bottom end · FF-0214

Can a stock Flathead crank and rods take 5,800 rpm?

Joe says yes in his engine. His shift point is 5,800 rpm on a stock crank and stock rods, and it has been shifted there maybe a thousand times with no issues. He calls the skinny-looking Ford rods rugged, and recalls that at the 1933 or 1934 World's Fair Ford twisted one 360 degrees and hung a car from it.

Expert

Joe Abbin

Evidence

expert attributed

Component

crankshaft and connecting rods

Applicable scope

Joe Abbin's supercharged 1934 Ford (the Motorhead Mart Special) with a 1950 Mercury-based Flathead V8