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Posted by Chriscase [75.36.39.237] on Wednesday, December 01, 2010 at 11:53:37 :
In Reply to: Will elect.ronic ignition give her more power? posted by junior [64.136.27.229] on Wednesday, December 01, 2010 at 10:57:33 :
A good tune up helps maximize the miserable horse power the flat head puts out.
Timing should be about 5° before, and the centrifugal advance should work. Can you see the timing advance when revved, with a timing light? That is the centrifugal advance.
No pinging allowed though. If you hear a rattle under load, retard it a couple degrees at a time until the ping is gone.
A severely plugged muffler will also detract. Any $5 junk yard muffler will do.
If all else is good, put a bigger carb on. Almost any 1 bbl would be a significant gain.
My own truck has a /6 electronic distributor. The shaft need to be modified and the body sanded down to fit. I don't know what kind of junk yard box I have, but it is chrome plated,and will spark continuously, like a welder, if you hold the dist in the right place. MSD maybe? (MSD stands for Multiple Spark Discharge, it will spark several times per cylinder, at low speeds. A the Dyno shop, it was worthless at speed, but it does make a powerful spark, good for cold starts.)
But the good thing about electronics is stability. They don't wear down, timing doesn't change, and I do think they make a stronger spark when the battery gets low.
The /6 dist in a flat head needs that advances slowed down. I think the flat head combustion chamber causes some grief there, they are very likely to ping. Ping is bad for the bottom end,and takes way power because that piston is pushing down too early, while it is still before top dead center, so it pushes the wrong way.
If your truck is pinging try letting off the throttle, notice that it doesn't lose power on less gas. The difference is how much power the ping is costing.
Plus I built my own tube headers and a 2 bbl intake, power flo muffler (junk yard). All that, and the 2bbl made the biggest improvemnt. In total, I've got 65 hp to the ground under a 5500 pound truck. Not real good on hills, but I can keep up with loaded semis. On the flats, no prob.
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