[GoatZillaRacing]

Just returned from Norwalk and took some parts to sell. Had 2 sets of Edelbrock #61515 72cc w/CNC chambers complete new in the box and 1 set of Edelbrock #61525 87cc w/CNC chamber complete new in the box. Even Summit is out of stock so I figured I'd discount them to $2400 a pair which is about $90 less than Summit and they'd be gone the first day...
I sold all the Speedmaster heads I brought and a bunch of cams, pistons and some Arrow Injuneering Lifter plates but the one thing I thought was a sure bet I brought back to the shop!
Has the Edelbrock head market been saturated and now everyone is just looking for them used? We had multiple people ready to buy until they realized these require RAIV style headers or exhaust manifolds.
Thoughts?

[slowbird]

Curious what were you selling the speedmasters for complete?

[PAUL K]

Total guess on my end but possibly folks are wanting them ported along with their purchase? Maybe they would lean towards the budget friendly SM heads if they were looking for an "out of the box" option.

[GoatZillaRacing]

Originally Posted by slowbird

Curious what were you selling the speedmasters for complete?

I swap out the SM springs, retainers and locks for Howard's springs, retainers and Comp Cams locks. Otherwise as supplied by SM. Normally $2000 on sale at Norwalk for $1800.

[RocktimusPryme]

I think the round port part hurts. I have round port E heads. I got a good deal on them, but they really limit your exhaust options depending on the model of your car. If you have a darksider car you may not have options at all.

Rare's RP manifold mold for first gen birds have been "about to be fixed" for like 10 years now.

[mgarblik]

Originally Posted by RocktimusPryme

I think the round port part hurts. I have round port E heads. I got a good deal on them, but they really limit your exhaust options depending on the model of your car. If you have a darksider car you may not have options at all.

Rare's RP manifold mold for first gen birds have been "about to be fixed" for like 10 years now.

Well Randy, here is my rant, I just can't help myself. If your motorhome would have been filled with a couple hundred IRON D-Port aftermarket heads to the point the motorhome was going down the highway with a pronounced lean, you would have sold them all. It's all about the damn exhaust manifolds for the round port. Anyone wanting to be a serious racer has better options than the E-head round ports if they want to go really fast. The Speedmaster heads cost less and are out there for the budget round port guys. That's why you sold them out. Pontiac headers suck for street use and mild builds, and Pontiac had wonderful iron exhaust manifold that people have been waiting a decade for a new batch to be produced. So we have a glut of round port heads available with no decent options for exhaust manifolds, and NO D-Port heads period, other than old 60 year old iron junk and Kauffman aluminum. I would think they are selling allot of them. 2 solutions: 1. Produce round port exhaust manifiolds, especially long branch version. 2. Produce D-port heads, especially Iron that will accept existing ram air manifolds that are available. Rant over. Great seeing you at Norwalk. Really like the look of the Hydraulic roller plate kit. Using OE style roller lifters has to be a good idea.

[Half-Inch Stud]

EHOBOMFs. E-Heads On Back Order My Friends

COPEMCMFs.....Cast O-Port Exhaust Manifolds to the Cart MFs

[Tom Vaught]

Originally Posted by mgarblik

Well Randy, here is my rant, I just can't help myself. If your motorhome would have been filled with a couple hundred IRON D-Port aftermarket heads to the point the motorhome was going down the highway with a pronounced lean, you would have sold them all. It's all about the damn exhaust manifolds for the round port. Anyone wanting to be a serious racer has better options than the E-head round ports if they want to go really fast. The Speedmaster heads cost less and are out there for the budget round port guys. That's why you sold them out. Pontiac headers suck for street use and mild builds, and Pontiac had wonderful iron exhaust manifold that people have been waiting a decade for a new batch to be produced. So we have a glut of round port heads available with no decent options for exhaust manifolds, and NO D-Port heads period, other than old 60 year old iron junk and Kauffman aluminum. I would think they are selling allot of them. 2 solutions: 1. Produce round port exhaust manifiolds, especially long branch version. 2. Produce D-port heads, especially Iron that will accept existing ram air manifolds that are available. Rant over. Great seeing you at Norwalk. Really like the look of the Hydraulic roller plate kit. Using OE style roller lifters has to be a good idea.

The Butler Family talked about doing a RA-IV cast iron head for years but no one showed any interest. Doing a Cast Iron D-Port head that flows about the same as a warmed over Factory E-Head out of the box (280 cfm) would be at least 80 cfm more than any stock D-Port head and for street applications would work very well and last for years and years. The exhaust could be in the 230 range and work fine with cast iron RA manifolds and SD type cast iron manifolds. You get the exhaust flowing too well and you need better cast iron D-Port headers. And you can see cast iron anything currently in the way of exhaust has basically the RA Manifolds or maybe a set of $$$$ long branch SD parts.

Tom V.

Just Saying.

