Topic: PCV systems.


Gary M.    -- 09-25-2012 @ 6:27 PM
  Hi guys. I have heard of add on PCV systems for the cars that were not built with one, some more complicated than others. My buddy with a 53 Sunliner even went as far as tapping a nipple into his intake manifold and ran a hose with a PCV valve into the oil fill,and it works great! Are there any kits out there that are easy to install and proven to work well? Maybe a plate that fits between the carb and the manifold? Did dealers offer this type of add on earlier on ? Im curious because these old engines started having blow by problems even if they were low milage cars. Growing up in the 60s and having sat in countless hours of traffic and watching those old cars smoke from the tailpipes, under the hoods , and from the breather pipes under the cars, I would think that the problem would have been solved earlier on. My dad used to buy $50 cars that were not so pretty but were low milage(25000 miles)yet they had smoking problems. Gone are the days of highway cropdusters mainly due to advanced metallurgy and more precise machining. We still like to use old school repair methods on our old Fords.


Big Red 51    -- 09-26-2012 @ 2:14 AM
  Gary, my '53 came from California equipped with a PCV valve like you described, a simple arrangement. It was required on the car until it was 25 years old and a Historic car according to the CA DMV Code. Turns out mine does not smoke anyway but does help the environment.
Don


Gary M.    -- 09-26-2012 @ 5:40 PM
  The system that my friend put on his 53 was out of a Ford publication, so I think it was done the way it would have been done on a California car. I would like to try some sort of system on my 39 to see if I can eliminate some of the blow by, but if it doesnt work well, then I will remove it. My car is low milage and runs well, so I really dont want to do an engine rebuild at this time.


keith oh    -- 09-29-2012 @ 12:19 PM
  That blowby is called flathead perfume.


Stroker    -- 09-29-2012 @ 4:56 PM
  Positive crankcase ventilation is a wonderful thing. In the 50's, Fram made a system that consisted of a little squirrel-cage blower with a Fram filter scr*w*d on the inlet
that you could "force positive crankcase ventilation". We used these on Flatheads, OHV
truck and industrial engines, you name it. This was in California before the CARB era, and the benefits were getting rid of the nasties that are a product of combustion. The CARB/EPA mandated pvc system simply forced the engine to consume the "nasties". I've never been a fan of making my engine digest this cr*p, and the aforementioned system actually purged it into the atmosphere, thereby causing the global warming that we are now confronted with.

Seriously, it is good to get these horrible fumes out of the innards of the engine, but today I don't believe any engines that fall within the 32-53 parameters of the EV8CA are subject to CARB rules. If you want to do it "right", find one of those old
Fram systems, and it will benefit your engine. I think they came out in 1949, so shop accordingly to debate with the judges.



TomO    -- 09-29-2012 @ 4:58 PM
  Gary, try cleaning the little triangle at the front of the oil pan. That is part of the breathing system of the engine. If it is plugged up, you will get a lot of fumes from the breather at the back of the engine.

The triangle is supposed to create a slight vacuum from the air rushing past it and the breather at the back of the engine is supposed to act like the input of fresh air to the oil pan. The triangle get plugged with sludge and then it doesn't work. the block may also have enough sludge to block the passage to the valve valley.

A pcv system is just a band aid. You may be able to find a Columbia or governor plate for a vacuum source, but you would have to find a way to collect the fumes without creating more sludge.

Tom


Gary M.    -- 09-29-2012 @ 6:45 PM
  Thanks for the great info guys. As far as the flathead perfume, I really dont mind it so much, but it comes in the car and makes everyone inside smell like sludge. Tom, which side of the pan can I find this triangle? Is it a screen? How often does it have to be cleaned to keep it operational? Is this triangle something that would have been maintained routinely back in the old days? Thanks...


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