So the 434 sb is finally in the car (a 67 coupe), tranny bolted up, getting ready to measure for driveshaft, blah, blah, blah. In July I bought a set of ceramic Hooker super comp's thinking they'd fit no problem. With the World Products block and Motown Aluminum angle plug heads, I was dead wrong. The Hook's don't even come close. Good news is that Summit will take em back for a 10% restock fee since they are outside the 90-day period.

So now it's Lemons? Or custom mades? Any ideas on what headers might fit a 67 with raised ports, power front discs, power steering, all dat stuff. I guess the lemons are around $1000 and customs before coating will be $1200.

Also, if anyone knows a good custom header shop in the Houston area, it would be much appreciated. I have a lead on one from the engine builder but he has no real experience with the company - just knows the do customs.

Keeeeeerap. We were close, damn close....and then the fog rolled in again.....

Muchas gracias,

There are many ways you could get headers fitted, but from your post I cannot say where the exact issue is:
1) The raised ports?
2) The port shape?
3) Flange itself?
4) Primary tube interference with some part of the car?
5) Spark plug to primary tube interference?
6) Something else?

Lemons makes beautiful headers - I've never used him, but the Lemons headers that I have seen were well made.

Small suggestion that may apply: if the fittment issue is not anything major, get a set of non-coated headers, make your clearance dimples - then send them off for coating.

Thomas

mike post what the fit problem is. i had dynomax
shorties that would not even bolt to the heads with spark plugs installed. switched to hedmans
that will have to be removed on the drivers side to change plugs. i have not found a 3/4 reach short plug to correct this yet. i'm running bowtie phase 6 heads with angle plugs. seems to be alot people running aftermarket heads with angle plugs and raised ports having the same problem. if you feel like driving up to georgetown and looking at the hedmans let me know.


:rolleyes:

Mike, i to went through the same thing you are going through. 67, 383. i went with the headmans though and they did not fit. i ended up with a set of Lemoms. the fit is very good. they can be installed in very little time, they can be installed with out raising the car or pulling the wheels. the one issue i had was the #2 tube did hit the upper a arm. this required some grinding on the a arm to fix. if you use the header extensions, do a check as to what type to use. mine are the stall bolt pattern and have no issues with the plug boots hitting the spacer bolts. there seems to be an issue with the stall spacer and angled plugs. also the 4 center tubes go over the frame so you will have to cut some of the fender well out. also get the flanges welded on the collectors. i had HPC coat my headers and for some reason they are cheaper to coat if they have the flanges welded on. one last thing to think about. if you go the lemons route. the collectors are slip on. it may be worth getting the tubes on the collectors (the 4 slip on tubes, not the collector itself) about 2" longer as this will increase low end tq. hth. Dave. one last thing. get the silicone bronze on the out side of the tubes at the head flanges. makes them stronger

Thanks guys. The problem is the port height - just a little taller makes the right side lower bundle run right smack into the middle of the csi mini starter and the back portion of the slightly widened Milodon oil pan. It would seem that I would have more clearance than a stock setup because I ain't got that big honkin starter to deal with, but I guess the raised ports cause enough of a glitch to where the fit is not good from any angle. I didn't even really try the steering side since the starter side was so far off.

Actually lemons said they have run into this before and may be able to provide a custom solution. The problem is the turnaround - build, ship uncoated, test, mark, modify, reship, test, etc. Then when all is done - get em coated and go. I'll be lucky to get her untracked before Christmas.

I'd still like to find a local custom header shop, but it seems like Lemons are the only ones that have stepped up, really investigated fitment problems, and invested in the right (and very expensive) equipment to crank out a clean set of headers.

Thanks for all the advice - keeps me heading towards the goal post.

Best,
Mike

Just keep thinkin' about how sweet it's gonna be when it's done Mike.

If you want to keep the budget down I think you will find that a set of mid length or shorty headers will not have a fittment problem in the area you named. Not likely to cause you much of a power difference either.

If you must have full length headers, I am confident that Lemons will make you a set you can be proud of.

Thomas

Have you got the budget for one of those fancy-dancy 4-2-1 headers in stainless that I saw in a carmag about 3 months ago? I guess the power production of these babies is awsome. Or are you like me, scrounging to buy nice stuff? www.burnsstainless.com (http://www.burnsstainless.com)

Is it out of the question to buy a little tubing and mig weld some small extensions as needed to make things fit?

It seems like it may cost a little more than a custom set to do this if you don't already own mig welding equipment.

It just seems like one of those situations where I'd spend the money on the tools rather than pay someone for a one-time fix.

It just seems like one of those situations where I'd spend the money on the tools rather than pay someone for a one-time fix. Heh heh, Chad, you sound like a true tool junkie (me too ;) ). Every worthwhile project deserves at least one new toy!

oops! double post!

Sheetmetal - thanks for the details on the Lemons fit. I have GW upper and lower tubulars. A guy took a bunch of info on measurements; said Harvey would get back to me early next week. The interference you described is probably the "known" problem they referenced in the call - but they also said the could get around it. We'll see. I kinda figured I'd wind up with the top flight stuff anyway. At this point, my budget is shot all to heck anyway so the extra $900-$1200 is something I'm prepared for.

Chad - thanks for the suggestion. You are da man when it comes to "just gettin' it done". Been to your site and I know you can handle just about anything. Unfortunately, I am not that gifted - I tried welding once. My buddy saw my work and said "Why don't you just pour molten metal all over it instead next time?"

Thanks for the replies and additonal suggestions. This will be a killer ride when done - frustration and all, it's still worth the wait taking the time to do it right.

Best,