I have a 392 factory cast iron 2x4bbl intake manifold for the 354 Hemi I am having built. Its part number is 1733477. Performance wise, is this any good, or at least acceptable? Any guesses on what type of power, if any, that I'm giving up vs. the Weiand #7263 2x4bbl that's been discontinued?
It is a decent performer. I doubt that you would feel much of a difference between it, and the Weiand one, under normal conditions. You can get inexpensive Trans-Dapt adapter plates, to run more modern carburetors on it.
The best street manifold out there is the Hot Heads Dual Plane, I've made over 600hp with one. All the low profile 2x4 intake **** because lack of runner length.
I have ported the factory iron 2x4 intakes and the Weiand 2x4, vertually the same power when dyno tested. The HH Dual plane with a basic port match will out perform both and make a ton more torque.
Are you going to race it? Will 20-50 hp make a difference for you? Is the engine in the open? All these are what you should consider. IMO cast iron holds the heat and probably better for atomization and street driving. Cast iron is also heavy which is another important factor. I’ve run dual quads for 7 years and will not change back to a single carb even though I have everything ready in case. If it makes a difference I like progressive linkage and it’s about 50-50 on guys that have them.
It's an open engine car and what it looks like is important to me. I'm not going to race it but I'd rather not leave crazy amounts of HP on the table either. Leaving 20 HP is no big deal I suppose. The HotHeads intake sems to be the performance leader, but as silly as this might sound, I just donlt like the way it looks. It's too modern looking. My choice really is between the stock cast iron that I have or turning up one of the discontinued Weiand manifolds. If they're somewhat close in HP I'll probably just go with what I have. I appreciate all of your input. Nick, you do some really amazing things with these engines, I enjoy reading and watching your work in action. Thanks to all of you.
@Doug520 I would pursue a Weiand Intake then if you are after a look. At least you can cut some weight. Pay attention to the casting if one turns up for sale, they had a few casting revisions, mainly internal.
I was actually surprised by the weight of this piece. I'm usually a Ford FE guy, and a FE intake is huge. A cast iron FE intake often approaches 100lb, as half the cylinder head is incorporated into the intake manifold casting on a FE. The intake manifold for this early Hemi engine is far smaller, and significantly lighter. I'd be surprised if it's 20lb heavier than an aluminum one. Don't get me wrong, it's no leightweight by any means. However, in the big picture of that huge heavy engine, switching from a cast iron to an aluminum intake will save weight, but looking at the overall package the weight savings seems to me to be minimal.
Any and everything looks better with dual quads whether they are out in the open or under a hood. If you like the mid to late 50’s look nothing was better for that era. The 245 and 270 hp Chevrolets changed everything. Cadillac, Chrysler, Ford YBlocks (over the parts counter) Packard, Pontiac, Mercury, etc all had them in 56 even though all we saw were Chevrolets…In 1954 Edelbrock even made dual quad manifolds for the 54 Mercury 256.. Even though weight of the manifold is a concern remember 2 carbs weigh more than one.
I couldn't agree with you more. It's going to have dual quads without a doubt. I had the cast iron intake blasted and powdercoated to look like aluminum and it came out quite nicely. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't comitting a huge performance mistake by using it. Sounds like it's a minor difference in performance, and I'm not looking to extract every last HP from this engine so it looks like I'm good to go.
Good Doug.. I don’t know what carbs you are planning and there’s nothing wrong with late Eddy carbs but to me they spoil the look. Softening the shine and removing the nameplate help to get the look if AFB’s are what your plan is. A pair of Carter WCFB’s would be correct 50’s and Chevrolet 348’s would be sized right, would fit the manifold, and be easier on the linkage. They aren’t too highly priced when compared to new other carbs. Their smaller air horn tops can be a problem but Charlie Price sells adapters. I have 2. I was stuck to use small base 4 barrels and found 2 early Olds Carter 4barrels with the same tag #’s. Good luck
The Carters that live on as the Edelbrock have a more nostalgic look, and may be easier to find than a WCFB set. I have two 750's on my 354 (on top of a 6-71). They look far older than a shiny Edelbrocks. They can be found in other sizes. You would need thin adapters for those, but those are cheap.
I've got a pair of 500 Edelbrocks for it. Now that I have the intake confirmed, I have to turn my attention to the Edelbrocks. I have to do some research to find a way to de-glitz them without them looking terrible.
I have thought of very carefully removing the steel parts, and then painstakingly masking them, so they could be soda blasted. I have not tried it, though.
I do have a damaged top from an Edelbrock in the parts bin. I will toss that in the bead blast cabinet and see what 80-120 gl*** beads to to the finish. Nothing to lose there, and at least we will know if that is something to never do!
You could also spray on some caustic soda to the outside shiny parts. That will matt the finish quickly. Oh yeah, wear gloves... As for the intake, short flat runners and a large plenum will make the engine real lazy off idle. Hope that you have some deep rear gears.
I just thought I’d weigh both. 38.8 lbs stock and 18.8 aluminum not sure why digital reading wasn’t clear.
Only 38.8 for the stock iron one ?!? Thanks! I have one for my 330 Desoto and it’s stout! Now you’ve prompted me to actually scale it out. Guess I’ve gotten weak in my old age.
38 pounds when you are bent over an engine trying to wrest an intake lose...might as well be a thousand! I remember removing the heads and intake from a 66 FE turd bird I owned, I was a lot younger, a lot stronger and it still ****ed! I put aluminum heads and intakes on everything now not for as much for the performance but to keep my back happy.
I agree, Billy, those FE intakes are HEAVY. In my case with my Hemi being built, I'm not sure that spending the extra cash for the aluminum intake is worth it to save 20lb. That's really not a lot of weight in the big picture, especially given what the whole engine weighs. The early Hemi's are heavy engines. 20lb is a drop in the bucket. Since Holley made the puzzling decision to discontnue the dual quad Weiand intake, the values of those on the used market have gone up considerably. Most now seem to be in the $450 to $550 range. Do I want to trash a perfectly good completely reconditioned stock intake that will perform similar to the now desireable ($) aluminum one to save 20lb? I'm leaning heavily toward no. Thanks to BostonHemi for those figures. I figured the difference wasn't huge but having the actual numbers makes the decision easier.
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