Hotrod flattie

flathead4dr

flathead4dr

Senior Member
Found this engine (see pics) in a garage completely apart in boxes. Had been there since the late sixties or early 70's. It had been a competition engine of some sort...I think dirt track racing. 59A-B , bored 3.750, ported, releived, 4" crank, Isky 404A radius' tappet cam, Edelbrock 8.5 heads, Edelbrock 3 carb manifold with 97's on top. Pistons are JE 3 ring . Sheiffer (sp) alum flywheel and lightweight pressure plate.
This thing really makes the adrenaline flow....what a nice sound. Now I want to build a lightweight streetable car/dragster to put it in. Any suggestions will be appreciated. Bill
 

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The Isky 404-A is a very radical cam and getting very hard to find. The lifter bores are drilled and an insert is used to keep the lifters from turning. That's a great find in my opinion.
 
Yes, the lifters are grooved vertically and the lifter bores have keys that run in those grooves to prevent roatation...the lifters are only radius'd in one plane. Just to look at the cam makes you wonder just how streetable this thing will be, but after running it on the test stand it seems very possible. Idles (guessing) around 700 or so. The throttle response is super fast as you would expect, but until it's installed in a vehicle I won't know where the power or torque curve is, ...guessing it's way up there ?? Wish I could get a video on here but I have no means for this. Can barely figure out Ford Barn to be honest. Bill
 
Back to your original question. Putting it in a dragster would be fun - now and then. I would lean toward an AV8 roadster so you can take it for a spin when ever the spirit moves you - like daily.

Lee
 
Flathead4dr,

A 404 is not so rare, Pete Samuelson in Seattle/Tocoma grinds them and can supply the lifters with jig and tools needed. I think he uses SBC valve springs but with the high spring pressure I'm not sure how long it would last on the street..............maybe 10k miles.................but what a sound!
 
Model A roadester makes a nice lite home for a radical flattie, this is a 276, with a 4 speed, tons of fun.
 

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Thanks for the recommendations. I'm in the search mode right now.
The 36 coupe in my avatar is powered with an 86 Tbird turbo coupe engine/ 5 speed ****** combo. Runs real good ! Bill
 
I'd like to caution you on two things, One don't idle it at to low an RPM due to the lift rate of the cam, this can damage it. Also they didn't last very long anyway, due to the high spring pressure.. Second, Running the engine without a load on the engine stand won't allow the rings to seat. Engine should be run long enough to test for leaks, oil pressure and loud noises. Get a load on it as soon as you can make sure it's not running too rich. Ran one in a stockcar for one season.
 
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