[66sprint6]

I can't install my newly aquired engine with the round port E-heads into our '67 LeMans. Not until the RA round port cast iron manifolds are available. Who knows when that will be. Bummer.

[Formulas]

Are we just catalogue surfing for headers?
Isnt there still companies out there like Doug's that can make on request?

Hood clearance bites on 1970 birds but I guess iam lucky enough to have acquired 4202 hookers

To bad Tri'Y guy was business challenged

.

[i82much]

Originally Posted by 66sprint6

I can't install my newly aquired engine with the round port E-heads into our '67 LeMans. Not until the RA round port cast iron manifolds are available. Who knows when that will be. Bummer.

summit has round port doug's headers in stock. i can understand wanting to run manifolds instead of headers, but the dougs fit great in my 65 with edelbrock round port heads. just a thought.

[PAUL K]

Pontiac folks have always been slow to improvise (and usually on the cheap side) ..... Round port manifolds are or atleast were readily available just not from RA. Move forward! We just dyno tested a box stock pair of reproduction manifolds and lost 29 HP over a good set of headers on a 590 HP 455. I think we could get atleast fifteen of that back with some port work on the manifolds and five from altering the cam specs. FWIW RA's manifolds were never the best flowing manifolds out there.... Or buy headers.

[Tom Vaught]

Originally Posted by PAUL K

FWIW RA's manifolds were never the best flowing manifolds out there.... Or buy headers.

The best flowing "Stock" ones I ever flowed, 1967 RA manifolds were made by a company in southern Ohio for the Pontiac Stores years ago. That being said, with some Extrude Honing, there was another easy 15 hp in those manifolds. And they looked factory stock. AND they would bolt on "D-Port" heads.

Tom V.

[389]

I still prefer the iron heads, there hotter and have a better combustion. I'm still a big fan of the closed chamber 670 heads, They came out in 1966, 67 and 68 on the big valve 400 and 428 engines..

There was a guy here with a 68 Firebird that ran those heads on a 455.. They came out on the 400, 428 and 455.... He swore by them and his times showed he knew what he was talking about..

[PAUL K]

Originally Posted by Tom Vaught

The best flowing "Stock" ones I ever flowed, 1967 RA manifolds were made by a company in southern Ohio for the Pontiac Stores years ago. That being said, with some Extrude Honing, there was another easy 15 hp in those manifolds. And they looked factory stock. AND they would bolt on "D-Port" heads.

Tom V.

I agree Tom. Years ago we flowed quite a few
d-port manifolds to figure out what worked, what didn't and what could be done to improve them... We lost our enthusiasm when it came time to research the round port stuff.

[Vid]

Originally Posted by 66sprint6

I can't install my newly aquired engine with the round port E-heads into our '67 LeMans. Not until the RA round port cast iron manifolds are available. Who knows when that will be. Bummer.

I just ordered a pair of the RARE round port oversized manifolds and it appears that they’re in stock and ready to ship? I didn’t see anything about them being on back order but that certainly wouldn’t surprise me. Seems like everything on the entire planet is on back order nowadays.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[ponjohn]

Originally Posted by Vid

I just ordered a pair of the RARE round port oversized manifolds and it appears that they’re in stock and ready to ship? I didn’t see anything about them being on back order but that certainly wouldn’t surprise me. Seems like everything on the entire planet is on back order nowadays.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Did RARE fix the 3" molds? I knew they were at the end of their life.

[RocktimusPryme]

Originally Posted by PAUL K

Pontiac folks have always been slow to improvise (and usually on the cheap side) ..... Round port manifolds are or atleast were readily available just not from RA. Move forward! We just dyno tested a box stock pair of reproduction manifolds and lost 29 HP over a good set of headers on a 590 HP 455. I think we could get atleast fifteen of that back with some port work on the manifolds and five from altering the cam specs. FWIW RA's manifolds were never the best flowing manifolds out there.... Or buy headers.

Just out of curiosity what manifolds flow better than the oversized long branch Rare manifolds with the bigger than stock collector?

I mean I have headers, so I agree with just getting headers, but I thought that large collector Long Branch replicas from rare reigned supreme in the stock type category.

[64speed]

I have Doug’s headers on my 64. Fit like a glove. I know people hate headers on the street but it is what it is.

[Tom Vaught]

Originally Posted by PAUL K

I agree Tom. Years ago we flowed quite a few
d-port manifolds to figure out what worked, what didn't and what could be done to improve them... We lost our enthusiasm when it came time to research the round port stuff.

I ran the 67 Ram Air manifolds on a friend's 455 engine.
I had bought them, tested them, but they were on the shelf when he needed them. And then they were gone.

The best headers I ever owned (for Fit/finish and Flow), were by built by JR Headers (in Michigan) and later built and sold by Mark (of MadDog Headers) who was in Michigan and now is located down south. https://maddogheaders.net/

But Cast Iron Headers do have a place on Pontiac engines.

Tom V.