[ErnieF]

Sorry to be slow to respond, my mother had to be admitted to the hospital and life is full at the moment.

Originally Posted by Bob Johnson

If you push down on the front of the engine the front mount springs should compress a little.

Everything in the front seems seated properly. On the suggestion of others, I loosened the bolts of the rear motor mounts. I think that helped some, but wasn't a complete solution.

Originally Posted by Marshall V. Daut

Could you have a bad tire, perhaps split open on the inside of the wheel where it can't be seen?

Rear tires are new, front tires are same as new. New can still be defective, but it really seems to be rpms and not speed that causes the vibration. I can push in the clutch to drop my rpms but not change my speed, and the vibration goes away. It seems to me if it was tires, clutch or no wouldn't matter.

Originally Posted by Big hammer

Yep ! Isolation of the normal vibrations is the key, the exhaust rear clamp is a major problem fixable with a modern hanger, cracked engine splash pans is another

A lot of people are saying some holdback vibration is normal, but this seems excessive. I just put on an Ares muffler, and they come with their own rear clamp that is fiberglass lined to allow the muffler to slide. I don't have engine splash pans on my car.

Originally Posted by nkaminar

I have the Float-A-Motor rear engine mounts. My solution was to loosen up the bolts that go through the rubber cushions on the mounts...

The lightened flywheel does not help...

A number of people have suggested I try the FAM. I had originally resisted the idea, but I did try loosening the bolts of the rear motor mounts on my originals. As I said earlier in this post, I think it helped some, though it wasn't a complete solution.

Interesting thoughts on the flywheel. I'll explain below, but I'll soon have access to a car with a Burtz engine identical to mine, but it will have the original flywheel and clutch/pressure plate. It will be quite interesting to drive it and see how it compares to mine.

Originally Posted by Benson

There is a known problem with those UJoints:
I do not know if this causes your problem but U Joint is wrong shape and size to work in a Model A clamshell.

I had also heard that was a problem for a while, but it is my understanding that this was corrected in the later runs. Mine has a 2023 manufacture date. Regardless, I have checked that and mine fit tight and is not hitting anywhere.

Originally Posted by Lawrie

I too tried all things but found it was cracked rear engine mounts

Glad you found your problem! I've checked mine, and found no cracks.

Some additional information to add to all this. I did a compression test earlier this evening, and all four cylinders showed 80 pounds. I got the brilliant idea to show visually the vibration of the engine by setting a jar of water on the bell housing in front of the transmission. Overall, I think I'm happy with the engine when it's just sitting there with me adjusting the throttle. That said, I've never heard another Burtz engine in person to have any comparison. Of note, there is a slight ticking noise (perhaps more of a pinging sound) you can hear in the video if you listen closely. I haven't yet figured out what that is or where it's coming from. And unfortunately, I cannot remember for sure if I heard it before I installed the Mitchell or not. It sounds like it's coming from the bell housing area, but I can't fathom anything in there that could be doing that. I just had it apart to install the transmission and nothing seemed amiss. I still can't post the link here, but it's in one of my replies on the VFF thread.

As it happens, a friend's daughter decided she wanted a Model A as her first car, so I have a 29 phaeton sitting in my shop. It is getting a Burtz engine with an almost identical configuration to mine save it will have the original flywheel, pressure plate, and clutch instead of the lightened flywheel and the v8 clutch/pressure plate. The original flywheel and pressure plate for that car do have match marks showing where they have been previously balanced. My plan at the moment is to put my car on the back burner. I feel like I can drive it and enjoy it for now, and just try to avoid the scenario where it vibrates the most. I'll go ahead and finish the Burtz for this other car and finish rebuilding whatever it needs. Once it's together, I can test drive it and have some comparison to mine, and then decide from there what my next steps should be on my car. Sometimes I think, this vibration can't be normal and I need to keep digging to find it. Other times, I think I'm tried of digging and just want to get out and drive. That makes it much easier to lean toward the voices saying this is just how these cars are. I'm still open to new thoughts if anyone comes up something. But otherwise, I will report back once I have the phaeton going. It may take me a little while, but I'll definitely post what I find.​