Erik Smith Posted January 21, 2015 Posted January 21, 2015 I am building a somewhat fantasy high performance Hudson 308. I was going to fabricate a new head for it and include double spark plugs. I have no idea if this would result in any gains in the real world, but I am after more of a gotcha look... My question - would I just include two distributor caps with the same firing order? How would that be attached to the block? Any ideas or thoughts are welcome. I will also be adding three weber like carbs on a scratchbuilt manifold and header. Thanks!!
Longbox55 Posted January 21, 2015 Posted January 21, 2015 I can't really help you on the head itself, but the distributor cap you would need is in any of the AMT '51 Chevy kits. You will also need to run dual coils with it.
Ace-Garageguy Posted January 21, 2015 Posted January 21, 2015 (edited) There's a thread on here started a few weeks ago showing some dual-plug Ford flathead heads., and the plug placement is pretty obvious. Flatheads flow pretty poorly in general, and flame travel is poor. Dual-plugs could achieve more complete combustion, and add a little power. Porsche used a 12-plug-terminal cap for its dual-plug flat-six engines, with 2 coil inputs. This distributor cap is for a 12 cylinder '31 Caddy, and is also set up for 2 coil inputs. An old 12-cylinder distributor like this could be modified by a very competent hot-rodder to fire a dual-plug head on your Hudson. Edited January 21, 2015 by Ace-Garageguy
Longbox55 Posted January 21, 2015 Posted January 21, 2015 Bill, the cap I mentioned that's in the AMT '51 Chevies is virtually identical to the Porsche unit you have pictured.
Ace-Garageguy Posted January 21, 2015 Posted January 21, 2015 Bill, the cap I mentioned that's in the AMT '51 Chevies is virtually identical to the Porsche unit you have pictured. Kool!! I never noticed. Have a couple on the shelf and will definitely have to find a use for one. Thanks.
Longbox55 Posted January 21, 2015 Posted January 21, 2015 Part number 46 on the tree. I highlighted the terminals so you can see them. This one is from the recent reissue of the Bel Air, which also has the ultra rare in 1:1 Chevrolet version of the Fisher/Wayne crossflow head.
Erik Smith Posted January 22, 2015 Author Posted January 22, 2015 Thanks. The Ford post was mine also. That's what drove the next step... A big distributor like that shouldn't be too difficult. That's what the Ford Flattie used.
unclescott58 Posted January 22, 2015 Posted January 22, 2015 Look at photos of old Nash Ambassador straight eights from the 1930's. That might give you some ideas on how to do it. Scott
Ace-Garageguy Posted January 22, 2015 Posted January 22, 2015 (edited) Look at photos of old Nash Ambassador straight eights from the 1930's. That might give you some ideas on how to do it. Scott All he needs is a 12-cylinder, dual-coil distributor in the same location as the stock distributor. Easy. Or, if he wants to be esoteric, he could put 2, six-cylinder distributors side-by-side, on a common oval gear housing, on top of a distributor driveshaft, again in the same location as stock. Think of the housing as a little transfer case. One gear in the middle on the top of the original distributor drive shaft, and two gears on either side of it, driving two short-shaft distributors on top. The gear arrangement spaces the distributors far enough apart, and makes them both turn in the original direction. Split-timing would be easy, as all you'd have to do to change the timing on one set of plugs would be to rotate an entire distributor. With a single distributor, you'd have to remove the cap, and rotate one point plate relative to the other one. Doable, but a little fiddly. Either way would work in 1:1. Something like this...but perched on top of the original distributor location and driven from the bottom, rather than being driven by a shaft from the timing chain, as this setup is. Porsche used two distributors on the 4-cam 4-cylinder engines, sometimes like this... '28 Chevy, with 2 distributors... The point is, come up with something that looks plausible, and there you go. Edited January 22, 2015 by Ace-Garageguy
Erik Smith Posted January 23, 2015 Author Posted January 23, 2015 (edited) Part number 46 on the tree. I highlighted the terminals so you can see them. This one is from the recent reissue of the Bel Air, which also has the ultra rare in 1:1 Chevrolet version of the Fisher/Wayne crossflow head. I pulled out that kit...weird! Why is that in there? The only twin six engine I have been able to dig up was a 1927 Marmon. There are two coils in the kit too. Edited January 23, 2015 by Erik Smith
Longbox55 Posted January 23, 2015 Posted January 23, 2015 I never have heard of any good explanation as to why they included that. None of the versions of the kit are set up for dual lugs, not even the Fisher head. I do have a pair of the '80s issues of those kits that referred to the cab as being a "Nash" distributor. Nash did have a dual plug head on their 6 cylinder, it was called Twin Ignition.http://www.oldcarbrochures.org/var/resizes/NA/Nash/1929%20Nash/1929%20Nash%20Brochure/1929%20Nash%20Brochure%2021%20Engine.jpg?m=1371832076
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