Any suggestions on what manifold to use on a with a dual carb setup on a 216? and if so, would it really make a diffence on hp? also looking for any advise on anything I can do to increse my horses on this bad boy, i know im kind of limited to what I can do. I guess I dont want to swap motors till I really have to (being lazy I guess)Its a fine cruiser but I want to be able to go on long trips if need be. Thanks
Any dual intake with a provision for heat will do. Yes, it's worth the effort, even on an otherwise stock engine. Tests in 50-60 year old articles and speed manuals show that dual carburetion gives a larger power increase than any other single modification. You've got to have dual exhausts, half for the power increase and half for the sound. I noticed a difference when I put a Mallory dual point in the engine in my '53, mostly from the performance oriented advance curve--the stock distributor's out to lunch on the amount of advance as well as the length of time it takes to come in. Keep in mind that a 216 has cast iron pistons and babitted rods, and will not put up with daily beatings for very long before something lets go. Their problems could be overcome in their day, but today a swap to a full pressure 235 makes more sense.
You think I would have to upgrade my distributor if I do the dual carb thing? But your right It does make more sense to get a bigger engine.
I had a 216 in my 52 pickup and i just didnt see the sense in keeping it. like what was already mentioned, the drip system just isnt as advanced as you can get. in my opinion if you are going to spend your money on a 6 i would spend it on a 235 with a pressurized oil system. plus you have a better engine to start with.
How commited to keeping it old school are you, and how much do you want to spend, do you like a challenge? The 216 can be converted to full pressure oiling, they ran these things in sprint/dirt track cars, you can put a 235 crank in, make a pretty hot engine out of a 216 if you want to. I'm going to with mine, just because! They are cool looking, have a race history, the info is out there if you look, there is an engine shop ion Atascadero that does full pressure conversions etc... Check out inliners international, and to help with the highway cruising change the ring & pinion ratio as you probably have 411:1 gears and can put a better ratio in for cruising. There was a LOT of speed stuff made for the 216, though its a bit hard to find now.....
I would, were I you. I see that, in another post, you're putting out feelers for a GMC. Distributors interchange between early Chevy sixes and GMCs, so it's not like it would be money wasted; if you go to a GMC later, you can use the Mallory in it as well. If your 216 seems to run well presently, I say go ahead and hang some speed equipment on it. You can always have a 235 or GMC waiting in the wings for when the babbit pounder signs off.
Get California Bill's book on souping up Chevy sixes and GMC's. Written in the day, with lots of good ideas. Reprints are available. A powerglide rear end is an easy fit and will improve ratio's and give your ride lower RPM's. I'd suggest moving away from Lucky Dip Lube and get a full pressure 235 mill, 54 and up. A 235 will let you swap exhaust and intake manifolds etc across later if you want to soup your 216 while you are looking for the right 235. The intake manifolds are not exaclty the same, but you can run a 216 intake on a 235 with adaptor rings which are readily available. Easiest way to tell a 216 intake is the carb bolt hole spacing which is 2 11/16 for a 216 and 2 15/16 for a 235. Quite a few surface on the 'bay, so look for tattersfield, nicson, thickstun, edmunds. The offy manifold being repopped at the moment are easily available, but they are not era correct. The earlier ones have rounded ends, and the reppoped ones are square. Lots o 235's being swapped out for SBC's etc these days so getting one should not be a major hassle. Inliners is a handy source of info, so is Chevytalk, but nothing touches the HAMB!
Pretty much just trying to get as much hp as I can without spending too much loot, I do eventually want a 305 of even a 350, but for now just looking for tips. Appreciate evryones input.
I've got a pre-war Thickstun two pot intake with the carbs and the linkage that I would sell. It all came off a 37 chev pickup I'm building. PM me if you are interested.
It sucks big time..but the the older we want the cars to be, the engines often should be updated with a later example. A pressurized system is a must if you want to do any serious modification for HP. You run a model A but a model B engine is better, you have a 40s chevy but a late 50s stovebolt is best. It sucks and it figures.
You could always pretend that it's 1951 and that you have to modify the engine you've got because fully pressurized engines won't come out for another two years yet.
Jack Clifford is a retired aerospace engineer who started Clifford Performance (cliffordperformance.net) specializing in 6 cyl upgrades. They told me to scrap any plans to increase hp on the 216 (my son and I are building a 51 Styleline) due to the splash oil system. Must have a full-pressure oil system. Tom Langdon is a retired GM engineer who runs Langdon's Stovebolt (stoveboltengineco.com) also specializing in 6 cylinders. Tom says exactly the same thing. These guys want to sell you bolt-on upgrades, but are honest. Tom is great, will tell you everything you need to know about GM 6's. Ask him (theboss@stoveboltengineco.com)
why don't you just put a newer engine in? one that is fully oiled has good pistons rods etc and screams when you put your foot down? just my opinion
Heathen, any idea if there is anything to add the better adcance curve to a stock single point? I'm running my stock dizzy with a pertronix? or could i just get a mallory dual and put the pertronix in it to get the better curve?
i bet you can pick up a full pressure 235 for what your going to spend on dual carbs,dist, and hedders.
I am quoting myself from a similar thread. www.inliners.org The gospel according to inline. Keep 'em inline. Six in a row means go. Mean buzzin' half dozen.
blaaaah i put 5000 miles on the ol 216 last year highway slow fast what ever run it till she bblows and dont stick a 305 in there be differnt run the 6 . .. dual carbs dual exhaust still got to drop in the mallory i got from heathen
i just saw 235 on craigslist (phoenix) in lake havasu az for 300.00 the guy thinks it a 53 engine but its a 55-57 or so you can tell by the front side mounts.
The Jalopy Journal
