Looking for input /opinions

[draggin49]

Originally Posted by rotorwrench

The McCulloch superchargers of that vintage had their ups & downs. McCulloch updated them as problems showed up. One was oiling. When the oil gets broken down by use, the blower starts to get noisier. They improved it early on but the worm screw drive has a tendency to wear rather quickly and the gears are unobtanium. Folks that want to use them have been having new gears fabricated by machine shops that specialize in gear hobbing and the like. I think material shortages in the early 40s sort of shut the project down at McCulloch so it only lasted for a few years. They still made superchargers but mostly for military applications. After the war, McCulloch started a company using his middle name Paxton. Those superchargers were manufactured for a long time in various configurations & model numbers.

Great info , much appreciated. McCulloch seemed to be a pretty interesting /successful guy . I was gonna search out some of the various guys running the same one I have and see who they used to source those parts that are no longer obtainable .

[rotorwrench]

Robert McCulloch was like Howard Hughes in a way except he wasn't as mental. His parents were very wealthy & left him the where with all to do anything he wanted too. He moved out to California as well just like Howard but he wasn't as quick to pour funds into monster projects like Howard did. He pretty much did whatever he felt like doing at the time and sold off the stuff he was bored with. He was a good engineer and had hired a lot of other good engineers. All the problems they had with the 37 thru 40 series blowers were ironed out with the VS series Paxton blowers. Variable speed made a lot more sense but it took a lot more engineering to make it work.

If you have a 39M or later unit then you should have one of the better units that McCulloch made in that era. By that time frame, they had settled the design issues to a pretty fair degree. They only thing about those blowers is the fact that you have to wind them up more to get more boost. They don't have a lot of boost going on at low RPMs. This is why they developed the variable speed drives in the later post war designs. Your going to have to have some heavier valve springs when you boost. The blower tries to force the intake valves open so they got to stay shut when they are supposed to be.

[Kahuna]

Solid Axle
I don't understand this statement at all:
Why would anything need to be modified, etc for the S.co.T.
I have a perfectly good running stock 8BA and installed a S.Co.T. blower on it. I wanted to have everything set up correctly before modifying the engine. It took a lot of thought and fabrication to fit into a 32. My new plan is to leave as is till it needs rebuilding or I get bored.
If you decide to go this way just don't push that early flathead too hard.

[solidaxle]

Originally Posted by Kahuna

Solid Axle
I don't understand this statement at all:
Why would anything need to be modified, etc for the S.co.T.
I have a perfectly good running stock 8BA and installed a S.Co.T. blower on it. I wanted to have everything set up correctly before modifying the engine. It took a lot of thought and fabrication to fit into a 32. My new plan is to leave as is till it needs rebuilding or I get bored.
If you decide to go this way just don't push that early flathead too hard.

Modified = Souped up!


Cam, Merc crank, relieve the block.

[Flathead]

Originally Posted by solidaxle

Modified = Souped up!


Cam, Merc crank, relieve the block.

Now we're talking.

[Tinker]

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Originally Posted by BUBBAS IGNITION

I guess at my age and tons of cars over the years etc. My suggestion would be use what ya go , put it together and enjoy it.... just drive it and let it tell ya what you need.
Your other options are $$$$$$$$ to open pandoras box etc would cost a fortune for very little gain etc.....

Ya I'm halfway with ya here. If you can spare a block, go for it. They are some tough beasts. I get just as much enjoyment out of a 37 block I know nothing about (haven't torn into it but runs great), as a do a 37 block I spent loads rebuilding. Not sure which one might implode with a "turbo" type supercharger. Maybe neither. Root might be softer but it all boils down to the systems that need to work to make it work. If I hd the parts I'd run it.


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