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V-8 ford air compressor

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tommyw

01-21-2001 12:20:16

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a friend har a gardner schmit air compressor built from a ford 302 it is a factory job. this looks like a way to build a cheap high volume air compressor. i have two questions how do they keep the 4 cylenders from drawing in gas?? why does it run smooth with 4 on one side firing and the other 4 pumping air.

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Gordon in IN

01-25-2001 10:37:06

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Re: v-8 ford air compressor in reply to tommyw , 01-21-2001 12:20:16

It's a FORD. The firing order on the fords fires a cylinder in each bank alternaterly with the cylinder in the other bank. (That's why Fords sound so nice with dual exhaust and even with straight pipes and dual exhaust.) If you build such a compressor with a Chevy engine you might get it to work, but it will sound very strange when it is running. (Check the firing order on the Chevy engine.) Good luck, Gordon in IN

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Chris

01-22-2001 18:33:16

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Re: v-8 ford air compressor in reply to tommyw , 01-21-2001 12:20:16

We had a factory tool for our 1932 B farmall that screwed in place of one of the sparkplugs. I suppose it pumped air / fuel mixture in the tires but it never seemed to cause any trouble. My dad and grampa used it as there only compressed air source for 45 years!

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John Garner

01-22-2001 12:50:27

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Re: v-8 ford air compressor in reply to tommyw , 01-21-2001 12:20:16

Back in the 1970's, one of my Air Force buddies decided to make a engine/compressor from a Plymouth in-line 6. He figured that fire and air cylinders should alternate to maintain balance and so -- against advice from me and several other friends -- he made cylinders 2, 4, and 6 compressor cylinders, leaving 1, 3, and 5 as engine cylinders.

Now, almost all in-line 6 cylinder engines of that era fired 1-5-3-6-2-4, and his was no exception. Well, except that the compressor cylinders didn't fire after his rework. So all 3 power strokes happened on the same crankshaft revolution, and the flywheel had to pull the crank through the next revolution . . . against air pressure in the compressor cylinders.

Talk about an engine "runnin' funny"! Or at least some of us thought it was funny, although it did run for a couple of hours before it did its best to imitate a Mission Impossible tape recorder.

The moral of the story? If you want to try to make one of these yourself, take out every other cylinder in the firing order . . . not every other cylinder going down the block.

John

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Wardner

01-21-2001 21:43:56

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Re: v-8 ford air compressor in reply to tommyw , 01-21-2001 12:20:16

These compressors have been around since at least the Model A Ford days (1928), maybe even Model T days although I havn't seen one of those. Schraam used to buy six cylinder IH tractors and use half the cylinders for air and the other half to drive the compressor and move the tractor. Compressors don't get more portable than that.

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Frank

01-22-2001 18:24:09

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Re: Re: v-8 ford air compressor in reply to Wardner, 01-21-2001 21:43:56

I saw one made from a 4 cyl. Willys Jeep engine. The #2 and 3 cyl. were compressors while the #1 and 4 supplied the power. I saw this at an auction. Don't know if it ran or not.

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john d

01-21-2001 16:21:54

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Re: v-8 ford air compressor in reply to tommyw , 01-21-2001 12:20:16

We rented an air-powered jack hammer and compressor about 10 years ago to break up a substantial amount of concrete at our church. The unit we got had a small Ford V8 in it, and it ran on just one bank of 4 cylinders, as you mentioned.

It looked to me like the manifold had been blocked on one side so air-fuel mixture couldn't enter. I don't know if it used the original valves or not. Looks to me like you could remove the valve train on one bank and set it up with check-valves so it would draw air in on every down-stroke of the piston, and make every up-stroke a compression stroke. That would pump a tremendous amount of air.

Most V8 engines can be made to run pretty smoothly on the 4 cylinders of one bank, if you increase the idle speed a little bit.

