block releiving

Glycol coolant was offered in the 1931 Ford service bulletins
The holes in the casting are somewhat dictated by the casting process the coolant holes in a head gasket are dictated by coolant flow needs
 
Another potential reason is that by the early 50's, the cars were becoming much heavier, more accessories were available, automatic trans were being used and our little ole' flathead was being worked a lot harder. This caused more heat-soak issues - especially toward the back of the engine.

I've heard that Ford was attempting to move more coolant through the engine and out the back of the block . . . to help the overall situation. I've heard that from a few folks - though it could just be another "flathead myth"! LOL
 
Bored&Stroked said:
Another potential reason is that by the early 50's, the cars were becoming much heavier, more accessories were available, automatic trans were being used and our little ole' flathead was being worked a lot harder. This caused more heat-soak issues - especially toward the back of the engine.

I've heard that Ford was attempting to move more coolant through the engine and out the back of the block . . . to help the overall situation. I've heard that from a few folks - though it could just be another "flathead myth"! LOL
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Cam grinder Pete use to say that the same about the reason for the change in 8BA block's coolant holes.

Totally unrelated and not intended to derail this thread. I know I have the information somewhere. When you put pre-8BA heads on a 8BA-style block, beside the few holes you need to plug, do you use the 8BA head gaskets or pre-8BA?
 
When it comes to water hole sizes in head gaskets there's one thing I learned a long time ago when it comes to the Ford flathead V-8. Tiny transfer water holes absolutely add to the super heating of the coolant in the areas of the exhaust passages in the block.
As Tim points out many of the older flathead head gaskets produced always had larger holes in the critical areas needed to reduce this super heating issue.
Current production gaskets being sold today have from four to six areas that are to small to adequately allow coolant to flow from the block to the head and thus to the radiator for the proper cooling.
Any thought that larger correct size transfer holes are not a good thing is foolish the proper control of the coolant is the thermostat. To each their own but for me and the many who have learned from what I have discovered all enjoy a cool running flathead be it stock or highly modified. It works for sure.
Ronnieroadster
 
Best Gaskets...they "think" it was to let the water stay in the block to absorb the heat before moving into the head and out to the radiator. I "think" that is the function of the adjustable thermostat opening and not some fixed head gasket opening.
Cometic ....no idea. But they can make a custom set (probably $$$) if I provide them a template. If I went that route, I'd hand deliver my new Offie .425 heads and let them make the template that included conforming to the shape of the combustion chamber, as they are only about 1hr and 20 minutes away.
Offenhauser...same guess as Best gaskets, but they provided me with a source (Fitzgerald Gaskets) that they recall had the 3 large openings at the firewall end of the gasket. Still searching for their website: Fitzgerald Manufacturing Co. in CT.
H&H....waiting for an email back.
All Ford Parts...sending me some pics of head gaskets that have different sized water jacket openings (no pics on their website).
Note: there are some slight differences in the head water jacket openings size and shape between the Edelbrock 1116 heads and Offenhauser 1069 - 400 heads. They are slight, but not as dramatic as the head gaskets.
I'm just surprised a 13 year flathead newbie (me) is asking this question for an 8BA block 75 years old. But then, when I was an architect (retired now) I was always a bit anal when it came to details.
 
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This is all good stuff to know. Thanks for doing the research and providing the results. I, too, got much more attentive to details (in my case "squish" measurements and spark plug location and fit) the older I got (with the increasing time and money available). The Offenhauser heads I used on my first flathead were a "bolt on and go" affair. The last three sets of Edmunds heads have been individually fitted to each engine. The results have been superior.

Keep up the good work.
 
Overall the answers you received to the question you asked is what I would expect.
H&H will not have an answer as well they simply buy what's available sell them to customers and also install them on the engine's they build.
Ronnieroadster
 
Found a head gasket with the 3 large openings at the firewall end of the head. Once "All Ford Parts" gets back to me on the manufacturer, I'll contact the mfr to see about getting the head gasket to also to mate up to the perimeter of the aftermarket head chamber. My theory is a smoother air flow for intake and exhaust. The .050" gap that the head gasket doesn't fill could interrupt the air flow. I know, I know, too picky. Look at the head gasket overlay of the head in the 2nd pic I appreciatively cribbed from another post. The 3rd pic is of the Offy heads showing the water jacket sizes. When dealing with around 200 hp, every little bit helps.
 

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Reminder the head gasket must follow the shape of the blocks surface not the shape of the head casting. When matching the area of your concern on the head to the block the area on the Offy heads and other brands of heads with similar shapes will be reduced a lot. But will it help make more power? Good luck.
Ronnieroadster
 
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Sorry, I was assuming the relieving of the block would match the combustion chamber outline of the particular head selected, especially at the transition between the valve area and the cylinder bore area, thus having the gasket extend to that line (the same concept of port matching on intakes), resulting in smoother airflow.
 
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When a block is relived the line followed for this operation is the outline scribed from the fire ring of the head gasket. When you look at this line you now see how to improve the flow. To help even more you can now do this same outline on the surface of the head. then carefully remove the head material so that there's a gentle radius in the corners. The material removed from the head is actually in the way of the flow.
In effect its similar to port matching intakes BUT its a lot harder to do especially on the heads.
Ronnieroadster
 
The head gasket that had the 3 large water jackets at the back side found at "All Ford Parts" was NOS with no label or tag on it. The pair were sitting the shelf collecting dust. Argh!
 
If you are concerned about relieving a flathead, you are really concerned about breathing. I just ran across this article when I was cleaning out my computer. If you haven't seen it before, it's an interesting read. It puts most of the improvement in the head rather than the block and was quite effective when guys actually raced these things.
 

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tubman said:
If you are concerned about relieving a flathead, you are really concerned about breathing. I just ran across this article when I was cleaning out my computer. If you haven't seen it before, it's an interesting read. It puts most of the improvement in the head rather than the block and was quite effective when guys actually raced these things.
Click to expand...

Clean out your computer? Nah, just get a bigger computer. Can never have too much...."stuff". But that requires better organization.
 
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