I’m currently on the hunt for a hot Flathead. The guy who built the car did a nice chop and channel job, but he put in a small block with auto tranny. It’s a good engine, but an automatic in a street rod? No way!
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I’m currently on the hunt for a hot Flathead."
That would be really neat, although maintenance was frequent and important. If that's what you want,...
http://www.car-part.com/ or another wrecker network. A wrecker near you should also have access to a wrecker network. Might also try general Internet searches.
My dad raced flathead V-8s in super modifieds and had some flathead V-8s in street rods, too (yes, including a '50). The super modifieds required an engine rebuild every week (thin heads, very high compression, IIRC). A little later, he liked building overhead valve 292s for slightly later models more than he enjoyed flatheads.
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The guy who built the car did a nice chop and channel job, but he put in a small block with auto tranny. It’s a good engine, but an automatic in a street rod? No way!"
Agreed. Automatics are hard on brakes among other things. Racing automatics are lighter than standard transmission/clutch assemble combinations and alleviate some problems with stock automatics, but they're overly expensive and need more maintenance.
You might consider a more contemporary engine with a standard transmission. Fuel injection is nice, and recent electronics (without surveillance equipment) aren't all that hard to maintain. There's good knowledge specific to some models on many discussion boards.
Or you might want a flathead. Much to be said for those, and finding one is probably doable. Might even search to see if there's an aftermarket outfit for new flatheads.
The Internet is a great resource for technical knowledge.