KRE Heads
 

I cant afford 12.00 a gallon for race gas so thinking of setting my engine to run on pump gas.Here is my combo right now 455 with srp pistons crower rod stock 455 crank all balanced 630 lift solid roller 62 heads ported by Jim Taylor that flow 230 cfm victor intake with 1050 dominator carb 3800 ATI converter 4.10 gears out back. The car is a 79 firebird 3500 pound car it runs best 10.40's at 129 mph. Ok here is the question if i swap a set of KRE D port 84 cc heads with no port can i still run as fast as I am going now and run pump gas?????

another avenue would be swap to e 85 and keep you motor together if you are satisfied with performance.

I would find an E-85 source near you, buy a different carb, and run quicker than you are now. Just get a barrel and buy it 55 gallons at a time. There is a station within 50 miles of you.

JC treed me! Lol

What does E 85 cost a gallon?

Darby Otto has a setup sounds similar to yours - KRE D's and hydraulic roller I think though, and I think it's a pump gas setup running 10.6-10.8, so close to your numbers. Maybe he'll chime in here...

Thx Chris, Yes were close , but u wont get there with the stock KRE's .I would get the 310's from SD performance, and u should be very close to what your running now, I only have 10.7 with the 290 heads and ran a best of 10.60@126 with more left. should be close to upper 10.40's in spring. I have 4.10's and a 9" 4600 stall UCC converter n drive it to track and around town.

I was goin to suggest e85 too LOL

here in central il its $2.70 a gal. (I'll check that price and post later but im 95% sure thats were its at)

one of the benefits for me is no more runnin home to fill up out of a barrel when im out cruising.

Service Center of Yardley
194 S Main St
Yardley , PA 19067

A quick google search came up with this place. Says they have E-85

To answer the question directly: I believe the out-of-the-box KRE 260s would keep you at/near your present performance level and run pump gas. Personally I would talk to Dave at SD Performance and get his input and buy from here if you decide to go ahead with the swap.

Jim

I thank you all for your comments time to make so phone calls

I run #62s and converted over the E85 this past year ... spend your money on an E85 carb and save yourself a ton plus have a much more consistent race car. You won't regret it.

what kind of compression were/are you running?....

e85 will support easily up to 13:1 safely and if tuned 14.5:1 is very common. And the price being at or below that of 87 it is a no brainier if it is available in your area.

Agree price of race gas is rediculous... pump premium limits you... IMO use E85 and mill your heads for more compression... Racers are running E85 at 14:1 or more... or if you want to go even faster move up to even better heads with small chambers and run E85.
E85 generally sells at or below 87 reg gas in my area... station I usually fill the family rides E85 was 2.89 a gallon and regular gas was 2.99 yesterday.

Agree on the e-85 as you best alternative, just read up on as it is abit different than gas and be certain you don't have epoxy in the heads or intake.

E85 is not all that much of a solvent as methanol... A few years ago I soaked some epoxied stuff for a week in e85 and it didnt seem to soften it... tried both regular epoxy and JB weld... aluminum doesnt like ethanol much... regular E10 pump gas in a edelbrock carb that sits alot can make a mess...

Hmmm...my personal experience and a quick google search say otherwise.

Just a heads up, do what you find best.

I can confirm that E85 eats JB Weld in the intake ...

I use 76cc 290cfm KRE's from Dave at SD Performance. The compression ratio is 11 to 1, and my engine runs fine on a steady diet of 87 octane fuel.

One could EASILY set up a full "race" engine with those heads to meet your performance expectations and do fine with a steady diet of pump fuel, with the right cam and careful tuning......IMHO.

Nothing at all wrong with E-85, but there is a considerable learning curve with it. Aside from it's basic corrosive, evaporative, and water "magnet" properties, the feedback I get from my customers all say that the engine must be well "heat soaked" or they can experience stumble/hesitation/bog on the starting line. Most are doing quite well with E-85, and it LOVES high compression.....Cliff

The cheapest route is the E-85, but I don't know if this was a street/strip deal how things hold up? Race only its a no brainer IMO.

If you don't mind me asking what carb you are running?I am running a 1050 holley dominator right now.

I did a google search and found this conversion kit is that the way to go?

Do you have the right tools to change the boosters?

i am new to this what tools do you need to change the boosters

First depending if u have a old style DOM or new Hp style will depend if u have to sand down the sides of the banjo's to fit in body if old style, second u need to thread the booster pins using a 10/32 tap and pull them out, I built a small slide hammer like the one in the pic, works slick as hell. Then to install the boosters pins u just need a brass drift punch with the same curve as booster pin, put a little loctite on them, think i got mine at Harbour freight, fit perfectly.

I have the newer style HP carb

Then the banjos should go right in, easy to change out.