i put an 8ba flathead in a 1930 model a . i also installed a vega steering box for cross steer . is there a ford exhaust manifold i can use to clear the steering shaft.
A whole lot of variables could be happening in how you placed things. I would think there are quite a few manifolds that would work. Or maybe none of them would work.
I was just sitting and waiting for my lunch order to arrive. I thought maybe it would get the message across that we need more info. Evidently I wasn’t clear enough.
A picture, so we can see the general spatial relationships. A simple list of parts is semi meaningless. 10 people could use the same parts and nine of them arrange them stupidly and cause unnecessary and avoidable problems. Happens all the time. So as @alchemy points out, he could nominate certain manifolds which probably would work, but the the way the OP has installed things already, they may not. Sometimes when things get down to the 1/4" of clearance you really need all the parts to mock up and possibly move things slightly to allow them to all play nice.
One of my friends went through this a couple years back. @Kim Strobeck tried about everything and ended up having headers built to fit his 31 with 8BA. It depends where you mounted the engine, how high or low you mounted it, where that box is, etc. Far too many variables for a quick answer. My 34 with 8BA and vega box used an off the shelf set of Reds headers but that is an entire different animal. Kim collected a few manifolds that he still has I think. The only one we could not find was the Ford Pilot (English). They are very tight fitting but we also heard they crack easily. Like the guys said, post the pictures, show us what you up against and we will help if possible. I tagged Kim so he can help out as well since he is the one with first hand experience. I just drank his booze and provided encouragement.
i thought some one did this. & could tell me how he did it. some times you get a lot of help. some time you get a guy waiting for his lunch
But you do get why he can’t help you right? Post a photo and we’ll do our best to be helpful but with out one it’s about two steps away from asking a person how much a bag of grocery’s cost.
About 10 years ago I bought a package deal at a swap meet from a guy that gave up on his 8BA 30 coupe project. I didn't buy the car itself, only the parts he had accumulated and never installed. There was a complete under the floor clutch/brake pedal assembly with the master cylinders, a set of original Fenton headers, a Vega box and a lot of other parts not relevant for this discussion. My 30 A coupe had a set of crudely homemade headers mounted to the 8BA when I bought it. The collectors were actually made from a couple of oil filter housings. Priceless! but total crap. Looking back, I had just as much trouble locating the clutch/ brake pedal assembly as the headers. I still have less than 3/8" clearance between the block and brake pedal arm. It was also still necessary to get a little creative on the frame boxing to accommodate the passenger side header. The Pitman arm was another problem to solve. Initially I heated and bent it to fit and operate good, but lost ground clearance because of the box position. Since then the car was channeled the width of the frame and the engine raised an equal amount. This solved the Vega box/pitman arm problem. I have yet to do it but I now have enough room to remount the Vega box higher, gain ground clearance, so no need to bend the Pitman arm. The Fenton header fits without any steering interference. Raising the engine helped a ton. It just seemed like a "steal from Peter to pay Paul" situation for me. Knowing what I know now, I think a set of Reds headers might have fit easier. Like everyone has said, your specific plan and parts being used will dictate what will have to be done. Good luck!
Still waiting on a photo. Almost assuming you’re messing with us at this point. removing the countless different places you could have placed the 1. The engine 2. The spot where the column goes through the fire wall 3. Bends you may have in your steering shaft I drew the possible places where the column may fall if you only changed where the box is mounted. the green lines are what your asking us how to work around. Do you see why we need a photo?
I do know there is one that has worked; however, this advice is always too late. If you want to use a Stock manifold you should have it mounted to the Motor while under construction and build mounts and steering to clear it, not the reverse. That said you might try a 49-53 Right side and loop the pipe from the Front outlet around and back. That comes from using a stock manifold in a Stock car to get dual exhaust back in the 50's. (yes, I know it really don't help much but). No, I'm not waiting for my Lunch.
You could do what I did and buy a bunch of parts and hope they work until everything falls into place. But if the box is already in its permanent home you can go on Van Pelt's website and look at the different years of flathead drawings and see which manifolds look like they will work for you. Without seeing what you're working with via some pictures then there is only so much in the way of offering suggestions. I would guess some manifolds that dump towards the rear would be the ticket, or they will line up perfectly with the steering shaft. Who really knows for certain?
If using a set of Ford manifolds doesn’t work out for you, Red’s Headers makes a set specifically for an AV8 with a Vega box. Like others have noted there are way too many variables in play here, but here are photos of my AV8 with Vega box and Red’s Headers #3448.
But really, do you know how Simple for you to build a manifold like this that would do the job for you. If you can build your own steering and motor mounts you can do this as well. It's nothing at all and it works.
I'd go with the Reds headers, and if they need slight modifications to fit your car, that would be easy to do.
Beautiful engine/engine bay! That is some crazy attention to detail! Noticed the body colour matched paint around the openings in the tube for the spark plug wires. Makes my OCD look “normal”. Lol!
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