Is a lightened flywheel overrated? (I think so)

[Chris in CT]

Originally Posted by BRENT in 10-uh-C

Yeah, me too Pete!

Hey Christopher, I'm glad you jumped in!! Thanx!! So using a Burlington crank as the baseline, what do you feel is the optimum weight for the flywheel/PP assembly on your crank using a 5.5/5.9 head and a Stipe cam that makes good torque in the low range??

Hi Brent,
This is getting pretty funny. Eigen functions, huh? That Ouija board is looking pretty good right now. Again, if we were to perform a Fourier Analysis on the rotating assembly, we could come up with an ideal weight for the flywheel/pressure plate assembly. My guess, based entirely on Ouija board consultations would be somewhere between 30 and 36 lbs as an ideal weight for an I-4 of 200 cubic inches and three mainbearings. My own flywheel is 40lbs stand-alone, but the next time I have the engine apart I think I'll try to get it to 36 w/ pressure plate. I have a single channel Fast Fourier Analyser, but you really need a two channel unit to do the necessary calculations... By the way, is your Ouija board single or dual channel?

Happy Thanksgiving to all cranks everywhere - balanced and unbalanced!