Adam H P15 D30

I drove my 49 with 3.91 gears at 65-70 (no OD). I just disconnected my tachometer on long drives but it sounded a little busy...

55, I have the stock M.C. with the check valve removed, so I pasted my earlier response below as real world experience. I can't stress enough, the drum brakes are pretty good if adjusted very correctly. It all goes down hill after that. Adam Quote from me earlier in the thread: To be honest the Lockheed drums worked well but I didn't have the adjustment tool so they were always adjusted close but never close enough. For the price of the tool, I could do disc brakes twice. I drive my car in commute traffic at 70+ mph sometimes so that where the disc brakes shine. They do slow the car better than the drums especially the 3rd or 4th time in a 1 mile stretch, so let's say a 25% improvement. I will NEVER have to adjust brakes again (at least on the front) 100% + improvement. The drums are only really good after they are adjusted, goes down hill from there, discs are always adjusted correctly. 100% improvement. They have been on for a few years now and I have not had to do anything to them in that time. Which reminds me, I'm going to check the brake fluid next time I drive it

I wouldn’t pull an Airstream 70mph with my Excursion and I’be had a lot of campers. Besides most ST trailer tires have a limit of 65.

If they pull consistently one way and heating them up as Plymouthy stated solves it temporarily, it is probably contamination. Going either way unpredictability is either they are both contaminated or adjustment. How old are the rubber brake hoses? Either way the best bang for your buck is disc brakes, especially if you drive it a lot

Yeah but there are better ways that really don’t break the bank in the scheme of things. If I ever have to go through my 230 I would never use the archaic stock pistons with 4 rings. A longer rod has its benefits, it is not all about displacement.

There are benefits to a longer rod, a slightly higher piston pin and a shorter piston with a better ring pack. You have the piston made so you get the correct total height, preferably close to zero deck. There’s a lot more to it than stroke and displacement.

I would think any crankshaft change to increase displacement would be a stroker. The measurement is not difficult and would increase compression in a much better way than head milling. But with head milling you could get to a reasonable compression without risking valve clearance or hurting flow. From what I have heard, the stock 230 rotating assembly is around .020 to .030 below deck at TDC but I have never measured mine to be sure. Then you get the benefit of a longer rod and shorter piston. Also get the benefit of a modern ring pack. This is huge in a long stroke engine with high piston speeds.

Sorry to hear you cannot use the tools any more Don

To be honest the Lockheed drums worked well but I didn't have the adjustment tool so they were always adjusted close but never close enough. For the price of the tool, I could do disc brakes twice. I drive my car in commute traffic at 70+ mph sometimes so that where the disc brakes shine. They do slow the car better than the drums especially the 3rd or 4th time in a 1 mile stretch, so let's say a 25% improvement. I will NEVER have to adjust brakes again (at least on the front) 100% + improvement. The drums are only really good after they are adjusted, goes down hill from there, discs are always adjusted correctly. 100% improvement. They have been on for a few years now and I have not had to do anything to them in that time. Which reminds me, I'm going to check the brake fluid next time I drive it.

I've mentioned this before and got poo-pooed but custom pistons are cheap! Have a modern piston made with a modern ring pack. Use the 218 rods with the 230 crank. Measure appropriately to get the pin height correct on your custom pistons for 0 deck. Balance assembly (any good shop should do this regardless). Probably cost a few hundred more in the end but its done right.

Easy to check / correct before assembly, much harder to check / correct after everything is together...

I used the large vice grips to lock the spindle in place for tapping.

It was super easy to drill and tap mine., did it on the car. I would not let that stop anyone from buying his kit.

Buy regular insurance.

Not sure of the exact ratio but 2nd gear is slower in FD equipped vehicles. 1-2 is close, really close; 2-3 is really wide.

If you run the dual intake and decide to go with Langdon's dual Carter Weber carbs, you could buy a dashpot for a ~1982 Escort that bolts to the carbs. My FD works OK without the dashpots on my Carter Webers but I may add them down the road.

Dad and I are kicking around a trip to the NSRA Rocky Mountain Nats in Pueblo CO. They would certainly get changed before that trip. Seriously though, if I had a fast second in the trans it would be much better but I have the FD second gear. Sooner or later I'll find a Plymouth transmission laying around and have my fast second. Then the gears would be more tolerable because the split between second and third is the biggest problem. To be honest, other than a couple hours of driving with the new intake and exhaust, I really haven't reevaluated the gears with the new found bottom end. Unless I stumble on the new gears soon, I'll get to thoroughly test that in a few months. It sure is nice on the freeways though which is where most of my commuting is.

Gears are too tall. Better with the intake change but I'm going to re-gear it some day, but the price was right on the rear axle and the 3.90 stock gears sucked. In the picture I had 235/75/15 tires on it, now I have 235/60/15 tires and it's tolerable. Really nice on the interstates at 70-75 mph though. The rises on the interstates here don't slow it down but when I took it to Tahoe over Donner summit, my pops went around me because it was slow and I was gassing him out... He drives an LT-1 powered 47 Ford. I think with the shorter tires, 3.25 gears would be perfect.

I usually drive my 49 in the summer months. Not because we have harsh winters but I devote the rainy months for mods etc. I commute 70 miles of interstate daily and use the 49 2-3 days per week. Stock flathead with duals, 3spd FD and 8" Ford with 3.00 gears. I've driven the 47 with the hemi for a couple of summers but now it finally going to get finished over the next 1-2 years. As much as I HATE to say it, that car is turning into more of a streetrod with AC, PB, PS, Auto-OD, leather and heated seats. It's also a money pit, but aren't they all? Adam

Nope, it's bolted down and will not come off for a coating. Paint is fine. Going to be a while before I drive it again, trying to get dad to paint it, windows out getting new felt.

You could buy 1 aluminum HEMI head loaded, ready to bolt on for a few hundred more. Ouch, I would think since these heads are much simpler to cast they would be well below 1k. Could buy a pair of Furd Flathead heads for a few hundred more. Is the market strong enough to justify that price?

Depends on where you live. As much as I hate the high prices in CA, I’m sure glad we don’t have those ridiculous inspections. Either way, unless you build a complete stocker, he might be on the hook for it. What a money grab

Welcome to California where everything is expensive.

Rotor placement looks good to me

Who cares! Building a car is supposed to be fun. Take your time and enjoy the build and all of its challenges. Don't let them get you down A lot of doom and gloom here lately.