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Good Carbs And Bad Carbs

If you still have any small thought that slapping a quick kit into anold carb will be the end of it, you are deep in denial. For thatmatter, if you think that you can grab a new carb off the shelf andmake it work right, you are equally uninformed. This is important in that when

HPBG: Don

In that discussion we hashed over the disparity in coefficients of expansion between cast iron and aluminum (that caused a revolution in head gaskets around the time of the Cadillac 4.1L). We discussed surface conditions and how that affects gaskets and scrub. We discussed gasket coatings and how they remain plastic while not scrubbing and

Getting it Right

Mark Dodge, owner of Midwest Cylinder Head, can pinch a penny thin enough to see through (and maybe that keeps his businesses alive and well in poor economic times), so you can bet his choice was thoroughly researched and thought out. I wanted to see what this unit was all about and so arranged to

Flat or Tapered Cams and Flat or Crowned Lifters

It never occurred to me to even ASK whether the cam I recently had re-ground for a Buick Nailhead engine was ground with flat or tapered lobes. Like a great many others, I’d forgotten that some vintage engines had flat lobe surfaces because I’d gotten so used to everything having tapered lobes. This, unfortunately, can

Stroker Tips – Getting It All to Fit

Almost since the first production engine rolled off the line, peoplehave known that when it comes to power, it’s cubic inches or cubicdollars. In some cases both. There’s only two ways to get more cubes –bigger bore and longer stroke – so engine builders use both to get theperformance they want from the available components.

Stroker Tips – Getting It All to Fit

Almost since the first production engine rolled off the line, people have known that when it comes to power, it’s cubic inches or cubic dollars. In some cases both. There’s only two ways to get more cubes – bigger bore and longer stroke – so engine builders use both to get the performance they want

Stovebolt Chevy Engine Sealing

Machine shop staff tend to forget their capabilities. They get into a groove that works and then resist change. This not only precludes improvement, but fails to address problems with new solutions that actually work. Case in point: Leaking rear main seals on vintage engines with rope seals. The Stovebolt Chevys (inline sixes – 235

Old Iron, Times (and Technology) Change!

For the past 15 years or so I’ve abused the automotive media and the English language with series after series of vintage engine build-ups. These are opus-length ordeals that consume somewhere between 150 and 250 pages and a lot of photos aimed at doing what I can to re-discover and re-invent various vintage engines for

Old Iron, Good Carbs And Bad Carbs

Recently I’ve been inside a few carbs. I found myself first forgetting that things have changed and then developing a real nostalgia for the old days when this was a lot less difficult. If you still have any small thought that slapping a quick kit into an old carb will be the end of it,

Old Iron, To Satisfy Vintage Engine Buyers, Go The Extra Mile

Here’s the scene: You’ve just completed the machine work and assembly of a fine vintage engine. It may be for a restoration or a hot rod or a custom. You may have rattle-canned the block and heads and maybe wrapped it up in a baggie. To you, knowing that function is primary, the job is

Old Iron: Old Gaskets And Seals Won’t Stop Vintage Job Profits

It has been a long time, but I still remember – despite the snow on the roof. I had to go through a flathead Ford to try and seal it up and clean the engine for a restoration project. This was about 35 years ago. At the time I found fairly quickly that when it

Align Honing Principles

If you ever want to get scared, check out what a crank looks like at high RPM. If you’re interested, the machine to do this with is called a Spintron. What you’ll see is a large, heavy, supposedly rigid chunk of steel squirming around like crazy. You’d swear any metal walking around that much would