Advanced engine design used overhead cams, an aluminum crankcase, liquid cooling
Aerial combat advanced at an astonishing rate during World War I, and though it seems unimaginable today, there were no American-designed aircraft deemed suitable for battle in the skies over Europe. There was a U.S.-designed engine in the fight however: the Liberty V-12 or L-12.
The L-12 engine was America’s greatest technological contribution to the aerial war effort. Its initial assignment was powering the “Liberty Plane”—a version of the British-designed De Haviland/Airco DH-4 bomber produced in the U.S. by Dayton-Wright in Dayton, Ohio; Fisher Body Corporation in Detroit, Michigan; and Standard Aircraft in New Jersey. In addition to powering the DH-4 and a variety of other airplanes, over its long service life the L-12 powered tanks, high-speed watercraft, and land-speed racers.
The L-12 came about because Packard’s head of engineering, Jesse G. Vincent, recognized the need for a standardized line of aircraft engines that could be mass produced during wartime. The government assigned Vincent the task of creating this engine and teamed him up with Elbert J. Hall of the Hall-Scott Motor Company. The two met in Washington, D.C., on May 29 and, with the help of volunteer draftsmen, created detailed drawings and a full report by May 31. This original design was a V-8, but in their report Vincent and Hall outlined how the engine could be configured as a four-, six-, eight-, or 12-cylinder engine.
By July 3, a V-8 prototype assembled by Packard was running, and a V-12 soon followed. Due to its superior horsepower potential, the 1,650-cu.in. V-12 was given the nod for mass production
An I.D. tag shows the L-12’s firing order and reveals that this example at the Glenn H. Curtiss Museum was built by Lincoln on September 25, 1918.
Not only did the Liberty engine mark a great achievement for American aviation, it was responsible for creating a landmark car company: Lincoln. Henry Leland, who founded Cadillac, and his son Wilfred started Lincoln with a $10 million government contract awarded to build Liberty engines. The Lelands left Cadillac to form Lincoln because General Motors President William C. “Billy” Durant was a pacifist and initially rejected the government’s call for GM to build L-12s. (Durant later recanted and Liberty engines were manufactured by GM.) Production numbers seem to vary for output before and after the war but in total Ford, Lincoln, Packard, Marmon, and Buick produced 20,748 L-12 engines.
Everybody wants more power, and that attention has usually been paid to the romance items like cylinder heads, intake manifolds, carburetors, and camshafts. While those aspects of the engine are still essential for moving air, more engine builders are now scrutinizing the combustion space and making sure that all that air and fuel you worked so hard to get into the cylinder actually contributes to shoving the piston down instead of leaking past the rings.
Are thinner piston rings really better?
New technology now calls for not only thinner rings as viewed from the side, but also reduced radial thickness—as viewed from the top or bottom. Newer rings like those for LS engines take advantage of this. A narrow radial-wall thickness allows the ring to conform better to cylinder wall irregularities. This reduces blow-by and improves efficiency.
In the muscle car days of the ’60s and ’70s, production top and second piston rings measured 5⁄64-inch, and this remained the standard for decades. But with the coming of the modern engine era with powerplants like the GM LS, Ford modular V-8, and the Chrysler Gen III Hemi, piston rings began to slim down for many excellent reasons. If you don’t retain anything else from this story, just remember that thinner is better.
To get an idea of the benefits of slender ring packages, let’s start with some basic concepts. A thick piston ring, like the older 5⁄64-inch designs, presents a very wide contact face to the cylinder wall. This requires significant internal pressure exerted by the ring, called radial tension, to help seal the ring to the cylinder wall. The people at Total Seal have invested in an expensive machine that measures this tension and expresses this tension in units of pound-force (lb-f). Simply stated, this is the amount of force in pounds exerted against the cylinder wall after the ring is squeezed into the cylinder. This lb-f number is not a torque number (expressed as pound-feet or lb-ft) so don’t be confused. Nor is pound-force a sliding friction number, though clearly it is directly related to the friction generated as the piston and ring package move up and down in the cylinder
Piston rings are available in a wide variety of thicknesses.
