Timing gears

[2speed]

Snyders sells a macerated, a laminated, and a aluminum timing gear. The original is macerated and prone to disintegrating, laminated is better? Aluminum is bullet proof? Why sell a macerated gear?

[gdmn852]

Always a demand for a cheaper product.Was a post on here about non fitting repro parts and cost seem to come up quite often.

[Joe K]

I'm not sure the original was macerated. More likely laminated. I would never go below this in a gear but there have been a lot of gears come and gone over the years and I expect macerated was an attempt at cutting costs.

Rick Freeman (Brazil Parts) comes to mind. Would they work? Yes. Would they work a long time? You're on your own on this.

Vince Falter has extensive discussion of aftermarket "high-end" metals gears, including one that was "timing adjustable." https://www.fordgarage.com/pages/camshaftgears.htm

Joe K

[nkaminar]

Don't buy the cardboard ones.
Cardboard gear $1.69
Styrofoam gear $0.39
Cast concrete gear $4.99
3D printed gear, including labor $195

[2speed]

I understand and read some of the price/quality issues, but the difference in the macerated vs laminated gear is $20. It's not exactly break the bank.


Better question, if you were replacing your gear laminated or aluminum?

[Flathead]

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Aluminum with a new or very good crank gear. My two cents.

[Synchro909]

Originally Posted by Flathead

Aluminum with a new or very good crank gear. My two cents.

That makes 4 cents between us!

[JayJay]

Dan McEachern, who posts here, makes a great set of matched gears. Steel crank and either aluminum or bronze for the cam. I bought a set for my Burtz and they are works of art.

[johnbuckley]

[QUOTE=JayJay;2300732]Dan McEachern, who posts here, makes a great set of matched gears........[/QUOTE]
Did someone at Fords originally spend time matching gears or were they machined more accurately than nowadays ?

[Bob Bidonde]

This slide shows the original timing gear and the modern reproduction. In my opinion, the aluminum timing gear has superior strength, but I am not to keen on having an aluminum gear being driven by a steel gear for a galvanic reason. Also, I suspect that the aluminum gear will have a higher wear rate than the laminated gear.
The slide shows an original gear where its aluminum hub has separated from the fiber which is a common failure mode of original gears. I replace all original gears I come across with modern reproductions.
From experience, I have thousands of trouble free miles on Bratton's 8750 Laminated Timing Gear, so it is a proven excellent choice. If I were to hop up the engine in my A's, then I would consider the aluminum gear.
Bratton's 356B Aluminum Alloy Gear #8760 is the lesser expensive option. 356B Aluminum is for casting. The primary alloy in 356B Aluminum is silicone with smaller amounts of copper or magnesium. The "B" designation is for the purity of the cast material with an "A" being the highest. I do not know what the heat treatment for hardness is of Bratton's aluminum gear.

[katy]

Did Ford make their own gears? Or an outside supplier?

[Flathead]

I would guess an outside supplier, they are often marked "Celoron"

[Dan McEachern]

Celeron was a process/material developed by General Electric where canvas or linnen fabric was impregnated with phenolic resin. These 'prepegs" could be compression molded around a metal hub and then machined. Phenolic resin is a thermoset and once cured by heat and pressure does not soften with further application of heat. Westinghouse developed a similar product with the trade name Micarta.
No doubt these processes were licensed to Ford for timing gears or GE supplied parts to Ford.

[Flathead]

Thanks for the clarification on that.

[CarlG]

Originally Posted by JayJay

Dan McEachern, who posts here, makes a great set of matched gears. Steel crank and either aluminum or bronze for the cam. I bought a set for my Burtz and they are works of art.

I have Dan's bronze matched set in my Ron Kelley engine.

[Gene F]

If ya get a motor rebuilt from a busy shop they always come home with an aluminum gear. Seems like them sitting is hard o the other gears. It's not always about miles.

[nkaminar]

If you have ever had to change the timing gear on the side of the road, you will use the aluminum gear.

[Herb Concord Ca]

Times 2, I replaced mine in my garage.

[Tom F OHIO]

We replaced one in a farmers front yard years ago. Its not the easiest repair on the road.

[updraught]

What about the failure of the cast vs steel crank gear?