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Ford 59AB Flathead V8 runs at about 190 degrees.
My 59AB flathead came to me with 160 degree thermostats and I could never get the temperature much above this. The car was orginally from Florida, so maybe they needed the extra headroom OR maybe it was never set up correctly. At any rate, after swapping the 160's out for 180's, my car heats up quickly and then runs steady at about 190 degrees.
I did drill a small bypass hole in the mounting flange of each thermostat.
I do wish the thermostat passageway was a little larger when fully open, but I was not able to find any high flow models that would fit my engine. This hasn't been an issue yet, but I haven't driven the car on any real hot days since changing out the thermostats. So far 60's, 70's and low 80's ambiant temperature.