Before we get into the actual numbers, it’s important to understand why a thicker ring must exert a greater force. This force is directly proportional to the ring face area that contacts the cylinder wall. This might be best explained by using the comparison of two different shoes. When walking on damp grass, it is easier to navigate the surface in a typical flat shoe. However, if the point of the heel is narrowed, as in a high heel shoe, the situation changes: the wearer’s gait is changed and the force of the heel is concentrated in a much smaller area, which easily presses the heel into the soft ground.
A wider piston ring must use a much greater radial tension to apply sufficient load to the cylinder wall to help seal the ring against cylinder pressure. With a thinner design like a 1.0-mm top ring for example, its static radial tension can be substantially reduced because the area of the ring face contacting the cylinder wall is far less than the larger 5⁄64-inch ring.
Piston ring radial tension, sliding friction, and oil control
Oil rings generate the most amount of friction as evidenced in our radial tension chart. However, Total Seal tells us they can build a 3⁄16-inch oil ring with improved radial tension numbers. The Summit GPX ring package we’re using for a 4.030-inch bore small-block Chevy 355 uses a 3⁄16-inch oil ring producing only 15 lb-f. Compared to a “standard” 3⁄16-inch oil ring’s 20 lb-f rating, the GPX offers a 25 percent reduction in radial tension yet can still deliver the expected oil control for street use.
Again, this radial tension is not the same thing as sliding friction, like that which might be measured with a fish scale pulling a piston with rings up a cylinder wall. But these radial tension loads are still proportional to sliding friction. As a practical example, we’ve installed 4.010-inch LS pistons using a ring package with 1.5 mm top rings, 1.5 mm second rings, and 3.0 mm oil rings into a bore and then pushed the pistons in using mere thumb pressure. But similar bore-size engine using 5⁄64-inch top and second rings and standard tension 3⁄16-inch oil rings demand a hefty hit with a hammer handle to drive the piston into the bore. The difference is the amount of friction produced by the different ring packages. Another way to measure this friction would be to use a digital torque wrench to gauge the friction required to rotate all eight pistons.
A typical small-block Chevy with 5⁄64-inch ring package might require a torque reading of 20 to 25 ft-lb but an LS engine with a 1.0-mm ring package with a similar bore and stroke may require 8 to 10 ft-lbs less torque. At 5,252 rpm, 10 lb-ft of an engine’s torque output is equal to 10 hp. This is not free horsepower because thinner ring packages do cost more and may require new pistons, but other than cost, there are no negatives to this approach.
As an additional benefit, thinner rings also allow the move to higher quality ring materials. As an example, budget ring packages costing $50 most often use grey cast iron that’s rather weak and brittle. Upgrading to a ductile iron will more than double its tensile strength. Plus, many high-quality thinner rings are now made using steel alloys with high-tech face coatings to further reduce friction while improving cylinder pressure sealing capability
In 1932, the Ford flathead V8 began production when the expression game-changer wasn’t around. Ford’s V8 revolutionized the American automotive industry, forcing all its competitors to switch to eight cylinders mounted in a V shape. However, we are here to talk about the V8-60.
The story of Henry Ford’s genius creation, the 60-horsepower V8, starts earlier than 1937 when it was introduced. In 1934-35, Ford designed and produced a smaller, 2.2-liter power unit of the company’s standard V8 for its European divisions in England and Strasbourg, France. With interesting engineering, this first version featured only two exhaust ports per bank and four main bearings. At the same time, it was full of issues, especially overheating. Consequently, only around 3300 examples were produced, and today only a handful of them still exist.
Still, the effort was not in vain and actually inspired a second redesigned V8 for Europe. Later, in 1937, it was introduced on the United States market as the V8-60. While in Britain, it was commonly known as the 22 hp V8 (in reference to its taxable power rating), the Ford ad writers for the US called it the “Thrifty Sixty.”
The updated V8-60 was an identical and much tinier version of the original flathead Ford V8 introduced in 1932. The displacement was scaled down by Ford engineers from 221 cubic inches (3.6-liter) to a shabby 136 cubic inches (2.2-liter). The power output was 60 hp (61 PS) instead of 85 hp (86 PS) for the old 1937 V8.
One of the particular features of the V8-60 was the front engine support casting, which doubled as the timing cover and mounts for the ignition distributor and twin water pumps. The small and big Ford V8 powerplants are so similar in appearance that ordinary people are often confused. Looking at the head bolts makes it easy to see the difference. The V8-60 has only 17 per cylinder bank, while the big V8 has 21 or 24 fasteners per side. Another interesting and particular feature was the cooling jacket on each bank that was closed out with a sheet metal plate. This metal plate was electrically welded in the proper position.
Ford customers were attracted to the V8-60’s fuel economy, so sales were outstanding initially. However, sales quickly fell as word got out about the engine’s poor acceleration. You see, despite its tiny displacement, the power unit produced 60 hp at 3500 rpm, which for 1937 was quite decent. Unfortunately, the engine had a significant downgrade. The peak torque was less than 100 lb-ft (136 Nm) at 2500 rpm. The available torque was 50 percent behind its V8 larger brother. As a consequence, The V8-60 was discontinued in the USA after 1940, when Ford introduced an L-head straight six engine as its economic engine.
However, this tiny powerplant found its true potential in racing. If you didn’t know, there was a time before and shortly after WWII when American citizens were absolutely captivated by a new racing competition known as the Midgets. In the 1930s and 1940s, these small cars, modeled after their larger siblings from Indianapolis, raced on tracks in baseball and football stadiums on quarter-mile ovals specially built for them
A Short History and Evolution of the Flathead V8, and Making It Modern
Back in 1932, Henry Ford introduced the 221 cubic inch Flathead engine producing 65 HP. And by 1935 HP was increased to 85 HP. Those engines were produced from 1932 to 1938 and were commonly known as “21 stud engines”, due to the head design using 21 head studs
In 1937 Ford introduced a 136 cubic inch variant, producing 45hp. This engine was only in production from 1937 through 1938. Although the engine was efficient, it was not very popular with the American public, who were now used to the 85 HP engine. The 136 cubic inch engine was discontinued at the end of 1938 when the new Inline 6-cylinder Flathead was introduced.
1938 saw the first major redesign of the 221 cubic inch Flathead engine, with the addition of more head studs, now totaling 24 studs. In 1939 the cubic inches were increased to 239 cubic inches and produced 95hp. These engines remained in production until 1948. During World War II, 1943-1946, no engines were manufactured for the public due to the war effort (or at least, that I am aware of at the time of this writing).
The main characteristic of Flathead engines relating to Modern DriveLine, is the back of the engine block. The 1932-1947 59A block casting utilized a ½ bell ring over the flywheel. The lower ½ ring was removable to provide access to remove and replace the Clutch, flywheel, and rear seal.
In 1948-1953 8BA/RT blocks no longer had the cast ½ ring. Ford now used a single stamped metal bell ring for cars or a cast metal bell ring for trucks.
The intermediate ring with 3” depth, was used over the flywheel and clutch and used to attach transmission to the engine. In 1948 to 1951, Ford produced the 337 cubic inch engine used in Lincoln cars and the F7 and F8 trucks. Known as the 8EL in the Lincoln cars and 8EQ in heavy-duty trucks, these engines produced more horsepower and torque and weighed over 850 lbs. These engines are physically larger and used 27 head studs and used a 12” clutch. Although this is a V8 flathead, very few parts from the 59A or 8BA engines are interchangeable.
A couple of years ago I did a post on the re-engineering of the Model A Engine by Terry Burtz, you can find the article here
Since that time things have moved on massively and Terry is in full production and selling not only the engine to the public but also many other ancillaries to match.
The new “Burtz” Ford Model A engine block is now available! It features a 5-main bearing design and includes a dynamically balanced crankshaft and set of connecting rods. All remaining components needed to complete the engine build are stock Model A Engine parts.
These include flywheels, cylinder heads and camshafts with probably more to follow
Also on the very comprehensive site are all the technical data and ordering information for this excellent piece of engineering.
Bigfork resident Lyle Aklested grew his collection of classic cars over the years to a total 120 cars, most of which sat in his Flathead V8 Ford Museum that he opened in 1980.
After sharing his collection with the public for nearly 40 years, Aklested is ready to say goodbye to his museum.
