air cleaner questions

[Anonymous]

i modified a oil type air cleaner.i cut the bottom center out and reversed it .then welded it back in in order to get more clearence on top of the carb and hopefully more air flow .i cut the fuzzy part off the top .then got a new element.to fit . my theory is the air comes in thru the 2 inch gap between the lid and the bottom then i used a narrower element to hopefullly get some more air swirl inside the bottom then the air funnels down into the carb .i havent noticed any better mpg but more engine power when i accellerate .and more hill power.
i found the plans on how to do the conversion at fte tech articles.
is there any holes in my theory i would be glad to recieve input
the other reason i built this air cleaner is i couldnt find a stock aircleaner.
thank you
lrd56 a happy dinosaur

 

[Lazy JW]

As long as it is fully sealed so the air has to go through the element it should work fine. It won't be very helpful in cold weather though as there will be no way to heat the incoming air. I just got done putting a second snorkel on my air cleaner but haven't road tested it yet. I hooked up the vacuum controlled door and plugged the hot air intake on the new snorkel so it will still draw hot air through the original snorkel in cold weather.
Joe

 

[Anonymous]

Are you off-roading with your truck? I know little about off-roading, but it looks pretty violent. One of the reasons paper air filters were developed is that in the late '40s/early '50s the stock car racers were looking for something to replace those old oil-bath air cleaners. The cars would go cranking into a turn and a big slug of oil would slosh down the carburetor and hydraulic the motor.
Paper elements supposedly filter better than oil-bath air cleaners, and oiled foam filters and cotton filters (K&N) are better yet. But like you, I'm still using the oil bath aircleaner that came on my '66 Econoline 240. That old bull-nose van does surprisingly well on trails and fording streams, but nothing radical like the hard-core off-roaders.