Tunnel ram tuning anybody?

Hey! Yes they recommend the 450's for the tunnel ram,but I believe thats for race purpose(full throttle, mec secondarys, high rpms) I was told that the accelerator pump and the squirter was to transfer the fuel from the idle circuit to the primary circuit(at idle your fuel air mixture screws set the mixture,mine are 3/4 turn out)once your on the primary circuit thats where the jets come in to play(your driving on the primary circuit the most especially at highway speeds) then the powervalve helps transfer to the secondarys and the spring comes it to play. each jet change I went on the highway for a 20 mins(20 miles?) staying on the primary circuit only(thats where the vacumn gauge comes in,15 on the gauge at 60 mph,6.5 powervalve was not opening) at an exit shut the car off a coasted to a stop,pulled a plug to get a reading.(I'm retired so I got alot of time on my hands).got some color on the plugs then dialed the squirter in then the secondary spring. been driving with this set up for about 500 miles in cold (30 degrees to 80 degrees) I use 1 electric chock sat at 1200 rpms(at cold startup depress gas 3 times fires right up) this set up works for me it does not follow carb recombination? have not check miles per gallon yet but plan on going to york in june I'll check it then. Pete

 

Pete, keep me updated on your setup. I'm going to put together the same setup for my Henry J.
PM me if you want.

 

edelbrock+ holley >>>660 center squirt holleys

 

Hey Thunderbolt!! Sure will!! Henry J AWESOME!! Are you going to use a small block ford? This is the first ford I have messed with and I am very happy with it!! (300.00 motor + 300.00 heads craigslist) Pete

 

Too bad Dennis Wilson's not with us anymore. He knew ALL ABOUT tuning the jets on those tunnel rams...

 

My main reason for going with the 450's was price. They're $500 a pair, vs. over $750 a pair for the 390's. I think the electric chokes would really be nice, as mine is cold blooded for the first 10 minutes of driving until the engine warms up. Actually any kind of choke would be nice, as the 450's come with none!
I do get pretty decent mileage for a hotrod that has 3.73 gears and no overdrive. Last I checked I got right at 16 mpg on the highway. Not economy car mileage, but it works for me!

 

Everyone should run a tunnel ram at least once, to see why you don't want one. You need a light car, high stall convertor, low gears, etc. Honestly I think tunnel rams are best for the dragstrip or on a boat. I am willing to bet that on the same engine, more than likely, a good roller cam with a 750 Holley is going to out pull just about any tunnel ram setup you are going to come up with on a street car.

What I really came here to say is that if you are changing motors, you are wasting time tuning the carbs for a low compression engine with a different cam.

What I hated the most about my tunnel ram was the lack of low end torque, and the frosting up in the mornings that was a clear indicator of why it took forever to warm up.

 

Several years ago, Hot Rod did a manifold dyno session on a warmed over
355. The base line was 486hp and I can't remember the TQ #. These #'s were achieved with with and 830HP Holley Wilson spacer and strip dominator manifold all worth about $1500. During the session the tried a Weiand Tunnel Ram with 2 450's. Not only did it make more 6 lb ft TQ & 6 HP at peak rpm, it made as much as 30 lb ft, of torque at rpm's BELOW 3,600. They also found similar results agains two planes included the Performer RPM. They tried the Edelbrock "street" tunnel ram with 650's and made even more (the only combo to go over 500hp). They mentioned that Barry Grant had claimed for years that a smaller plenum long narrow runner tunnel ram such as these two would be a killer combo if you didn't mind a hole in you hood, and this comparo proved it. The reason I've responded to this thread is to inform some, that not all tunnel ram combo's belong only on high rpm race engines. As stated earlier they will work on milder combos, you just gotta find the sweet spot for your combo. Here is mine with two Quadrajets, and some of the "experts" told me it wouldn't work.

 

16 is a better number than I would have ever figured.
I'm going to run a 5 speed with mine so I might go ahead & go with 4:11 gears after seeing that!

 

A friend of mine has a 327 in a roadster, 350 trans, 3.73 rear, 3000 stall, Edelbrock street tunnel ram w/ 2 500 cfm Edelbrock carbs. Very streetable, no flat spots, no hesitation, took a while to tune. Also set initial timing @ 18#, 36 total by 3000.

 

article.......

 

My dad has a tunnel ram in his t bucket with a 283 and it is very well mannered. I have one in my bucket with a 350 and it runs and drives ok as long as you dont hammer on it.
I havent had much time to tune it but I think I can make it better.
Now for my question: will a single carb tunnel ramact better and be easier to tune thn a dual carb one? I have both and I dont race the car so decent street manners are my goal. Btw I have the tunnel ram because I like the looks of it and cant afford a blower

 

A 486HP 355 is not exactly a mild-mannered engine. The dyno graphs started at 3000RPM. If you need to drive on the street, you need something that has good torque and throttle response at 1500-2000RPM. You can band-aid a regular tunnel ram to work, but it will never be strong down there, it will always be a pain in the butt. Some of us are willing to live with stuff like that - I have a cross ram on a 327 myself. But if you want a mild engine, say 350-400HP, to really work the way it should, you don't want a regular tunnel ram.

 

video at youtube by a30gasser 327 start up

this proves if you follow the directions that come with the manifold backinthe day supplied by Edlebrock&Holley for the 660holley the recommended carbs for the tunnelram.....it will work

 

Hey all!! Update on my tunnel ram tune up, 390cfm holley carbs,front carb jets #66-.066 hole, rear carb jets #67-.068 hole,6.5 powervalves,purple sec spring,# 28 squirter,30 cc pumps with stock pump cam,timing 10 before tdc.put on manual chokes(don,t need them,3 steps on the gas when cold starts right up,when warmed up no touch on the gas fires up) Pete

 

Agree with the statement that all tunnel rams are NOT alike! The taller tunnel rams with long runners seem to be more streetable without as much tuning needed. I've got the old Holley Pro Dominator that has shorter runners, smaller plenum, and larger size runners. My buddy has the Weiand that has a larger plenum and longer runners.
I warned him that his tunnel ram would take some tuning to run right on the street with his fairly mild 350, but he wanted the look. We swapped it on his engine along with a pair of Edelbrock 500 carbs, and it ran perfect right out of the box. Smooth idle, no cold blooded starts, and no off idle stumble. I was actually a little ticked as mine took so much work to get to the same point he's at.
I still would do a tunnel ram again, as it's running great now, but might have chosen a taller one for future projects that are street vehicles.

 

Here,s a video! Cold startup and a little run thru 3 gears!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8u1QUHdyRyU&feature=youtu.be