The Old Engines

[Speed]

Hi,all;

I'm trying to find out more about the flathead six gas engine in this '40 EH I bought. Anybody know what engine should be in it? It appears to be original,or a bolt-in conversion,from what I could see.

The truck's titled as a 1940,but looks more like maybe a '38. Did they have the same engines?

I'd like to know about its displacement,what its redline is (I'm assuming the gas engines also redlined at 2,100 rpm's.)

What kind of performance did these engines provide? Strong? Gutless?

What was typical oil pressure for a good engine?

Being a gas engine,I plan to run Castrol 20/50 oil in it;I've run it in all my other cars,trucks,and bikes. Is that suitable,or would something else be a better choice? Also,would this be a positive or negative ground system?

At the risk of offending the purists among us,I intend to install an 85 amp Delco alternator,wired the RIGHT way,so I can upgrade the lighting and install an electric fuel pump.

Thanks for tolerating my ignorance of the Mack Trucks world. I'll try not to be too much of a nuisance.

Speed

[truxnut]

It should be a EN 354 ,115HP at 2850 ,254 ftlbs at 1100. 5.5 comp ratio.Plug gap.025,points .018-.024 ,timing 7 BTDC on damper,valve clearance cold IN .008 Ex .025. Postive ground. 20-50 oil will work but I would drop the pan and clean out any acumulated sludge ,or min. change the oil after 100 miles or several hours. Figure 45-55 MPH top speed depending on gearing. Takes 11 qts with filter. And whats wrong with a generator ????? LOL Put'n chicken lights on it ?? LOL

[Speed]

It should be a EN 354 ,115HP at 2850 ,254 ftlbs at 1100. 5.5 comp ratio.Plug gap.025,points .018-.024 ,timing 7 BTDC on damper,valve clearance cold IN .008 Ex .025. Postive ground. 20-50 oil will work but I would drop the pan and clean out any acumulated sludge ,or min. change the oil after 100 miles or several hours. Figure 45-55 MPH top speed depending on gearing. Takes 11 qts with filter. And whats wrong with a generator ????? LOL Put'n chicken lights on it ?? LOL

Thanks John!

WOW-you sure have good info on this ol' truck. I just didn't know what kinda juice the generator'd provide. I ran the stock generator on my '57 GMC for a buncha years with no problem,but while pulling my 35 foot RV trailer down from Caldwell,Idaho,it went toes up and made my life a little bit of hell;couldn't find anything to replace it until Elko,drive a ways,stop and have ranchers charge the battery for a couple hours,go some more,etc.,so since the engine was expiring anyway,I just changed it all out.That GMC was too modified to restore anyway. Trouble free since then.

What's chicken lights? Thats a new one on me. I'm wanting to run Halogen headlights(can't have TOO much light!),and I guess I COULD set it up with six volt ones,but they be hard to get on a Sunday night in Podunk suburbs.'Course,now that I think about it,wouldn't be that big a deal to carry a SPARE one...DUH..

Speed

[greg]

chicken lights are all the lights you see on the modern over the road rigs.

greg

[Speed]

chicken lights are all the lights you see on the modern over the road rigs.

greg

Well,I'd like to add a little more lighting,but mainly for safety,not glitz.I'm thinking Halogen headlights,maybe a couple of road lights,a pair of stoplights,a back up light,and possibly a marker on each side at the corners of the truck. That's pretty much it.

Thanks for the explanation,Greg!

Speed