1911 Options

[stewie]

What is the cheapest combination to get a 1911 out of a 1.7 stock everything?

Here is what i have in mind..

94mm pistons and cylinders.. I've heard 94mm is barely adequate so 96 might be a stretch...

stock cam

1.7 heads bored out to the OD register of a 1.8/2.0

Stock crank

stock rods

dual empi 34 carbs

Any other combination that is cheaper and more efficient?

[Optimusglen]

That's probably it. I've got a 1911 using nearly this setup (edit: I'm running 96 pistons). only I'm running Weber 40's.

Many will say that an aftermarket cam is required for carbs, for optimal power maybe, but with the stock setup and well tuned carbs a stock cam is adequate.

edit: I didn't replace the cam on mine because it was a rebuild from a previous owner, just wanted something running until I get my 6 in. If you have the case split at all, I'd suggest doing the cam. But as a bare bones build, it doesn't need it to run fine.

[stewie]

That's probably it. I've got a 1911 using nearly this setup (edit: I'm running 96 pistons). only I'm running Weber 40's.

Many will say that an aftermarket cam is required for carbs, for optimal power maybe, but with the stock setup and well tuned carbs a stock cam is adequate.

edit: I didn't replace the cam on mine because it was a rebuild from a previous owner, just wanted something running until I get my 6 in. If you have the case split at all, I'd suggest doing the cam. But as a bare bones build, it doesn't need it to run fine.

Yeah i'll probably end up getting an aftermarket cam for it. How was the power of the 1911 compared to the 1.7? Would you have gone up to 2 or 2056 ?

[Optimusglen]

Yeah i'll probably end up getting an aftermarket cam for it. How was the power of the 1911 compared to the 1.7? Would you have gone up to 2 or 2056 ?

I never drove mine as a 1.7. Previous owner did the 1911 stuff like 30 years ago. When I got the car the engine needed a reseal so I pulled it down to the shortblock and rebuilt from there after inspecting the cam condition through the cylinder holes. My cam and lifters were all in great shape.

The 1911 with a stock cam and Weber 40's certainly isn't fast, but with the weight of these cars you don't need a lot of power to be fun. It drives great and I never felt like it was under-powered to the point of being dangerous (i.e. hard getting up to speed for highway merging etc)

All things I wasn't really too concerned with since I knew I was doing a higher output engine at some point. If this is going to be your main jam engine, I would probably opt for a bigger build. But if you're pinching pennies and just want something drivable, go or it.