Just got my Offy Dual Quad manifold from Donut29. Now I need some carbs. I can grab a pair of WCFB's from my father in law's tri five chevy stuff, rebuild those, and use them, or I was considering getting a pair of the Thunder AVS carbs from Edelbrock. From what I understand/have read here, the Edelbrocks are vacuum secondary, so I won't really have to worry about dumping too much fuel. The engine is stock at the moment with the exception of lakes pipes, until I find A pair of 56 heads, which I understand breathe much better. Now if money isn't an issue here, which carbs would I be best using? I'm going for drivability as opposed to looking "Period correct". How about some Holley "Teapot" carbs? I have access to a pair of those also, but don't know much about them. what are my other choices as far as carbs go, if any? Thanks for the help.
WCFB's are fine if you have them, I wouldn't spend the money on NEW Edelbrock AVS's if you have some WCFB's already... and I believe 56 heads would mean 56 pistons....
Why would the 56 heads need the 56' pistons? I'm slightly clueless on this. Guess if I needed to do that, I might as well find a set of 56 Rods to eliminate the Clinch pin design.
Combustion chamber design and compression, my understanding is the 322's are real peculiar about using the right heads with the right pistons... But then I'm a 364/401/425 guy.
Yeah, the 56 heads were an open chamber design. They need popup style pistons. A pair of 500 cfm Edelbrock performers would do fine and they look identical to the Carter AFBs they replaced.
The Engine is good now. Guess I'll just wait until I need to do a total rebuild. Kind of want to do something along the lines of the 322 build in "Hot Rod Deluxe" but without the webers since those are $$$.
See if you can score a set of 401/425 heads. they will bolt on and only need some mods to the water manifold at the front of the block. I don't know what pistons you would need, but the valve size is near the 327 hi-po heads. You can also gain a little performance by using the rocker assemble complete on the 322 heads. Make sure the hardened steel insert in the valve end of the rockers is not worn out. They can be replaced, but I coulden't tell you where to find them anymore.
So the 401 Heads will fit the322? What kind of mods are we talking about in regards to the water manifold? I knew the later rocker assembly fits and has a 1.6 ratio rather than the stock 1.5, but I was afraid of interference issues. Any other suggestions of things I can do without doing a complete teardown for a little more power? I'm using a bendtsens adapter kit and a turbo 400 trans. What would be an appropriate performance torque converter for a car that is mostly used on the street but will see some strip time?
It'll be a complete teardown, they are not just a bolt on and go. If you were thinking of bolting on a set of 401 heads just think of getting the whole 401.
The 364-401-425 heads have a much larger chamber than even the 1956 322 heads. You would need custom pistons to make any kind of compression. The 1956 pistons would still yeild a relatively low compression if using the later heads. Best bet at this point is to do a little machine work to your stock heads, add some telesco roller tipped rockers (if budget allows), and typical 'hop-up' mods, like gasket matching intake and heads, bumping up timing, cold air intake etc... as far as convertors, I like a 22-2400 for daily drivers. Not too loose, but gives a bit for mild cams. Also, using a th350 frees up a couple of hp. If you need to have a trans built, might as well use one which has less parasitic draw. Should hold up to a mild 322 with no trouble at all.
New to the forums, cant see where to post except for reply. FYI: I have an Edmunds Dual Quad intake with 2 Rochester 4 Jet carbs (sorry no tags) I removed from my 1953 Roadmaster 322 Nailhead (taking it back to stock). Anyone interested?
Nice, no intro and 1st post is SPAM, well thinly veiled as it was. There is a classified section where you can put the ad and you'll need to set a price as well.
Nope, there are 3 sizes. 264/322 which is what that one is. 364 and 401/425. They are all different widths. And regardless of what people say you cannot swap them around, the ports will be significantly off.
Zman is good on this one. I can't suggest the tea pots to you. They have to be kept in near perfect condition unless you own nomex and a halon system. I'm normally a Holley man but in this case the WCFB is a superior carb. Zman is correct on the heads as well. I'm not a Buick man like Z but I've had a few and really like the 364 but to run those heads on your 322 without building the rest of the engine to go with them will only hurt you.
Much depends on the flange size of the manifold, and if you are going for looks or function. Many of the carbs you find, whether AFB, WCFB, or Rochester 4-jet are Chevrolet carbs and thus have a Chevrolet calibration. For the most part the Chevrolet engines like very little fuel early, but lots midrange and WOT. Buick engines like a lot more fuel early, but not so much proportionally in mid-range and WOT. Whichever style you get, use Buick carbs. Assuming the Offy has the old almost square (3 3.4 x 3 7/8) bolt pattern, a matched set of Stromberg 4A's from 1952, 1953, or 1954 Buick would be an excellent choice. Much easier to dial in to the engine. Jon.
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