How important is muffler design?

Never been too high tech with my rods. When it came to exhaust, I'd run Cherry Bombs, Orange Peelers, Smitty's or the Thrush gl***packs with the woodpecker on them. Just got my latest on the road and wondering how to finish it up.

1955 Olds 2 door sedan that I don't plan to race. It's still got an Olds drivetrain 350/350. Mild hop up I.E. port/polish, cam, comp balance, 800 cfm, a few head tricks.

Do I need more back pressure than straight through bullets to do it justice?

 

No.

 

nope, bullits make good power, and sound decent.. loud but decent... hell my gl*** packs got stolen and straight pipes in place

 

Be sure to install the Muffler Bearings after the Thorkle Rod is connected ,that's the easy way to do it and extremely important

 

Glad you said something about the muffler bearings Rod cause I forgot. I did remember the bored out ash trays and overhead floor mats though............lol

 

If your not all out racing, mufflers or gl***packs are all about the sound. Go for what sounds good to you, You probably won't notice a few HP the "bad" exhaust may or may not cost you.
Now, if your racing, where .010s matter, that is a different story. Gene

 

It all depends on what you want to achieve. The top fuel guys tell me a set of zoomies are hard to beat, and any type of muffler on a top fuel dragster is really really bad news. But if you want to keep the noise down a bit, other factors come into it. The idea of a totally silent 1,000 HP muffler with zero back pressure sounds like a really good deal. But it just ain't possible. What you need is a pressure gauge and a sound level meter. What works well on a high revving four cylinder, probably will not work on your low revving big block truck. There is no one simple answer.

 

Thrush builds a welded muffler that has the Flowmaster sound and its about half the cost. As for old school sound theres always the round "truck" muffler , it has a nice hollow sound that wont drive you nuts on that long hill. Smittys ..well they are just to quite for me . I put a set on a 31 ModelA with a 283 in it and it was DEAD quite. I've been doing exhaust work since 1977 and I've seen all the fads come and go. Turbo mufflers , gl*** packs, truck mufflers, Flowgreedy mufflers. Dude its your car , what do you like? From what I see you have taste, so build it like you want it. ,I did a Marauder from Maryland two years ago. It was a stainless 2 1/2 inch job, Oh and if you want to drive to Atlanta I'll do it for you ....for a fare price. There is pictures of some of my work on my profile.. Bryan

 

Thanks for the feedback. Sacrificing a little power won't be a problem. I farmed out the engine work to a friend to help a shop he was starting and he over built it for my purpose of just cruising.

I've been using a no name steel bullet gl*** pack just to put get it on the road for testing. It's a straight through design near to straight pipe. I'm hoping with the extra bends up over the rear to the back bumper will suffice as it's only loud on take off right now. At 50 to 70 miles an hour, it's not even noticable even dumping out on the ground right in front of the rear wheels right now.

Still, it's cool to know the power is there as the engine builder claims this Olds 350 is a big block killer. Thanks again for your help!

 

Saw your car at Sledscene..I like it...got a chopped 55 myself!
Think about it......what kind of HP are we talking about here....maybe 350-375 tops? And probably only up at the higher end of your RPM's. Olds put out more torque than hi end horsepower, that's why they seem so quick on the street. So what difference would a gl***pack vs. a muffler made for "real" HP cost you, all things equal? Maybe 5-10 HP? Now, that engine, in a heavy car like your Olds, and what is THAT worth in, say, the quarter mile????? Coupla hundredth's?
On a car that's on the street, not looking to be "the fastest gun in town", I'd say it wasn't worth fretting over. I pick my mufflers more for sound, than how much power they'll make. I hate the sound of Flowmasters on really cool looking custom, or hotrod. Same feeling I get when I see a tweed interior on a real traditional looking car!

 

Thanks for the compliments. I enjoyed the show and look forward to the next one being built around vintage drag cars on the strip along with our traditional rods and customs. The 55 sedan I have was less than 3700 lb. curb weight and is down to 3400 lb. now with nearly twice the horses. So I can yield a couple of ponies in the exhaust for a better sound. Always appreciate the feedback. 2x2x2x2x2heads are better than 1.........................