in the flathead
346 to lighten the reciprocating mass? Also has anybody heard of anyone turbocharging a flathead caddy? The exhaust exit would
lend itself to turbo set ups very nicely. Will the bottom end be strong enough? With only a 7.5:1 compression ratio I don't think
detonation would be a problem at about 2lbs boost. I have lots more questions but I'll leave them for a later date.

Thanks in advance for any help or advice

Greg W

[Stampie]

Not sure about the late model engines and matching up but I know you can get custom pistons made for around $800 iirc.  I like the turbo idea but IMHO 2lbs of boost would be a waste.  Figure at least 7 to do anything worth while.

Stampie

[The Tassie Devil (Bruce Reynolds)]

Detonation problems are easily solved with a bit of Water Injection.

Bruce.

[born in Cadillac]

Thanks Stampie, Do you know where I can get custom pistons? Seven lbs boost sounds cool but will the bottom end handle that kind of compression ?
Water injection is definitely a possibility, Bruce, I know Oldsmobile had it back in the early sixties. Thanks again.

[STDog]

Do you know where I can get custom pistons?

contact MTS Marty and/or C.I.D Vicious (both members here).

One owns Maximum Torque Specialties and one used to own it.
Either can point you to contacts for custom pistons.

Or, call MTS directly for faster help.
http://www.mtscadparts.com/Company%20Info.htm

[Stampie]

Thanks Stampie, Do you know where I can get custom pistons? Seven lbs boost sounds cool but will the bottom end handle that kind of compression ?
Water injection is definitely a possibility, Bruce, I know Oldsmobile had it back in the early sixties. Thanks again.

7lbs is only half of atmosphere pressure.  It's really not a lot of boost when you consider normal street cars run 15 plus and race cars run 30.  Ross will do custom ... http://www.rosspistons.com/ .

Stampie

[Restomod 40]

I imagine that the bottom end would hold 7-10 lbs of boost given it had been carefully assembled with new quality fasteners.  The ford flatheads seem to run nicely with SCOT blowers on them, and they aren't as substantial in the bottom end as the 346.  Now i'm just trying to imagine what a flathead would sound like with a turbocharger....You will also want to deal with any oil supply issues before they arise.  The left bank supply line in mine went and I had to rebuild the engine.  Mine didn't have a turbo on board either.

[The Tassie Devil (Bruce Reynolds)]

Now i'm just trying to imagine what a flathead would sound like with a turbocharger....

Any engine with a Turbo Charger is dead quiet.   The turbo action kills the noise coming out.

Just imagine 4 Turbo's, with Twin Superchargers on a V16 Detroit Diesel - - - -  Well, not much noise.   More noise from the tyres than the exhaust pipes.

Bruce.