model B engine improvement

[FrankWest]

If someday I replace my original head "cause I am confused" Sorry for the corny joke, with a high compression head should that be aluminum to get highest performance.
Is the aluminum better because it draws heat from the engine?

[Tom Wesenberg]

Actually you want the heat to stay in the cylinder to push the piston down.
I can't say which head would be better, but I'd stick with cast iron.

[MrBruce]

When I talk with our manufacturing people they all say cast. I know there's more chance for warping the Alum heads.

[CarlG]

Does anyone make a HC head for a "B" engine? I know you can use an A head on a B engine, but the water pump arrangement is different.

[Juggler]

Originally Posted by CarlG

Does anyone make a HC head for a "B" engine? I know you can use an A head on a B engine, but the water pump arrangement is different.

Dan Price does. I cut and paste this from his ebay listing

Here's my latest product for Model A and B engines. You may already have known that I used to produce the Thomas flathead cylinder head about ten years. Having sold that tooling I now have reintroduced, by popular demand , a copy of that head in a format for a B water pump. Externally it looks pretty much like the old Thomas head. Internally it is much different with added ribbing and increase thickness all throughout the casting to provide strength in area's that needed it, like between numbers 1 & 2 combustion chamber's and 3 & 4 chambers. The chambers provide a 7.5:1 compression ratio. The deck thickness of the gasket surface is 5/8 inch thick. Spark plugs are inclined at a 10 degree angle and use a long reach 14mm plug thread. The water pump end for the B pump uses a rubber 0-ring for pump sealing. Never needing a new gasket as this 0-ring last for a pretty long time. This head will use a standard B head gasket weather it's installed on an A block or B block.

Cheers

Juggs

[Bob Bidonde]

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The principal problem with an aluminum alloy cylinder head is galvanic corrosion. In the Galvanic Series, Cast Iron has values of -0.6 to -0.7 whereas Aluminum Alloys have values -0.8 to -1.0. This means that Cast Iron is relatively more cathodic than Aluminum Alloys, so the Aluminum Alloys will corrode.

In other words, putting Aluminum Alloys into contact with Cast Iron via an electrolyte such as the coolant makes a battery. The Aluminum Alloy will give up its ions (electrons in solution) until the Aluminum material is totally sacrificed.

The corrosion process can be significantly slowed by placing a more anodic sacrificial metal into the coolant such as a bar of Zinc. However, as the Zinc is consumed the corrosion rate of the Aluminum increases.

As for the stiffness, an Aluminum Alloy head can be made stiffer than a stock Cast Iron head by improving its bending moment of inertia with fore-aft fins. The higher the fins, the stiffer the head becomes. A uniform spacing of the fins resists the tendency of the head to warp.

[Jim Brierley]

Ed Winfield said that if you want to boil water, aluminum is best. If you want power, iron is best. Me having said that, the Price is very good.

[PC/SR]

Actually, an aluminum head is worse for performance because it does take heat away from the combustion chambers. I read somewhere that aluminum will cost about one full point of compression ratio effect compared to the cast iron because of lost heat.
That said, Winfield himself made aluminum heads, and many, including myself, use aluminum with good results. I doubt you would notice the difference except maybe at the top end. Personally, I think combustion chamber design is more important. A good aluminum design will beat a poor cast iron design.
I use a sacrificial zinc in the radiator for corrosion protection and have not had a problem.

[Bob C]

I don't think Frank can use a Model A head as his 33 uses the
short water pump.

Bob