First off, how much air do you NEED to be able to measure? If the MAF you have is from a small 4-banger, it's upper limits may be fairly low.
Assuming the MAF you have is big enough, you'd need a definition file and tune that originally used that MAF. If it is from a fairly unpopular car (from a performance/modification aspect), then you may not have much luck finding a definition file or tune that matches the MAF you have so getting it's curve may be more difficult than simply installing some software and extracting out the MAF curve from a tune.
The next option is have your MAF flowed on a flow station. If you don't have a company that does MAF flow testing near you, this would involve you packaging up your MAF, sending it off to somewhere like C&L, and paying to have it flowed. Then pay to have it shipped back. But that could get expensive for a MAF that you later find after being flowed isn't big enough to do what you need in the 1st place. Shipping alone will run you probably $20 to-n-from. Flow services are usually a minimum of $30.
Before I did that with an unpopular/unknown MAF, I'd go on eBay and buy a 90mm Lightning MAF (aka LMAF).
Looking on eBay, those MAFs are relatively cheap (~$75 inc shipping), they have a flange made onto the MAF for easier mounting to fabbed-up stuff, and have very well known flow curves. Their internal architecture is also much better than older design MAFs so their accuracy won't be as affected by your flow station's intake track. I
think some LMAFs have a built-in Intake Air Temp sensor in them as well, which is needed to convert Mass-Flow to CFMs (verify this before assuming all LMAFs have an IAT sensor). And because they were the MAF on a performance-oriented vehicle, they flow a LOT of air. Like anything, there's going to be error. But I believe this would probably be a fairly low error and the most economical way to go...assuming the alternatives are more expensive than a $75 MAF.
The cheapest, but most time consuming option is if you can find a junkyard to pull MAFs off of, then you could rummage around on the EECAnalyzer.net website looking around at what definition and tunes are posted in the download section. The tune will contain the MAF curve of the MAF used on the vehicle that ran that tune. You can then cross-reference those tunes to what vehicle the tune was used on. With a long list of vehicles, go find that MAF in the junkyard, on ebay, or on Craigslist. But by the time you did all that, you would probably come out cheaper just buying an LMAF off eBay.
...Always Somethin'
89 Ranger Supercab, 331 w/GT40p heads, ported Explorer lower, Crane Powermax 2020 cam, 1.6RRs, FMS Explorer (GT40p) headers, Slot Style MAF, aftermarket T5 'Z-Spec', 8.8" rear w/3.27s, Powertrax Locker, Innovate LC-1, GUFB, Moates QuarterHorse tuned using BE&EA
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