Classic Inlines Performance out of biz? Recommendations 4 headers?

[Wilbur]

I saw this article yesterday that says Classic Inlines has been purchased by a new owner and the performance cylinder head is back in production.

The article starts out saying: "Since the first Mustangs and Falcons ...."
It would be more correct to say: "Since the first Falcons and Mustangs ...."

http://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/enthu...2AZ?ocid=ientp

Thank you Ew1, that was an informative article. It quoted the weights of the iron and alloy heads as being 46 pounds and 26 pounds respectively. That actually sounds light for the iron head.

It will be interesting to see what kind of performance Falcon owners get with this head and a mild build, meaning nothing more than a header, a two barrel carb, and nothing more or just inexpensive mods.

It would be nice if the above provides at least a 40 hp boost and 50 ft lb of torque, that should wake up a little Falcon.

[MacDee]

The new company is Vintage Inlines.
https://www.vintageinlines.com/

[Luva65wagon]

Run! Don't look back!

Freddie had one of these heads. Gary and I are both frightfully aware its true weight.

[Millennial Falcon]

In case anyone other than me is interested, the aluminum heads by Vintage Inlines are getting very close to production.

This will be the centerpiece of my entire build so i am quite excited and hoping for the best!
And yes I am aware of how not exciting that makes my build to all you V8 guys grinning as my car shrinks in your rearview mirror.

[Luva65wagon]

I highly recommend reading the Freddie Comes Alive thread here before you commit to your purchase. I'm fully aware the build can be done, having made one work, but a previous Falcon owner had equal enthusiasm prior to his build - only to eventually sell the car in frustration. I have a lot of my personal observations about this head in that thread that may help you pull it off.

[Millennial Falcon]

I read the thread you mentioned.
It was difficult to follow what the history of the build and later fixes were, but it seems you found the build quality of both the cam shaft and head to be suspect though.

Would you have any recommendations on making both of these purchases that could eliminate or mitigate these issues?
If this was your build, but not your personal car, would you even consider the inline 6 after that experience?

I'm worried now that the only recommendations I'll find here is something other than the inline 6. Don't get me wrong, i can listen to reason, but its the emotional turmoil of breaking up with my latest plan that gets me.

[Luva65wagon]

Matt,

You can build a pretty hot 6 without spending $2500 on just the head (or whatever they go for these days). Personally, if it were me having been the one building the motor and not just being the one who now has to figure out what a half-dozen other people did, and I wanted to use that head, I'd do port fuel injection and a 5-speed. These two items would have negated the lions-share of time spent on tinkering with it - and would have probably kept the car in the original owners possession as well. He had big eyes for the prospect of what this head would produce, but there were more hassles than it was worth; and every issue had root in this head swap. Not all 100% caused by the head, but because of what the head requires.

Granted, bling factor is substantial, and it has the potential for power you would be hard pressed to make with stock 6 parts, but you won't get too far from it with a machined big-log head of the correct match (internal bits: pistons, valve sizes, head volume, etc.). But none of this will substitute for opening the hood and seeing a big chunk of aluminum all shined up.

So, don't get me wrong, it has potential, but be aware the pitfalls. That's basically where I'm coming from
.. as a "been there, done that" sort of thing.

If you plan on an automatic, be sure to use a block allowing good torque converter selection with ample stall. You can't buy one off the shelf to fit a small bell housing block. Custom built TC will be around $500,and still be puny. This was a significant issue as the original owner blew up two TC's before getting a custom TC. Mostly due to the cam. Even a 2500 stall TC barely allowed it to shift into gear correctly. But you want a lot of cam to have the head provide more than bling. Again consider a 5-speed. You'll have far better experience. But you'll still want a large bell housing block for even this. A 8.5" clutch disc isn't enough, unless you can get a double stack clutch setup for this, which is doubtful.

Because the VI head has unequal length intake runners, port fuel injection would increase the tuning potential a lot. The 390 Holley works - and it really is the only carburetor you can use - but you'll be fiddling with it a lot. Perhaps a standard throttle - body style EFI would be more forgiving, but I didn't have the luxury.

So, in all, I'm just one guy who took over a project from another guy. I'm sure there are other guys who had totally different experiences with it. I looked to them back then with little luck. I really felt I was on my own - as did the original owner, who was paying others to do the work and breaking the bank to do so. I'm not trying to dissuade you from attaining your vision; you'll fail not having one, just offering a little flashlight to help you see it a little better.

Hope something here made sense. Really should have at least one cup of coffee before writing stuff like this.