Aklested has a storied life. He flips through experiences in his mind, speaking about his time as a boxing referee for the United States during the Olympics to his lifelong career as a farmer in northwestern Montana.
But, one of his greatest passions lies in his car collection and the act of meticulously bringing every one up to spec. Growing up on a family farm in Conrad, he said it’s hard to remember the exact moment when he started becoming interested in cars but reflects on his first few projects — including taking the engine off his dad’s grain auger and putting it in a Model T frame to see if he could get it to run.
“Then I drug my grandfather’s 1918 Dodge out of the dump that he had … it would turn over. When I was a kid, 14 years old, or something like that, I got the thing running. My dad says ‘What are you going to do? You can’t get tires for it.’ And I said, ‘Well, I’m going to take and shorten all the spokes on the Model T wheels.’ I’m sure they thought ‘what in the world’s wrong with that kid?’” Aklested said.
The museum’s name is strictly coincidental, he said. A 1951 Ford Flathead V8 was his first car. Despite the museum being in Flathead County, not even a mile from Flathead Lake, Aklested said the name comes strictly from his favorite engine. He said it was a very desirable car at the time in the 1950s, and made the decision to stick with Fords from then on out.
“I thought I’d be more knowledgeable on the Flathead V8’s and Fords and see what the history of them are, for them to change each year, with the engine and with a horsepower or even with the color of the engines, the upholstery— I really got hooked on the history of Ford,” Aklested said.
He built his first “hot rod” when he was 17 years old, a ‘31 Pontiac.
“The old fish hatchery on the west side of Flathead Lake had it sitting out there and a lady from Idaho owned it. So I had written to her and asked her if she wanted to sell it. Yes, she did, and it was $8. That’s what I paid for my 31 Pontiac … and it just went from there,” Aklested said.
HIS LOVE of cars grew with his success as a farmer, which he avidly pursued. He started with a loan to buy all of the necessary equipment and machinery needed for his farm, working his way up financially to be able to eventually pursue things like his car collection. He started purchasing cars to fix up, one after another — and before he knew it, he was in need of a little more room.
“I built another building at my farm in Sweet Grass there, which held about 18 cars. Then finally I thought, well, I can’t do my restoring anymore in the shop with all the tractors and trucks and stuff like that,” he said.
Then he decided to build in Bigfork. He built one shop then a second and then he needed a bigger building again for his cars.
“And that’s how the idea of the Flathead V8 Museum got started,” he said.
Aklested curated his museum as his collection of cars compounded, also creating a section at the front which contained old tools and memorabilia. He said he enjoyed getting to share all of this with whoever wanted to stop in during the years the museum was active.
BUT A few years ago things took a turn when a drunk driver drove through the front of his museum, totaling two cars and shaking Aklested, who decided it was time to look into closing its doors.
“It just killed my heart. If it was a business for me it wouldn’t hurt as much … But this is something that I had set up, that was my ‘Lyle’s man cave,’ that was my thing and so were the cars. We had it opened as a museum, you know, and tried to enjoy the cars with other people. When that happened, it just really did something to me,” Aklested said.
When it was time to start selling cars, Aklested didn’t even have to advertise. His aptly named museum drew its own attention, and he said he has been able to sell his cars to interested buyers all over the world. Which he said made him “feel very good.”
He said collecting cars felt like a pursuit he was never able to satisfy, much like his farming career where he avidly bought more and more farmland— he just kept buying cars. Most of these vehicles he chose to sell, but there are a few special ones he is planning on keeping.
“One of the vehicles I’m keeping is a 1958 Ford pickup. I restored it, put it in the colors of yellow and white, which are the colors that I had on all my trucks and everything when I was farming — I’d painted everything yellow and white. That’s gonna be my hearse,” Aklested said.
In part one of this video segment, Pete Aardema will explain the development of his 93-year-old Ford Model A engine that is officially in the books as the fastest Ford Model A on the planet with a record speed set at Bonneville in August of 2012 at 238.598 mph. Remarkably a top speed of 240 MPH was measured on the back up run. Several years ago, Pete and Kevin modified this 1929 Model A engine and made special cylinder heads with dual overhead cams and achieved a land speed record of 238.598 MPH at Bonneville. This was all done in a blown gas streamliner in the vintage four-cylinder classification which is designated for pre-1935 four-cylinder engines up to 220 cubic inches in displacement. In part two of this video, Pete and Kevin will disassemble the engine and you will see how this one-of-a-kind masterpiece was constructed.
