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2.5" Rams Horn Exhaust...are they worth installing over headers?

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by Buzznut, Jun 18, 2009.

  1. Brzezinski manifolds are real nice. I had used a set on a stock car where stock manifolds were mandated.

    I am basically anti-header for street use. It took me a while to learn this and you really do not get any performance benefit unless you "tune" them in conjunction with a dyno.

    Bob
     
    arkiehotrods likes this.
  2. fuel pump
    Joined: Nov 4, 2001
    Posts: 3,620

    fuel pump
    Member Emeritus
    from Caro,MI

    I used the rams horns that came on my '66 283 for three reasons. First off I wanted a late 50s/early 60s look for my 5W. Second, the drivers side rams horn sweeps back and clears the steering. And lastly I saved $$$$ by using them.

    [​IMG]
     
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  3. OldSchoolSS
    Joined: Jan 3, 2008
    Posts: 145

    OldSchoolSS
    Member
    from WI

    The best kept secret to keeping headers from leaking is permatex ultra copper. Also remember to properly torque the bolts. Torque them down again after a few heat cycles and you should be good to go.
     
  4. RadioFlyer
    Joined: Jan 13, 2007
    Posts: 162

    RadioFlyer
    Member

    Just for giggles, I punched in 1966 Corvette, 327cid, and came up with this from the Dorman catalog:

    p/n 674-500 (left side, square bracket) and p/n 674-501 (right side).

    The applications: "1980-69 Corvette 5.7L (350 CID), 1968-66 Corvette 5.4L (327 CID), 1957 Corvette 4.6L (283 CID), 1990-83 Medium Duty, School Bus 5.7L; LH & RH"

    I was not expecting school bus to show up.

    1963 FI Corvette:
    p/n 674-503 and p/n 674-504

    If your FLAPS has a 'help!' section, they'll be able to order these in. Wonder what the price would be though. How much coming from Speedway?

    Alex.
     

    Attached Files:

    1Nimrod likes this.
  5. The rams that have the outlets sweep back were common on trucks for a while, my '72 has them. Also, from the factory they used no gaskets between them and the block, no sealer, just two machined surfaces both of cast iron.
     
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  6. 53sled
    Joined: Jul 5, 2005
    Posts: 5,817

    53sled
    Member
    from KCMO

    swap meet is still the cheapest, oreilly has em for about $129 a pop. :)
     
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  7. Truckedup
    Joined: Jul 25, 2006
    Posts: 4,661

    Truckedup
    Member

    The 2 inch outlet Ram's Horn manifolds work well on mildy tuned engines.On my off topic 78 El Camino I installed the swept back Ram's Horn's,both sides swept back.I don't know the original application or if the two manifolds are matched,no generator cast mounting lugs,but they were inexpensive.A little clean up work inside and port matching.This El Camino has a center crossmember and the manifolds did clear it by just enough and the left side clears the clutch linkage Z bar no problem.Even cleared the AC bracket.
    [​IMG]
     
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  8. Frosty21
    Joined: Jan 25, 2007
    Posts: 958

    Frosty21
    Member
    from KY

    Will they work with angle plug heads?
     
  9. nutajunka
    Joined: Jan 24, 2007
    Posts: 1,464

    nutajunka

    Seems to me that any older 350 with at least 300 hp from the factory had the bigger manifolds. I compared a set from a 69 350 to a set of 65 283 and there was a big difference.
     
  10. skunx1964
    Joined: Aug 21, 2008
    Posts: 1,455

    skunx1964
    Member

    well, my 355 wouldnt run cool with them. held way too much heat in the head, cooked the intake gaskets twice. swapped to full length headers and havent had a real problem since, unless i get caught in bad traffic or something. just my 2 cents.....
     
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  11. Larry T
    Joined: Nov 24, 2004
    Posts: 7,875

    Larry T
    Member

    Couple of observations. The rams horn manifolds work best with stock tin heatshields.
    And if you buy good thick flanged, heavy tubed headers, they don't need near the maintenance of the cheap headers.
    Larry T
     
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  12. gimpyshotrods
    Joined: May 20, 2009
    Posts: 23,263

    gimpyshotrods
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    >1963 FI Corvette:
    p/n 674-503 and p/n 674-504

    $89.99/ea. at Kragen/Checker/Shucks/O'Reilly or their corporate affiliates.
    $83.99/ea. at Autozone or ....

    I am not sure about the policy, but I think that you can get them sent to the store, without paying shipping.

    Oh, and I have had good luck 'deleting' stuff from iron parts by grinding smooth with a 120g flap wheel, and then sandblasting the whole part (less the sealing surfaces, or course).
     
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  13. junior 1957
    Joined: Dec 10, 2006
    Posts: 217

    junior 1957
    Member

    i purchased a set off of ebay a while back. they both look like this. but no brackets, or other junk. made heavier than gm ones and reasonbly priced. i think the ones from speedway look too much like 312 ford units...
     
  14. gimpyshotrods
    Joined: May 20, 2009
    Posts: 23,263

    gimpyshotrods
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    That is a LEFT (3797901) manifold, showing no bracket. It must have been removed. I am unaware that they came without a bracket under that part number.

