8BA.......Who runs a regular old Loadamatic?

L

leon bee

Well-known member
I've been googling and saving a bunch of articles to study late at night. Here's the thing, by the time I get to the ignition on my completely, (to be) rebuilt 8BA for my 50 coupe, well I can anticipate the budget is gonna be stretched. This engine, my first flathead is going back bone stock except for the needed .040 overbore and adjustable lifters. My project came with two decent looking distributors and the appropriate original carb.

And, I just like to make old original stuff work. Will I be able to get the car running pretty well? Or was that setup really doggy? I've never had a distributor without centrifugal advance before. Any advice- Thanks!!
 
I ran one for 30 years on my '51 before I put the modified Merc engine in it. I gave it a major tuneup (plugs, points, condenser, cap, and rotor) when I got it in '87. It ran flawlessly for almost 30 years and 17,000 miles without being touched. They get a bad rap, probably because just about every one out there is old and neglected.
 
If you have seen (and heard) my all stock 52 Merc running in my videos I think that says a lot about the reliability of the stock distributor on them. This one sat in the woods since the early 1980s and needed no more than running some newspaper through the points to clean off the oxidation. Starts and runs great and I have no plans of changing it.
 
If you have read my book you will have seen that a change from the stock distributor to a Mallory, on an otherwise stock engine, made for some interesting tuning challenges in order to regain the power lost when the Mallory was installed.
 
It got me the whole 8100 miles on my last trip in my stock 49. The only reason I am running a pertronix is because I could not get reliable condensers. My MPG for the whole trip was 18.8. Getting the advance curve right is the key. I had one that was sluggish. Turned out to have the wrong vacuum can on it.
 
Be sure you run the correct distributor with the correct front cover. One has a pilot on the end, the other does not. I prefer the one with the pilot on the end.
 
The stock engines don't need a lot of advance overall and they don't need real rapid response to function correctly so the Load-O-Matic is fine for stock engines and is a package with the stock Holley carburetor since that is what controls it.

When a person starts making changes in carburation, compression, or cam shafts then the needs of the engine change too.
 
I have run the stock distributer and Carb in my 53 for 20 years and 60000 miles. I run 18 to 19 mpg. As long as I leave the car stock I see no reason to change.
 
When I put the 49merc in the 1-1/2ton truck I set the dist on the dist machine to specs, got 15-18 mpg with 2 ton loaded, good power, was driven to California in 4 days averaging 15 mpg, driven fast as it would go

Spent some time getting it exactly correct for each vacuum setting
 
Thanks a lot, guys. That's good to hear and I'll plan on using what I got for this engine. And I'll keep reading and learning.
 
Be sure you use the correct vacuum source for the distributor. There is a tap on the carb that gets vacuum above the throttle plate. Raw intake manifold vacuum will not work.To be sure the springs are working, have the unit run up on a distributor machine.
 
The original steel line from carb to distributor had a bend in it like a sink trap to help keep gasoline from getting to the diaphragm and rotting it out.
 
I've found that they work fine if in good condition and connected up right. Especially in the economy mode. AS a daily driver I don't think you can get a better ignition system. However, at WOT they seem to fall short of the optimum advance numbers. Also it doesn't work well with engine modifications. Somebody should run a series of tests to determine the actuall Facts.
 
If you have any problems with it, send it to "Bubba" and he can whip it into shape. If you need one to run in the interim, I have the original from my '51 just sitting on the shelf and I could send it to you for the duration. I think it'll fit in a Priority Mail Large Box, so shipping would only be $18.85 (the box is free!).
 
I have a stock carb and distributor on my 8ba in my 47 2 ton. Couldn't run better. Speaking of which, Kurt is there someplace to read about your trip to California? Sounds wild. Started in NJ ???
 
tubman said:
If you have any problems with it, send it to "Bubba" and he can whip it into shape. If you need one to run in the interim, I have the original from my '51 just sitting on the shelf and I could send it to you for the duration. I think it'll fit in a Priority Mail Large Box, so shipping would only be $18.85 (the box is free!).
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Tubman: You are a prince among men, (as they used to say). But I'm quite a ways from needing ignition. Got plenty to do, won't have the engine for months.

Everybody else: I'm glad I asked about this. You can read all night, but not find answers as clear as this.
 
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