He Made A V-8 Ford “The Hard Way”
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Tom Pike did his Ford 8N, V-8 conversion the hard way, keeping the full-size gas tank and retaining the tractor’s bell housing as is. Other modifications married the engine and tractor under a modified hood that was longer and higher than stock and added dual wheels, dual carburetors and dual exhausts.
“I did the conversion in 1999, and they weren’t as common as they are today,” says Pike, who has been restoring and reselling Fords since the late 1980’s. “I did things a little different from others I’ve seen since.”
Pike started with a 100 hp, flathead V-8 and a stock 8N. He bored out the cylinders and totally rebuilt the engine with new components. He also upgraded to a 12-volt electrical system and installed a Sherman step-up transmission and Dowden Foot Feed throttle.
In order to avoid modifying the bell housing, Pike replaced the V-8 starter with one from a flathead inline 6, which worked opposite the V-8. This required he reverse the starter ring gear on the flywheel.
The Stromberg carburetor normally sits level on an engine that is angled 5 degrees forward. Pike put the Edmunds aluminum intake manifold in a precision jig and milled a 5-degree angle off to let the dual carburetor sit level on the engine. The manifold matched up nicely with the Edmunds finned aluminum heads.
“Most conversions replace the gas tank with a 1 to 2-gal. tank,” says Pike. “I wanted to keep the original tank. This required raising the hood about 16 in. and extending it about 8 in.”
The raised hood required an extension to the dash. Pike had one from an original Funk 6-cyl. conversion kit, but it had to be modified.
“This is one part that is very hard to obtain, and I only had the one,” recalls Pike. “Instead of measuring twice and cutting once, I measured about 20 times and held my breath as I cut. It was successful.”
With the modified dash in place, Pike installed a custom built 4,000-rpm tachometer with hour meter. He also installed a custom made seat.
The V-8 required more cooling than the old radiator would provide. With the longer, higher hood in place, Pike had an aluminum radiator fabricated to fit. He also replaced the belt drive fan with a quiet electric fan and installed dual exhaust pipes.
“Most conversions I’ve seen have straight pipes with no mufflers,” says Pike. “I wanted my tractor quiet, so the dual exhausts have the quietest mufflers available. With the electric fan, you can stand next to the tractor and hear nothing but the ‘flattie’ sitting there running.”
To top off the conversion, Pike handed off all the sheet metal and other components to a friend with a body shop. He media blasted everything, made repairs as needed, followed it up with a professional paint job and then added clear coat to the finished product.
Pike has whittled his Ford collection down over the past few years, and due to some serious health issues 2 years ago, has been unable to attend any shows with his ‘Baby-8’. While it will be one of his harder decisions, he says he will be selling his pride and joy this year.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Tom Pike, Union, Neb. (ph 402 873-2156; outdoortom@windstream.net).
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He Made A V-8 Ford “The Hard Way” ENGINES Tom Pike did his Ford 8N V-8 conversion the hard way keeping the full-size gas tank and retaining the tractor’s bell housing as is Other modifications married the engine and tractor under a modified hood that was longer and higher than stock and added dual wheels dual carburetors and dual exhausts “I did the conversion in 1999 and they weren’t as common as they are today ” says Pike who has been restoring and reselling Fords since the late 1980’s “I did things a little different from others I’ve seen since ” Pike started with a 100 hp flathead V-8 and a stock 8N He bored out the cylinders and totally rebuilt the engine with new components He also upgraded to a 12-volt electrical system and installed a Sherman step-up transmission and Dowden Foot Feed throttle In order to avoid modifying the bell housing Pike replaced the V-8 starter with one from a flathead inline 6 which worked opposite the V-8 This required he reverse the starter ring gear on the flywheel The Stromberg carburetor normally sits level on an engine that is angled 5 degrees forward Pike put the Edmunds aluminum intake manifold in a precision jig and milled a 5-degree angle off to let the dual carburetor sit level on the engine The manifold matched up nicely with the Edmunds finned aluminum heads “Most conversions replace the gas tank with a 1 to 2-gal tank ” says Pike “I wanted to keep the original tank This required raising the hood about 16 in and extending it about 8 in ” The raised hood required an extension to the dash Pike had one from an original Funk 6-cyl conversion kit but it had to be modified “This is one part that is very hard to obtain and I only had the one ” recalls Pike “Instead of measuring twice and cutting once I measured about 20 times and held my breath as I cut It was successful ” With the modified dash in place Pike installed a custom built 4 000-rpm tachometer with hour meter He also installed a custom made seat The V-8 required more cooling than the old radiator would provide With the longer higher hood in place Pike had an aluminum radiator fabricated to fit He also replaced the belt drive fan with a quiet electric fan and installed dual exhaust pipes “Most conversions I’ve seen have straight pipes with no mufflers ” says Pike “I wanted my tractor quiet so the dual exhausts have the quietest mufflers available With the electric fan you can stand next to the tractor and hear nothing but the ‘flattie’ sitting there running ” To top off the conversion Pike handed off all the sheet metal and other components to a friend with a body shop He media blasted everything made repairs as needed followed it up with a professional paint job and then added clear coat to the finished product Pike has whittled his Ford collection down over the past few years and due to some serious health issues 2 years ago has been unable to attend any shows with his ‘Baby-8’ While it will be one of his harder decisions he says he will be selling his pride and joy this year Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Tom Pike Union Neb ph 402 873-2156; outdoortom@windstream net
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