|
Flywheel Alum vs Iron
I have heard different opinions about Alum flywheels vs Iron, can you guys help me make up my mind?
I am building a ERA with a 428 fe I have read this link by hayse http://www.mrgasket.com/haysfaq.htm the third question down Thanks, Mike |
It does say a lightweight high horsepower car - sounds like a Cobra.
As for the 60 foot times - they are important if you drag race, I guess. My car (with an aluminum flywheel) did a 1.7 second 60 foot time. I chose an aluminum flywheel so obviously I like them, they do make the engine sound better - when you hit the gas the engine revs FAST! Ths has been talked about before - try a search. |
I posted the same question a few weeks back. Do a search if your interested. There's one on e-bay at the moment. There about $450 through Summit. Kinda pricey but the guys who have them seem to like them in our application.
Cheers Nick |
Don't rule out billet steel for a flywheel. Try Centerforce
Roscoe |
How do I do a search on this subject???
Mike:confused: :confused: |
Depends on what you want to do with your Cobra replica. If you want to drag race, a steel fly wheel has more inertia because it has more mass and will get you off the line faster. It takes a little longer to spin-up a steel flywheel, though. An aluminum flywheel will rev-up faster because it has less mass and therefore it spins up faster. But, since it has little mass, it doesn't have much inertia and won't get you off the line as fast as a steel flywheel will.
General rule of thumb is use a steel flywheel for drag racing, an aluminum one for road racing. All around driving is a toss-up as far as I'm concerned. All this goes out the window, though, if you're building some kind of monster 650hp+ all out, nail-your-balls-to-the-wall, step-on-it-and-hang-on, drag racer... FWIW, I asked the same questions of Bob & Dennis Olthoff when I bought my SPF. Their experience is second to none in these matters. Their advice was to go with steel for the above reasons, as a steel flywheel is more durable and easier to find someone to refinish it when it's clutch time. Of course, that;s my opinion, I could be wrong... :p |
Idle is always a part of the puzzle.
I have a 486hp 460 crate with aluminum. A friend has the 535hp 460 crate with steel. These two cars idle exactly the same. I think it is the flywheels leveling the playing field. Just a guess. Bob ps..the aluminum is holding up fine after alot of abuse. I have a backup flywheel, clutch and pressure plate waiting for the day. This way I don't have to worry about how long it takes to get the old parts serviced. |
alum vs steel/iron
on bb fe/385 fords i would stick with the steel/iron, best practical all around. on our bb racer, the aluminum works fine, but doesn't seem like a lot o difference, just changes up your driving style into and out of apex. personally i think it works the brakes more, might be just me shakin the old 60's/70's feel of flywheel doom with the alum. had one explode dragracing in the 60's w/o a scattersheild, that you don't forget.
|
My questions were on smooth idle and did people feel safe revving them. Obviously a blowproof bellhousing is a must. A search is done under member visitor tools.
Cheers Nick |
I think steel is more durable in the long run and you can certainly have a steel flywheel lightened a lot. In our old dirt track car we were not allowed to run aluminum flywheels,but played around with a couple of old steel ones and had one lightened to within a few pounds of an aluminum and ran it for two seasons with no problems,no cracking or anything else. I never thought it would last it was so thin,thought it would crack soon,but help up well under 6,000 rpms all nite racing for two years till we went with a different flywheel,clutch setup.......
David |
| All times are GMT -7. The time now is 11:09 PM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.0
Copyright ©2000 - 2025, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Search Engine Friendly URLs by vBSEO 3.6.0
The representations expressed are the representations and opinions of the clubcobra.com forum members and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and viewpoints of the site owners, moderators, Shelby American, any other replica manufacturer, Ford Motor Company. This website has been planned and developed by clubcobra.com and its forum members and should not be construed as being endorsed by Ford Motor Company, or Shelby American or any other manufacturer unless expressly noted by that entity. "Cobra" and the Cobra logo are registered trademarks for Ford Motor Co., Inc. clubcobra.com forum members agree not to post any copyrighted material unless the copyrighted material is owned by you. Although we do not and cannot review the messages posted and are not responsible for the content of any of these messages, we reserve the right to delete any message for any reason whatsoever. You remain solely responsible for the content of your messages, and you agree to indemnify and hold us harmless with respect to any claim based upon transmission of your message(s). Thank you for visiting clubcobra.com. For full policy documentation refer to the following link: