Our Philosophy
Use the right parts for today and the future.
Use the right parts for today and the future.
So what does that mean?
Too often people will buy parts because they are matched for an application. Now the combination of parts is what makes a motor a runner or not but often these parts are chosen for the wrong reasons.
Traditional thinking tells you that high velocity makes torque. So for the street car that means a small head, dual plane intake and 600 CFM carb. I can't count the number of times I've heard from the Ford guys that a Vic Jr intake (decent size single plane) is no good for the street. These same folks think that a 750 CFM carb is way too big for a 5.0. These two things could not be further from the truth but people buy into it. What happens is you lay down 2 grand for a performance package and a year later want more power so you have to start all over.
Traditional thinking also tells you that if you want to turn modest RPM's (after all HP is a function of RPM) then you need to have a big cam. For the street/strip person this means you have to put up with a motor that surges, loads up, and doesn't idle well. Again this is far from the truth.
Where these perceptions come from is another topic but they have been around for a long time. Well times change and perceptions need to change with them.
Ok then what is the right part for today and the future?
We sum this up as big head, little cam. Ford did this years ago with the 351 Cleveland. This engine fell victim to the emissions regulations but made incredible power. The heads were so big that today companies make port stuffers to reduce the port size. This is an example of how ingrained the myth of too big heads is. Ford used these in production vehicles that were not limited production models like the Boss 302 (a 302 with Cleveland heads). The 351 Cleveland lived on for years in Australia and became as ubiquitous as the 351 Windsor is here in the US.
Today GM uses big head and little cam in the LS engines and Ford in the mod motors.
These principles can be applied to the "old school" pushrod motors such as the Ford 5.0/5.8 and the Chevy 350.
The big head pays dividends because it allows you to increase the size of the motor, keep the heads you have and make more power.
Take this example.
A street Ford 5.0 would, under typical thinking, use an AFR 165, Edelbrock Performer, or similar cylinder head. A 347 would use an AFR 185 or an Edlebrock RPM. We however would recommend a RHS 200 or Canfield 195 for that same 5.0. In testing these cylinder heads, coupled with a Hydraulic Roller cam of only 215 duration @.050, will make over 400 hp and pull 17" of vacuum. This same head will bolt to a 347, easily make 500 hp, and have very similar manners with a slightly larger cam. Both engines will use a single plane intake and Holley 750 and rev above 7000 which is within the capability of the stock crank and rods.
Using the same cylinder heads in a 351 stroked to 383, a DUAL plane intake, small hydraulic roller cam, and Holley 650 these cylinder heads make 550 HP with a shift point of 6000 RPM. Let the RPMs climb and use a single plane and 850 Holley and 600 HP is easily obtained.
The only trade off for the big head on the little motor is tire shredding torque under 3K. They won't make big torque at low RPMs in a 5.0 but if burnouts are your thing just dump the clutch a little higher. What they will do is give you a daily driver that can idle in traffic all day long and still rip off a mid to low 11 in the ¼ mile time (3000lb car). Your grandmother could drive the car and not tell the difference between it and her Towncar but once the tach passes 3K look out. For the drag racer low RPM torque is irrelevant as launch RPM's are most often way above 3000.
For those of you that like the lumpy idle this is easily accomplished without affecting the overall performance and street manners of the motor. So you can have your lumpy "race car" sound and still have all the benefits of a car you can drive anywhere.
It is important to note that this type of performance requires a custom cam. It will be very difficult, if not impossible to find an off the shelf cam that has 215 duration and .375 tappet lift (.600 at the valve with 1.6 rockers). That aggressive of a lobe will also requires a billet cam core which is also very difficult to find (except for the LSx crowd). If you can find the lobe and core, getting the valve events right is critical and let's face it only a select few have the knowledge and tools to do this.
So you can buy one set of cylinder heads, one intake, one carb, one set of rockers, one set of lifters, and one set of headers for your project. When you want to up the displacement all you have to is change the cam, possibly the valve springs and pushrods and you're at that next level of performance.
In the end you are 2-3 grand ahead of the game because you bought too big of a head in the first place.
Too often people will buy parts because they are matched for an application. Now the combination of parts is what makes a motor a runner or not but often these parts are chosen for the wrong reasons.
Traditional thinking tells you that high velocity makes torque. So for the street car that means a small head, dual plane intake and 600 CFM carb. I can't count the number of times I've heard from the Ford guys that a Vic Jr intake (decent size single plane) is no good for the street. These same folks think that a 750 CFM carb is way too big for a 5.0. These two things could not be further from the truth but people buy into it. What happens is you lay down 2 grand for a performance package and a year later want more power so you have to start all over.
Traditional thinking also tells you that if you want to turn modest RPM's (after all HP is a function of RPM) then you need to have a big cam. For the street/strip person this means you have to put up with a motor that surges, loads up, and doesn't idle well. Again this is far from the truth.
Where these perceptions come from is another topic but they have been around for a long time. Well times change and perceptions need to change with them.
Ok then what is the right part for today and the future?
We sum this up as big head, little cam. Ford did this years ago with the 351 Cleveland. This engine fell victim to the emissions regulations but made incredible power. The heads were so big that today companies make port stuffers to reduce the port size. This is an example of how ingrained the myth of too big heads is. Ford used these in production vehicles that were not limited production models like the Boss 302 (a 302 with Cleveland heads). The 351 Cleveland lived on for years in Australia and became as ubiquitous as the 351 Windsor is here in the US.
Today GM uses big head and little cam in the LS engines and Ford in the mod motors.
These principles can be applied to the "old school" pushrod motors such as the Ford 5.0/5.8 and the Chevy 350.
The big head pays dividends because it allows you to increase the size of the motor, keep the heads you have and make more power.
Take this example.
A street Ford 5.0 would, under typical thinking, use an AFR 165, Edelbrock Performer, or similar cylinder head. A 347 would use an AFR 185 or an Edlebrock RPM. We however would recommend a RHS 200 or Canfield 195 for that same 5.0. In testing these cylinder heads, coupled with a Hydraulic Roller cam of only 215 duration @.050, will make over 400 hp and pull 17" of vacuum. This same head will bolt to a 347, easily make 500 hp, and have very similar manners with a slightly larger cam. Both engines will use a single plane intake and Holley 750 and rev above 7000 which is within the capability of the stock crank and rods.
Using the same cylinder heads in a 351 stroked to 383, a DUAL plane intake, small hydraulic roller cam, and Holley 650 these cylinder heads make 550 HP with a shift point of 6000 RPM. Let the RPMs climb and use a single plane and 850 Holley and 600 HP is easily obtained.
The only trade off for the big head on the little motor is tire shredding torque under 3K. They won't make big torque at low RPMs in a 5.0 but if burnouts are your thing just dump the clutch a little higher. What they will do is give you a daily driver that can idle in traffic all day long and still rip off a mid to low 11 in the ¼ mile time (3000lb car). Your grandmother could drive the car and not tell the difference between it and her Towncar but once the tach passes 3K look out. For the drag racer low RPM torque is irrelevant as launch RPM's are most often way above 3000.
For those of you that like the lumpy idle this is easily accomplished without affecting the overall performance and street manners of the motor. So you can have your lumpy "race car" sound and still have all the benefits of a car you can drive anywhere.
It is important to note that this type of performance requires a custom cam. It will be very difficult, if not impossible to find an off the shelf cam that has 215 duration and .375 tappet lift (.600 at the valve with 1.6 rockers). That aggressive of a lobe will also requires a billet cam core which is also very difficult to find (except for the LSx crowd). If you can find the lobe and core, getting the valve events right is critical and let's face it only a select few have the knowledge and tools to do this.
So you can buy one set of cylinder heads, one intake, one carb, one set of rockers, one set of lifters, and one set of headers for your project. When you want to up the displacement all you have to is change the cam, possibly the valve springs and pushrods and you're at that next level of performance.
In the end you are 2-3 grand ahead of the game because you bought too big of a head in the first place.
