FE Power Forums
FE Power Forums => FE Technical Forum => Topic started by: fryedaddy on January 09, 2021, 11:21:35 AM
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at what hp level do you need to go aftermarket-steel,alu. flywheel vs stock.i have a nos flywheel from 67.it was installed on a 390 gt that was going in a fairlane drag car,dont know the class but it was never run.or do you think no one should use a stock flywheel anymore in any app.
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Well, NHRA requires a SFI tagged flywheel on any car running 11.49 ET or quicker. Personally, I think age and condition are more a consideration than an arbitrary HP level. A 500 HP engine that spends its time cruising around on the road on sunny weekends would stress the flywheel much less than a 400 HP engine in a car that gets raced every weekend, at high RPMs. Keep in mind that most original FE flywheels are over 50 years old, cracks an not uncommon , and there may have been several cuts made to that old flywheel. I have seen a few stock cast iron flywheels come apart, and do considerable carnage in the process. Around 2004 I had a clutch disc, NOT a much heavier flywheel or pressure plate) come apart in my Fairmont. It was bad enough to break off the starter, bend the clutch fork, and deform my Lakewood scattershield so badly that the steel bulged up enough to prevent getting a wrench or socket on some of the bellhousing bolts. I am a pretty cheap guy, but I consider a good flywheel and clutch money well spent. My 59 will never run 11 second ETs,nor likely see 6000 RPM or more, but it did get a new SFI approved McLeod flywheel when I ordered my clutch.
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I think anything with a standard transmission should run a good flywheel and a scatter shield . I like my feet , they do hurt a lot now , but I still like them .
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Street/Strip ..... manual trans... I would get a scatter shield and a top of the line flywheel
If ya doona lose a toe or two.. ya may perforate ya car .. cut a brake line or such ....
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/clutch-flywheel-explosions-lets-hear-some-stories.185297/
Ricky.
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FWIW, my dyno guy doesn't allow any cast iron flywheels for a dyno session at all. Even brand new ones. As Rory said, on older ones, the stress cracks are often common.
I wouldn't trust one.
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After what happened to this poor guy I can see why:
https://speedsociety.com/boss-429-blows-up-on-the-engine-dyno/
Randy M
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the machine shop used a stock 390 flywheel and a stock thick damper on the front when they internally balanced my 428 crank.so what flywheel do i need.i can always swap meet my old stack of flywheels and flex plates for a extra buck or two.while i am at it i might as well sell my old 50 year old fe blocks and intakes too.
just kidding on that comment,hell hasn't froze over yet!
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Just a 0-balance steel flywheel. Any of the manufacturers make them: Ford Racing, RAM, McLeod, etc.
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Do you know your current one is original Ford cast? If so, sell it.
The Ford Racing are cheap, take multiple clutch sizes, and won't come apart. I don't always push for a blow shield, but no reason to use a stock flywheel if it makes any power at all.
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the machine shop used a stock 390 flywheel and a stock thick damper on the front when they internally balanced my 428 crank.so what flywheel do i need.i can always swap meet my old stack of flywheels and flex plates for a extra buck or two.while i am at it i might as well sell my old 50 year old fe blocks and intakes too.
just kidding on that comment,hell hasn't froze over yet!
Before going out and buying parts you may want to double check with the shop that balanced it and verify that a zero balance will do it.
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the machine shop used a stock 390 flywheel and a stock thick damper on the front when they internally balanced my 428 crank.so what flywheel do i need.i can always swap meet my old stack of flywheels and flex plates for a extra buck or two.while i am at it i might as well sell my old 50 year old fe blocks and intakes too.
just kidding on that comment,hell hasn't froze over yet!
Before going out and buying parts you may want to double check with the shop that balanced it and verify that a zero balance will do it.
thats why i was asking.i got the impression i could use a 390 flywheel instead of the externally balanced 428 flywheel.machine shop asked me if it was going to be auto or manual,and when i said manual he let out a sigh of relief.the machine shop is out of business now after 40+years or service,and they raced fords the whole time too.
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Years ago, McLeod and others had separate flywheels for FE applications, for external or internal balance. However, both my McLeod aluminum Soft Lok flywheel, and the steel unit I bought for my 59s 428, come as a neutral balance part, with an included weight with countersunk Allen head bolts, to be attached to provided holes in the flywheel, for external balanced engines.
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Some of you have probably seen this video but it is a dyno pull on a 800+ hp Boss 429 using a stock flywheel that exploded after a few pulls. I saw pictures of it and it destroyed the back of the block and the Quicktime bellhousing did not contain it either.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOnachbSjno
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Some of you have probably seen this video but it is a dyno pull on a 800+ hp Boss 429 using a stock flywheel that exploded after a few pulls. I saw pictures of it and it destroyed the back of the block and the Quicktime bellhousing did not contain it either.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOnachbSjno
Yep, that was Steve's engine. An old forum member. Totally junked a brand new engine, except for the heads if I remember correctly. He said that he shouldn't have used the cast flywheel, but was in a pinch and wanted to get it dynoed. Bad mistake. Part of the flywheel went through a concrete block wall and into the room beside it. If that doesn't tell you to go STEEL, then nothing will. Cast does not belong on anything other than a low rpm street engine. :P
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any of the above mentioned company's sell flywheel,pp,clutch,to bearing,and alignment tool all in one stop shopping.
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McLeod and RAM both do.
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I will be in the market this spring, any cost savings in ordering the whole shebang?
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I will be in the market this spring, any cost savings in ordering the whole shebang?
I can probably cut you a package deal.