Technical What's the neatest/coolest/cleverest/pretty way to route plug wires on a SBC?

Yep; really nice. Maybe I need to go back to ramhorn manifolds. I gave away the ones I used to use but it's not like there aren't more out there.

 

Just be glad it isn't a bb Mopar. I've never seen a way to really run those plug wires and keep them nice and manicured looking.

....

 

When mine is done it is going to be very much like pprather's. Looms on the back of the block and the 2 wire clips at the top of the block between the plugs. The front two wires will run down to a retainer on an oil pan bolt and up under the motor mount.
I'm wondering, is there enough clearance down lower between the oil pan and the exhaust pipe to make a bracket for a loom and run the wires forward there?

 

how long are some of these wires that some of you are doing--must be a foot or two longer than the 'easy' way..

 

Best Way , & your Not Short !
$150- 200 ish

 

where is the roll of 440?

 

I'm assuming Sarcasm ? !
If not 100 ft roll , more then enough to do a few 440s

 

These are nice & neat , however , a leaky valve cover , a leaky exhaust gasket , a valve lash adjustment become a bit of a pain having to undo & move all that is now in the way , especially on a hot engine , BTDT .

 

packard 440 wire--back when

 

Gotcha ,
I missed the Packer Reference,
When in doubt always a Dodge !!

 

Use 57 Chevy banana shields [they need trimming for side mounts]

 

On mine I'm just using standard length early 60's ram horn wires. Last time I bought some they came with a little extra length and you crimp the coil end terminals.

 

@atch i can’t help since I’ve never owned a small block Chevy of any sort but I’ll admit most of mine the plug wires are visible, it doesn’t bother me.

 

These are chrome which I like better than the billet ones. Can't remember the brand, Summit sells them.

 

Hello,

The video of the curved tube is fine, if there is a lower water/moisture drain away from the plugs . Road grime, car wash, rain, and puddles, all contribute to the water incursion into the motor compartment. So, proper drainage is necessary. The bottom of the tube could have holes drilled so it allows seepage straight down before it gets to the plug wires.

We used all sorts of separators to keep the 440 wire and Rajah End Plugs from touching the hot exhaust pipes. The ones that eventually were placed under the header system worked the best. No tube or shield necessary. In various curving points, they were clipped together. The wires were routed under the headers and came up with the 90 degree Rajah Clips. But, like all things, changing plugs after a warm up run or run(s) required long sleeve shirts and care, otherwise a nasty burn was on your fingers or hands.

Where are those black Packard 440 Wires with Rajah End Clips? All coming from a Joe Hunt Vertex Magneto…

The photo below from @Donut Dave is the type that works for headers and Y exhaust headers. Very neat arrangement. The underneath route is the safest and cleanest in any compartment.

Jnaki

But, for those that had different problems with their own plug wires, the alternative would be to modify the one in the video to fit the SBC motor.

If one were to make a tube system for an SBC motor, it could be almost the same as the video, with the drainage holes for drainage. Or, the “L” bend with a hole or two, would be lower than the tube going to the plugs…YRMV

 

Here is the way I'm going on a 327 with cast ram horn headers. I didn't want to go behind the manifolds as it is too close and makes the wires longer and hard to remove if you have too.

 

Here’s a before pic of my “T” when I acquired it, followed by an after shot when I cleaned it up a bit…

 

C'mon Mike, just go back to the ramhorns

 

Not really a big deal, the wires stay together and you just move the whole thing over out of the way

 

That’s perfect!
What’s the story on the manifolds? Lots of sanding? Alumicoat?
Thx.

 

@Donut Dave,

I'm liking this too and wondering how many hours it tool to get them looking like this.

OR, are these aftermarket that came looking this good?

 

Purchased 2-1/2” after market ram horn manifolds which are somewhat smoother than stock. Then I ground/sanded off all the casting lumps, bumps and numbers. After that I lightly bead blasted and applied Cerakote glacier gray. Time consuming but worth the effort! Donut Dave

 

^^^^^ Thanks for the response Dave. They’re great! I really like the flat shape. Looks like they’re pretty inexpensive on E-Bay.

 

Yes it is okiedoie

 

Nice work on the head pipe.

 

My exper4ience has been that you need to make the wires for a truly neat appearance.

Granted, it's a BBC in my 55 Chevy but you get the point. I ordered the parts from Ton's on eBay.

 

I used 90° terminals at the cap and spark plugs and cut my wires to exact length to keep them tidy. I made some little 1/8" tabs to position the wires where I wanted them along the block and oil pan and bolted them on using existing holes in the block. I used black plastic looms from MSD to hold the wires and screw them to the tabs I made and black zip ties keep the wires separated but neat along the back of the block.

 

Nice work, took some thought.

 

I’ll play
On my OT C-10 W/Hooker Super Comp headers. I believe they are Moroso BBC seperators. It is hard see, but I have a loose 4 wire seperator where they come off the distributor.