Randy Breternitz of Midland looks over a 1950 Ford flathead six industrial motor on the grounds of the Midland Antique Engine Association. Dave Shane/for the Daily News
At an early age, Randy Breternitz of Midland became interested in farm tractors and the engines that powered them.
“I grew up on a farm and I was around the stuff early on,” Breternitz said. “I was always working with my hands on stuff.”
Now, after spending 46 years as a truck driver, the now-retired Breternitz is getting all the mechanical challenge he can handle as the property manager at the 13 acres of the Midland Antique Engine Association at 3326 S. Meridian Road. The non-profit club has a mission to spread the history and mechanics of engines, tractors and other large equipment.
The group has about 90 families that are members. Breternitz noted that you don’t even have to own a tractor or engine to belong.
If you like antique engines, “this is the place for you,” he said. “All you have to do is have an interest.
Breternitz has a history of getting old things to work again. He has refurbished both a 1949 Allis-Chalmers Model C and a 1962 Oliver 550. He and his 17-year-old grandson are now tackling a 1953 Ford Jubilee.
He said there are two ways to tackle an old tractor. Some like to make it look almost as nice as it looked the day it was sold. Others like to make it operate, but keep the rust and age just the way they were before it was fixed.
And other club members are more into tractor pulls and competitions.
Breternitz said the club has a refurbished sawmill, a couple of old threshers, a 1913 engine from the Porter Oil Field, a blacksmith shop, a museum and a general store among the many things on its grounds.
The 1960s was a transformational period for the automotive industry as muscle cars became more popularized. The average consumer went from demanding a sleek, high-speed vehicle to requiring more power and acceleration from their cars. It was the dream of every young driver to have a muscle car parked on their front pouch. Those manufactured between the 60s and 70s became very popular because of their exemplary performances on the road. Here are the most popular muscle cars with engines that will blow your socks off
WHAT MUSCLE CAR ENGINES ARE MOST ICONIC?
THE FORD FLATHEAD V8
The Flathead V8 from Ford is among the most iconic old-school muscle cars with an out-of-this-world engine. The first of these ford engines were manufactured in the early 30s, and its improvement spread to the 50s. One of the most significant roles this engine has in the automotive industry is its impact on the hot-rodding culture.
Although the V8 engine featured in this vehicle doesn’t maximize performance, its authenticity and retro style make it outstanding. One aspect distinguishing it from other engines is its intake and exhaust pipes inside the engine block. Most units have these components on the engine’s cylinder heads.
DODGE 426 HEMI
The Dodge 426 Hemi is another high-performance engine featured in several muscle cars. It is a famous unit that guarantees animal-like power under your car’s hood. It was easier to spot a muscle car fitted with this Dodge engine in the 60s and 70s than it is now.
The 426 Hemi compared to other top engines from Dodge, like the 440 V8 manufactured in the same era. The 440 V8 went ahead to replace the 426 Hemi in the market because of its affordability, reliability, and good performance scores.
FORD 302 CUBIC INCH V8
Most of the engines fitted in muscle cars were V8 engines, and so was the Ford 302 engine. It was an outstanding engine dominating the American automotive culture for decades. You can find the engine in modern Ford’s like the Raptor F-150 and Mustang and other Ford units produced in the late 60s.
The 302 V8 engine size is not as substantial as other manufacturers’ units. However, you can achieve higher performance than engines in higher classes with the correct modifications. The base motor reliability and durability of the 302 are forever unmatched.
CHEVROLET LS V8
The Chevrolet LS V8 is an engine featured in several vehicles, including numerous muscle cars. These engines are more compact and lighter than most V8 engine replacement units, making them popular across the United States. Despite its compact size, the power generated from this engine is enough to power your mid-sized SUV. It is an ideal replacement consideration for any V8 Chevrolet engine if you want to save money, although others find it uncreative
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