While Glen Henderson’s 337” Y was on the dyno, a variety of two inch tall carburetor spacers were tested. The results were more than interesting and re-enforces why different combinations of parts are tested. The baseline test for this was no spacer and then there were three different styles of 2” tall spacers put into place and evaluated. Continue reading “Carburetor Spacer Testing”
Tag: Y-Blk
Not A Race Engine But Maybe It Should Be – 318″ Ford Y-Block
The aluminum heads continue to impress and even more so on the engines built to be daily drivers. A case in point here is an alumi Continue reading “Not A Race Engine But Maybe It Should Be – 318″ Ford Y-Block”
Four Barrel Carburetor Testing on The Y
I recently had the opportunity to dyno test a variety of carbs on a stock ECZ-B intake. The engine itself is a sixty over 9.2:1 cr 312 that has stock (unported) G heads. The camshaft being used is a Crower Monarch grind with 238° duration at 0.050” and 0.400” lift at the valve. Advertised duration is 280°. While the camshaft is ground on 110° lobe centers, it’s installed in the engine at 2° advance or at 108° intake lobe centerline. Aftermarket 1.4:1 rockers are being used. The exhaust used for this particular test is a set of Reds (might be old Hedmans) headers running into 2” lead pipes ~4 foot long with no mufflers. The test range was 2500-5500 rpms.
The original ½” four hole spacer was used under the carbs in those instances where the carb bores were not too large for the spacer. Where the carburetor bores were too large, the spacer was changed out to either a 1” Moroso or Wilson four hole spacer with matching larger bores. The Moroso spacer had slightly larger bores than the Wilson spacer but both created a lip or shoulder within the bore where the spacer met the intake. Just another variable that must be considered.
The performance of the carbs were looked at from several different perspectives which included peak HP and torque, average HP and torque, and a calculated score. The score is derived by adding the mean (average) HP and torque together, dividing by the cubic inch of the engine, and multiplying by 1000. A score gives a better indication of the overall performance of the carb versus just looking at the individual peak values or averages.
The carburetors tested are listed in descending order from best to worst as based on their dyno test scores. Continue reading “Four Barrel Carburetor Testing on The Y”
Head Gasket Volume Calculation
Because an engine may be borderline in regards to the compression ratio when it comes to ignition timing or fuel octane requirements, it’s important that all values used in the compression ratio calculation be as accurate as possible. This includes the head gasket volume which many times isn’t stated on the package or in any reference material. For a conventional or mainstream engine where the fire ring in the head gasket is perfectly round, the hole size in the gasket can be measured and the volume calculated appropriately. But the Ford Y-Block has an irregular shape to the fire ring seal which throws special nuances into the measuring of this volume. But there’s no need for guess work when it comes to obtaining this volume value as it can be derived by doing some simple measurements on an existing head gasket and then performing a little bit of math. Continue reading “Head Gasket Volume Calculation”
Rear Camshaft Plug Installation
Rear cam plug installation on the Ford Y-Block engines dictates that it not be installed so deeply that it actually interferes or contacts the rear of the camshaft. Besides the obvious wear issue that can occur at the face of the cam plug, detrimental wear at the rear side of the cam thrust plate can become evident or in a worst case situation, the thrust plate itself can break. Continue reading “Rear Camshaft Plug Installation”
Ford Y-Block Aluminum Head Testing Part I
The much awaited for Mummert aluminum cylinder heads for the 292/312 Ford Y-Block engines are now a reality and have been tested on the DTS engine dynamometer. With no modifications these new heads were found to be worth a solid 56 horsepower increase over the stock “G’ heads with only the heads being swapped out on the test engine. Continue reading “Ford Y-Block Aluminum Head Testing Part I”
Ford Y-Block Aluminum Head Testing Part II
With the aluminum versus iron cylinder head baseline dyno testing completed, there were some other variables that were begging to be evaluated before removing the Mummert aluminum heads from the Ford 312 Y-Block test engine. These included increased ratio rocker arms and a variety of intake manifolds and/or carburetion setups. Continue reading “Ford Y-Block Aluminum Head Testing Part II”
Preparing a 375 inch Y-Block Ford for the 2009 EMC Competition.
By the time this is published, the 2009 Engine Masters Challenge (EMC) will be history and the final results very likely posted all over the internet. Because this is being written as the engine is still being tested and before the competition takes place, I’ll do a followup article on the actual competition and what took place there. But in the meantime, here’s the short version of what was involved to get a Ford Y-Block engine readied for the EMC competition. Continue reading “Preparing a 375 inch Y-Block Ford for the 2009 EMC Competition.”
Spark Plug Side Gapping
Included on that list of old racers tuning tricks is spark plug side gapping. What’s being discussed here is not a true side gapped spark plug but a gapping procedure or electrode modification that allows the spark to actually fire off of the very edge or ‘side’ of the spark plug’s ground electrode. In lieu of a better description, this gapping process will simply continue to be called ‘side gapping’. Side gapping is performed even though the end result may not be measurable but a logical thought process will maintain that doing this will not be detrimental to efficiency or performance and in fact, should help it. Continue reading “Spark Plug Side Gapping”
Neoprene Rear Seal Installation for the Y (and others)
Y-Blocks would appear to have garnered a reputation for marking their territory when sitting still and so one of the most often asked questions is how to stop those pesky oil leaks at the rear of the engine. Because most of these are in the area of the rear main oil seal, I’ll go through the steps I take to insure that the back end of the engine is buttoned up securely during the rebuild thereby minimizing any oil leaks from this area. Because I use the rubber or neoprene rear main seals exclusively in those Y buildups that I do, I’ll only go into detail on using these seals and not the ‘rope’ style of seal. While neoprene seals are available from several gasket manufacturers for the 272/292 engines, only Best Gasket offers a made to fit neoprene rear seal for the larger mained 312 engine. Continue reading “Neoprene Rear Seal Installation for the Y (and others)”