Drag Race Headers

cometguy

Well-known member
Looking for your theories on header design. In the off-season we will be considering a change from the Hooker setup that came with our car. We plan to raise the trap rpm to 5800-6000 and have heard that a 6-into-1 design is worth consideration.

(see "Drag Race Maverick" for details on the car)

Thanks guys.
 
I would think 6-into-3-into-1 would work best, kind of like a super tri-y
 
Cometguy, check maybe with Burns @ Burnsstainless.com they might be able to help.
 
Burns Stainless sounds like a good lead, I got the same reference from a source up here. I guess they supply the components to build your set-up from scratch.
 
Burns Stainless = $$$$$$$

Do you have to stay under a certain budget?
 
Budgets are a necessary evil. I can justify spending money wisely to find improvements from mods allowed within the rules of Stock Eliminator. The header is pretty much open season. I may steal some configuration ideas from the Burns stuff and have a header fabricated in mild steel.
 
Linc's Burns also offers most of there components in mild steel aswell at a lower price than the stainless parts.
 
I talked to Jack Davis of Jack Davis Headers about the six into one setup. He used to Drag race a 250 inch Chevy six, and did a lot of experimenting. He said that to get the full benefit of the six into one, he had to run a cam with 118* lobe centers. I don't know the lift and duration of the cam, (if he even told me), but the point he made was the lobe centers
 
Your present headers are typical 2 sets of 3 in 1. ?

Question:
How close are the collectors to being side by side?
Could you try a "Y" pipe and a single collector ~ 2.5"dia trimmed to the burned paint method.

May not be the same as 6 in 1 but could give the same effect or an idea what a true 6 in 1 would do for the engine.
 
Thad, the current header is a pair of 3 into 1 units with one collector offset from the other. This is a stock Hooker part. We think that shorter primary tubing may be beneficial in the interest of finding more low rpm torque.
 
Trying to remember basic pipe tuning basics. :?

On the intake side the longer the intake runner the lower the rpm that reflective ram effect or resonance occurs. The rpm when the inertial pressure is highest when the valves opens. The shorter, the higher the rpm when max pressure occurs.


IIRC, it is the same for the exhuast side, except the inertial pulse, as it is traveling out, is pulling a pressure drop behind it, instead of compressing gas in front of it as an intake pulse does.

The longer the primary tube, the lower the rpm for maximum peak scavanging. This is partly due to the velocity of the gas pulses, but mostly due to the time between pulses (time between valve openings for that cylinder). Low rpm - longer time between each pulse, so need a longer distance (longer primary) for the pulse to travel so it will just starting to exit the primary tube as the exhuast valve opens again for max pressure drop.

High rpm - shorter time between pulse, shorter distance for the pulse to travel before the next valve opening.

Hope that makes sense, best I can explain.

Once upon a time had a formula for calculating length to rpm. Basically the same formula as length to frequency for resonance in a given dia. Each calculation is for a particular tubing ID.

So you would need longer primaries for torque to come in at a lower rpm.
And again IIRC a smaller dia/ longer collector(s) will help amplify.

Feel free to check my memory with FTF or others. :wink: No problem.
 
Out of curiosity i went over to Bowling & Grippo's site to their best header formula and this is what i got...with a 1.375 primary @ 5800rpm it came up with a primary length of 34.63",with a 1.50 primary the length shrunk to 29.11".
 
OK, let's keep primary ID the same, 1.50"

What length for 5800 rpm and what length for 4000 rpm?

Enquiring minds want to know!

Also what is Bowling and Grippo's e-address/
 
Question? The formula they are using to figure the best tube length. Are they figuring on 8 cyl. or 6cyl? When they ask tube size, cu. in. and max. RPM. If you are asking about an 8 cyl. 400 cu. in.= 50 cu. in. per cyl. If you are talking about a 6 cyl. 300 cu. in.= 50 cu in per cyl. It seems to me,you could not use the same formula for both. Both of these engines have 50 cu. per cyl. but if you use that same formula and figure the 400 and the 300 you come out with nowhere near the same tube length.
Andy
 
For what it is worth and for grins and giggles--- and to see if my memory is intact run some numbers through B&G's calculator.

1.75" ID primary, 400ci V-8 to give 50ci cylinder as in 300 I-6.

At 5800 rpm 43 inches
At 4600 rpm 54 inches

So to move peak event to lower rpm go longer. To move peak event to higher rpm go shorter
 
I have 6-3-1 extractors on my 6cyl.

Prim. Pipe 1½ "
Sec. Pipe 1 7/8¾"
Outlet 2 ½"

631.jpg
 
Linc's 200":364jtos3 said:
Walkinshaw":364jtos3 said:
198 rwbhp

Not too shabby, at all!!! :wink:

That’s standard head, standard inlet manifold, just cam, headers and exhaust and 10.5:1 AFR. Within a week I should have an aftermarket ECU in and will be looking for around 165rwkw (220rwbhp).

But back on topic, the headers I have are a 6-3-1 design and have been developed for a tightly controlled “saloon carâ€￾ racing category. They manage to screw 220+rear wheel bhp from a stock head, 204deg cam and these extractors.
 
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