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rhudson

01-21-2001 15:25:38

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Re: v-8 ford air compressor in reply to tommyw , 01-21-2001 12:20:16

i saw something like that years ago and there are plans or procedures written up somewhere. Lindsay Publications Inc.? The intake is modified to feed air/fuel to only four or six (can't remember). the exhaust manifold is modified the same way. The remaining cylinders are fed filtered air through inlet valves that have very weak springs and no lifters. in outer words they are modified to be check valves. the exhaust valves are left orginal, but the exhaust manifold is modified or built to be the compressed air outlet. the one i saw was running a large open air sandblaster, i couldn,t get too close to it and never had a second chance to see it.

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01-21-2001 15:37:14

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Re: Re: v-8 ford air compressor in reply to rhudson, 01-21-2001 15:25:38

The manifolds are modified to feed one cylinder bank as a four cylinder engine and fresh air to the other bank. the cam is reground to make the engine operate as a four cylinder on one bank with the other operating as an air compressor sharing a common crankshaft. My brother had five mounted on vacuum trucks as the vacuum source. They ran great for years.

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ltf in nc

01-21-2001 15:47:03

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Re: Re: Re: v-8 ford air compressor in reply to Cj, 01-21-2001 15:37:14

A source and the full name of the compressors are here
Link

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Pete the Plumber

01-22-2001 10:43:32

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Re: Re: Re: Re: v-8 ford air compressor in reply to ltf in nc, 01-21-2001 15:47:03

I saw one of these many years ago using a Ford flathead V-8. Perhaps Schramm. Nicely done factory made job.

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tractornut

01-22-2001 16:23:30

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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: v-8 ford air compressor in reply to Pete the Plumber, 01-22-2001 10:43:32

I have a freind of mine that has a flathead Ford compressor. Id be glad to get a photo of it if youd like

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tractornut

01-22-2001 16:22:46

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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: v-8 ford air compressor in reply to Pete the Plumber, 01-22-2001 10:43:32

I have a freind of mine that has a flathead Ford compressor. Id be glad to get a photo of it if youd like

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tommyw

01-22-2001 20:45:15

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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: v-8 ford air compressor in reply to tractornut, 01-22-2001 16:22:46

i think i have figured how to build one, get a v-8 block off the intake to the carb on the compressor side, let the compressor side intake through a filter (drill and tap some holes in the intake???) install pop off valves where the spark plugs go (150 psi) hook to the exhaust manifold for the air discharge. am i on the right track?? the compressor i saw is 125 cfm what would a 454 or a big diesel pump with their high compression ratios? PS id love to see that picture

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ltf in nc

01-25-2001 10:36:15

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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: v-8 ford air compressor in reply to tommyw, 01-22-2001 20:45:15

I believe that you need to exhaust through the sparkplug hole using a checkvalve. The exhaust valve could not be used as if it were operated from the cam as it is open every other piston stroke. It would be best to intake air through a check valve on each down stroke of the piston and to exhaust on each up stroke as a two cycle engine, not as a four cycle. Coolant would need to be circulated by the checkvalves to keep them from over heating, the same manner as if the engine were running off fuel.

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Whoa,..Kits and plans are available

01-23-2001 10:29:42

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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: v-8 ford air compressor in reply to tommyw, 01-22-2001 20:45:15

Look around first,be safe,save $$$,chk for ads in back of Pop Mechanics,Mother Earth News etc,do web search....Don't trash a good engine fumblin
around...Get input from good sources,theres a heck of a lot of variables here as to plumbing,cam timing,valves,properly sizing carburation etc,etc.You don't want to end up with a 500lb metal yard ornament.And theres a lot of good used hi output compressors out there for sale reasonably priced.Sometimes ya gotta ask yerself"If this is so good,why ain't everybody doin it?"...Been there/Done that

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tommyw

01-23-2001 11:35:05

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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: v-8 ford air compressor in reply to Whoa,..Kits and plans are available, 01-23-2001 10:29:42

already got a 4000 pound yard orniniment one of those used air compressors.i was going to use a junkyare engine to play with <100.00

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