| Grant | -- 11-01-2011 @ 9:34 PM |
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Good evening, Attached is a photo of two oddball exhaust manifolds which were purchased at the Central National Meet flea market in August at the show in Auburn, Indiana. For the last couple of months we've been trying to figure out what they are. Perhaps one of you gentlemen will recognize them. To date, our observations are: 1. Both of these manifolds are meant to be mounted on the right (passenger's side) of a flathead Ford V8 engine. 2. The lower exhaust outlet therefore ends up at the front of the engine. 3. The two cast upper exhaust pipe extensions bolt onto the tops of the central manifold outlets and then something up higher must be bolted onto them (above the carburetor ????) 4. As far as I can see, using a flashlight and a stiff piece of wire, the inside passageways of the manifolds have been cast in such a manner that most or all of the exhaust gases and pressure must go up and then out of the manifold at the front tube, travelling to and through wherever it is intended to go, and thereafter cannot exit the system until it flows down the rear tubes before finally escaping through the lower front outlet. 5. Looking at the front extension tubes as they proceed upward towards the hood, it appears that they would end up being awfully close to a 1949 to 1953 style distributor, so my guess is that the application would more likely belong with a 1948 or older Ford V8......possibly 1942 and older (i.e. wartime). 6. Where the pen is pointing, A-22-1 appears on the inside edge of the castings. 7. These manifolds do not look like factory Ford parts to me. Assuming that the left exhaust manifold was configurated in a similar manner, what could have been mounted up there above the carburetor(s)? Could this arrangement have been military ? Did Bren gun carriers have turbochargers ? Or tanks ? In the alternative, is this exhaust system intended for other uses ? Aviation ? Agriculture ? Marine ? Industrial ? Racing ? Might it be possible to locate an identical exhaust manifold for the left (driver's side) ? What other parts would likely have been used to fully conplete this modified set-up ? My thought is that it might be fun to reconstruct and operate whatever this flathead thing was. Regards, Grant
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| supereal | -- 11-02-2011 @ 7:43 AM |
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My best guess is that they are marine manifolds. It is customary to combine the exhaust and cooling water so they can be expelled from the transom. Our shop does all sorts of engines for a local big marina, and we see some unusual exhaust manifolds on the out drive units using converted car engines. The Ford flatheads were used for boats, planes, stationary power, and all sorts of applications in their day. One of Henry Ford's interests was this broad use, many of which had agricultural roots.
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| Grant | -- 11-03-2011 @ 7:11 PM |
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Thanks for your input, Supereal. I am having difficulty understanding what the engineer was attempting to accomplish by routing the exhaust up and over the intake manifold.
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| supereal | -- 11-03-2011 @ 7:38 PM |
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Probably to get the outlet above the transom water line, if that was the application.
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| Stroker | -- 11-04-2011 @ 8:51 AM |
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Indeed a strange configuration! Right after WWII, we bought a Chrysler flathead inline 6 powered fire pump that was trailer-mounted. The exhaust on that was directed upward, and passed through a rod-actuated flapper valve to provide a strong vacuum in a venturi for priming the centrifugal pump. I believe that that there were also some Japanese light tanks that used flathead Ford V8's. As Supereal has stated, there were so many industrial applications for these compact engines that we seldom see or hear about. The most recent example being the "French" flathead military engines that have come upon the market in just the past decade. I'm going to vote for a military application; simply most commercial uses would not have gone to the expense of creating these complex castings, with the exception being Schramm air compressors. Good luck with your quest!
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| Grant | -- 11-04-2011 @ 5:25 PM |
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Supereal, I agree that the two upper outlets would be pushing exhaust out above the water line if this is in fact a marine manifold. That would make sense. Nonetheless, there is a third outlet down low in a more or less "normal" position. Stroker, thanks for your thoughts. It hadn't occurred to me that I might be looking for a Japanese tank in order to obtain a matching manifold for the left side.
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