help me spend some money!!!!

[fjrgary]

would like to get a little more a$$ out of my fe. 68 side oiler with original 2x4 holley 600 set up (low riser) and factory hp cam. heads however are off a 63 390 (c1ae-6090-a). wondering how much a set of edels or blue thunder would impact performance, or should i look elsewhere, maby new heads together with??????? hoping some of the engine builders will chime in, however all suggestions are appreciated. thanks gary.

[DanEC]

Just a guess but I'm running 61 390 Hi-Po heads that Keith Craft ported/polished/installed early 427 valves in. They are on a 459 FE with a low riser 427 dual quad intake. I asked his dyno guy how much additional power it would make with a set of Edelbrock heads in his opinion. He speculated about 30 hp. My KC reworked steel heads may be a little ahead of your heads - don't know what you have had done to them.

[fjrgary]

heads are as they came from the factory!

[patrickt]

Instead of looking at it from the perspective of what you want to do, and how much that would cost you, look at it from how much you feel comfortable spending and what you can then get for that. The more you spend, the more you'll get. Do you want to pull the engine and ship it to somebody? If so, factor that in. If the engine is in nice shape, shipping it to to one of the "big names" on here, along with three or four grand, will turn it in to something completely different.

[fjrgary]

i've been told these heads in stock configuration are quite restrictive, especially on the exhaust side. if a good set of heads is what is needed to make this engine run as it should then i will take the plunge.

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by fjrgary

i've been told these heads in stock configuration are quite restrictive, especially on the exhaust side. if a good set of heads is what is needed to make this engine run as it should then i will take the plunge.

It's a slippery slope... but heads, intake, cam and a little port matching and touch up work would do wonders. Blykins could work magic for the three to four grand number... maybe less, since he does his best not to make a lot of dough.

[blykins]

I'm building a 427 2x4 LR road race motor right now. I've had to order another set of custom slugs so this build keeps dragging on....

Regardless, the factory LR manifold isn't exactly a slouch and we've got about 285 cfm out of a set of C3 LR heads, up from about 240 cfm.

A head and cam change would really turn that engine on. If you like factory iron, your heads can be worked. Otherwise it may be more cost effective to go with a set of edelbrocks. Even out of the box edels with a nice valve job and backcut valves would be a noticeable improvement.

[fjrgary]

might i ask what edel heads you would recommend, and also what cam? thanks gary.

[Bernica]

Originally Posted by blykins

I'm building a 427 2x4 LR road race motor right now. I've had to order another set of custom slugs so this build keeps dragging on....

Regardless, the factory LR manifold isn't exactly a slouch and we've got about 285 cfm out of a set of C3 LR heads, up from about 240 cfm.

A head and cam change would really turn that engine on. If you like factory iron, your heads can be worked. Otherwise it may be more cost effective to go with a set of edelbrocks. Even out of the box edels with a nice valve job and backcut valves would be a noticeable improvement.

Listen to this advice. Your budget will govern what you do. Well, mine never does but that's a different subject.

[Bernica]

Originally Posted by Bernica

Listen to this advice. Your budget will govern what you do. Well, mine never does but that's a different subject.

What I meant is that the budget that you start with can sometimes stray. It is a common problem here, I'm sure. Just ask my wife or Mickmate

[DanEC]

The 427 LR dual quad intake is apparantly a real torque maker. My engine made over 500 ft lb of torque through 4700 rpm. Not sure what the maximum was as it was already coming down from 527 ft lbs when the graph started at 4200.

[blykins]

Originally Posted by fjrgary

might i ask what edel heads you would recommend, and also what cam? thanks gary.

There's essentially only one Edelbrock head and then you just adjust the ports, valve sizes, etc. to match the combo.

The cam would depend on whether you're drilled for hydraulic lifters or not.

[patrickt]

... but if you want a solid in your drilled block, just chat with Brent about plugging the galleys (which is what my builder did on mine). Some builders like to leave it open a bit, even with solids, so I don't know where Brent stands on that. The point is, if you're pulling the heads, intake, and cam, switching over to solid lifters (roller or not) is not a huge incremental cost and, obviously, now would be the time to do it.

[fjrgary]

brent what would be the best time to contact you, i know your very busy. thanks gary.

[blykins]

Call anytime Gary...

If you get my voice mail, just give me a few minutes and I'll get right back to you.

[patrickt]

Well, since inquiring minds.... Do you subscribe to the "let oil go to the solids" theory? And if so, do you differentiate between rollers and flat tappets?

[blykins]

I do not restrict oil to solids on a street engine. With a flat tappet cam, I encourage the EDM lifters, which need oil pressure to them, and on a solid roller with pressure fed lifters, they need lots of flow to them as well.