Test 5 For the last test, we put the smaller headers back on and saw a slight improvement in torque. Components: same as Test 4 but with TTI 1 5/8 stepped headers. RPM HP LB-FT 3,000 238 417 3,200 260 427 3,400 279 431 3,600 293 428 3,800 319 440 4,000 352 462 4,200 378 473 4,400 404 482 4,600 430 490 4,800 448 490 5,000 459 482 5,200 472 477 5,400 477 464 5,600 475 446 5,800 472 427 6,000 472 413 More power? Ultimately, the cylinder heads are the cork in this combination. The intake ports have to neck-down substantially to clear the pushrods. This pushrod pinch limits how much air the engine can ingest. You'll have to step up to more expensive heads to get any more power out of this combination, which we may do in a later article. We did go over our budget, however. We really wanted this thing to come in at less than $5,500 but overshot our goal by nearly a grand. As you see in the pictures, this engine costs $6,973.48 to build carb to pan. "Small-block Mopars are some of the most expensive engines to build," Hafliger told us after we added up the costs. However, it would be possible to save a few hundred dollars here and there-noncoated headers, reusing the stock rocker hold-down system, and buying a used carburetor, for example. Shop around and you could probably build a similarly potent engine for $6,000. Either way, we were impressed with this combination. Drop this in a light Valiant or Dart and go 11s. Using Hughes' guidelines, Hafliger adjusted the pushrod until the valvetrain geometry was correct. He then sent the checking tools back to Hughes, which shipped out a set of custom pushrods to match our specs.Using Hughes' guidelines, Hafliger adjusted the pushrod until the valvetrain geometry was While setting up the valvetrain, Hafliger took the opportunity to check piston-to-valve clearance, which measured 0.125 inch on the intake side and 0.195 on the exhaust. With the piston 0.005 out of the hole and a 0.045 Victor Reinz head gasket, the compression ratio was a healthy 10.2:1.While setting up the valvetrain, Hafliger took the opportunity to check piston-to-valve cl Here's the engine fully assembled, painted Chevy orange (possibly a jab at us Camaro Crafters), and ready to be installed on IMM's DTS engine dyno. We planned to test two different intakes and header sizes to see which combination made the most power. We were pleased to see we exceeded our horsepower goals on the first break-in run. Check the accompanying dyno charts to see how everything shook out.Here's the engine fully assembled, painted Chevy orange (possibly a jab at us Camaro Craft « | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | » | View Full Article By John McGann Enjoyed this Post? Subscribe to our RSS Feed, or use your favorite social media to recommend us to friends and colleagues!