    Oh, and left fits right, and vice versa, without the bracket, as shown in the picture. Yep that is a left manifold, on the right side. Note the LH under the part number.
     
    Last edited: Oct 29, 2009
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  15. lo-buk
    Joined: Nov 11, 2006
    Posts: 318

    lo-buk
    Member
    from kcmo

    Dorman products has new rams horn manifolds and can be purchased through any auto parts store.
     
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  16. MEDDLER1
    Joined: Jun 1, 2006
    Posts: 1,590

    MEDDLER1
    Member

    ha you beat me to it!i used to work for carquest and would order these for people they are way more than speedway is sellin em for!at the time 10 yrs ago they were 150 a side!
     
  17. fast68chevy
    Joined: Jan 13, 2021
    Posts: 1

    fast68chevy

    i agree with unclee and missysdad, yep!

    im looking to go with hogged-out and smoothed/polished 2" rams horns manifolds - with my mostly stock 350 (with a towing truck cam and milled down or iron-eagle heads with stock Z28 springs) flat tappet cam with modified L-82 M4ME carb in my '75 C-20 truck so i can dual exhaust it with a pre-made exhaust pipes kit for the '72-older stye trucks.

    because no one makes/carries this exhaust for the '73-up SBC log stye manifolds trucks..
     
    Last edited: Jan 27, 2021
  18. TCATTC
    Joined: Oct 12, 2019
    Posts: 283

    TCATTC
    Member

    I'll take rams horn manifolds over shorty or block huger headers any day. Headers are one thing that the old saying "You get what you pay for" is true. A $99 set of headers will cause you countless hours of grief but most likely a high dollar (and they are just that these days) set will be trouble free for years.
     
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  19. TCATTC
    Joined: Oct 12, 2019
    Posts: 283

    TCATTC
    Member

    $47.79 ea. on Rock Auto right now
     
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  20. junkhorder
    Joined: Aug 7, 2020
    Posts: 11

    junkhorder

    My experience in my trucks has been that the rams horns work well on the 283 - 327 stock small valve motors but restrict flow too much on bigger motors with 1.94/1.50 or 2.02/1.60 heads. The first 406 I put in a 65 c10 reusing rams horn dual exhaust choked the motor and made it run hot. Switched to Hooker truck headers with flowmaster 2 stage mufflers and had a raped ape. Remember , the first night out has to be with six feet of open pipe. After the tickets mufflers really do sound better but that first night is a pisser.
     
  21. arkiehotrods
    Joined: Mar 9, 2006
    Posts: 6,803

    arkiehotrods
    Member

    Wow a 12 -yr-old thread back from the dead!
     
  22. Careful with the online manifolds.Some like Rock Auto have fittings for air rails for pollution .The brass plugs dont look so cool.
     
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  23. msgt tank
    Joined: Aug 14, 2018
    Posts: 98

    msgt tank
    Member

    headers need the flange smoothed on a belt or an orbital sander. they will seal up with cheap paper gaskets and the leaks are gone. the bolts won't come loose. put a straight edge on the flange and you will see why they don't seal. we sand the flange on every set of headers and there are no problems.
     
  24. Blake 27
    Joined: Apr 10, 2016
    Posts: 1,504

    Blake 27

    I used two 2" right side rams, smoothed, and ceramic coated.
    On my 290HP stock crate motor with 2" SS exhaust pipes, I'm very happy with the performance.
    Obviously street driven and never revved over 5,000 RPM.
    When they were coated, both the inside and outside were covered. They seem to run really cool.
    Before coating I trued the gasket surface using sandpaper glued on my table saw table. I was amazed how un-flat they were. DSC074971.JPG
     
  25. bchctybob
    Joined: Sep 18, 2011
    Posts: 5,190

    bchctybob
    Member

    I would definitely pick Chevy ram horns over shorty or block huggers for a stock or mild performance engine but once you add better heads, more cam and compression I think you need a good set of long tube headers to get the best out of the combination.
     
  26. lippy
    Joined: Sep 27, 2006
    Posts: 6,825

    lippy
    Member
    from Ks

    Just use a quality set of headers with 3/8 flanges. ;)
     
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  27. 54vicky
    Joined: Dec 13, 2011
    Posts: 1,599

    54vicky
    Member

    not the first and probably not the last:rolleyes::rolleyes:
     
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  28. Dan Timberlake
    Joined: Apr 28, 2010
    Posts: 1,530

    Dan Timberlake
    Member

    I wonder what the folks over on Speed talk have to say. The member named "exhausted" is highly qualified and makes the point a 10" or so long, smallish diameter individual pipe off each port is a key ingredient to building midrange torque, in part by snubbing reversion, which really messes up carburetion.
     
  29. Elcohaulic
    Joined: Dec 27, 2017
    Posts: 2,212

    Elcohaulic

    Rams sound so nice with a pair of Porter mufflers and a dedicated exhaust, no X or H pipe..
     
  30. Budget36
    Joined: Nov 29, 2014
    Posts: 13,173

    Budget36
    Member

    I like the look of rams horns on prewar cars that don’t have a hood, or hood sides. For the most part headers don’t start making/freeing / etc power until you start winding the engine up.
     

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