400 Heads...newbie question

[TMI]

uh oh.. the great Tim Meyer is online!!!!!

Boy, a guy can't lurk around here at all!!

 

[5.0Flareside]

hahaha.. i just so happened to look in the who's online portion and saw TMI!!!!

 

[DNFXDLI]

Boy, a guy can't lurk around here at all!!

Very unlikely

 

[393clevor]

wonder how a 351C would run with a 4" stroke... just wondering if those 2V heads will lose volumetric flow...

same thing with the 460 they have a awesome intake port and a choked up exhaust port just like the 400... Huh.. at least the ones I have built did.. but I still like the 400 those things will **** and get with very little money

 

[LEB Ben]

Anyone ever seen a C ant or a M ight make 1200 HP? The W inner does in class 4 and 8 truck racing trim. The C ant and M ight wont stay together, teh W inner will.

Not the point Lester, I'm not looking to get 1200hp, or race class 4 or 8. Not to mention, at that point, that engine is as much Windsor as a NASCAR car being the same as it's off the lot brethren. The point is opening up a bit more power on the cheap with other bolt on stock heads. All the while maintaing great reliability and a best utilized power curve. It'll be a rare day that I spin more than 4k for any considerable time, so the weezer is out, and the 400 places tq lower in the power band, so the 400 gets the nod over the 460. As for swapping engines in and out, for the power numbers I'm looking for, it's useless to swap something else in, for the 3-350hp and 4-450tq I'm looking to get, I'm quite happy with sub $1500 in parts. If a 1200hp weezy is your sticking point, I'll bow to your choice and go with the John Kaase built 400 that won Engine Masters 3 years running as my preference.

 

[mrxlh]

Ben, it is exactly the point. Your not looking for 1200 Hp, yet changing heads to another set stockers (added expense to your build) that may be in worse shape than what is already on the motor, which will yield you very minimal gains at best, in an rpm range that you don't realisticly run your truck at, is when you call it a day with a well thought out cam choice, updated springs and valves, good ignition, carb and intake. The C and the M can be (as with any motor) built to good performance levels, you just wont do it as cost effectively as you would with a W. Same holds true for a 305 VS 350 chev, ect. ect.

 

[primetime]

Probably gonna regret stepping on this one...

Boss 302:Generally considered awesome cars, but the street manners sucked. Why? lack of torque because the heads were to big.

Boss 351:Said to be some of the quickest Mustangs even though they were heavier. They both used just about the same head, so what was the difference? 50 cubes my friends.

So now we`re to the 400 which has what? 50 MORE cubes AND a longer rod. Which as far as I know, still helps with cylinder filling, piston dwell, and more power.

Now, if it was me, I`d throw on some closed chamber 4v heads (more compression, which as we know, M/400s need, and builds torque by the way), Performer RPM 351c 4v intake with Price Motorsports adapters, and a custom cam from someone like Cam Innovations that can better utilize some of the advancements we`ve gained since the sixties, when these heads were new.

Ideally it would be a hydraulic roller, but those will kick the crap out of the budgets scrotie. After all, C intakes, 4v heads, and adapter plates are cheap right?

Anyways, I`m just saying because nobody really touched on the cubic inch/big heads.

 

[DNFXDLI]

I have 434 cubes and 225cc heads

 

[393clevor]

I did... what gets me is the 400 head.. nobody seems to care they are choked to death... put a C head on a 400 and let it breathe those extra cubes... 4V would work even better than the 2V on a 400 just an extra cost of the adapters.. but you would have more intake choices.. Guess I have spent to much time porting 302 351W heads, when I came upon the D5 head I couldn't believe how bad the exhaust port was compared to any of the C heads...

 

[primetime]

I did...

I put alot of thought into whether or not I should I even add my .02. I even reread MOST of the 9 pages. Maybe, I missed something, or misinterpreted what you were saying, but I don`t remember anybody but Aaron saying to use 4v heads.

There is a big difference between 4v and 2v heads. M/400s with 2v heads don`t need adapter plates. With 4v heads they need adapter plates to run a cleveland 4v intake, or you need to weld and port match their intake to correct the port mismatch.

Remember, 351c, 351m, and 400s are all the same thing. The difference between them is the same as the difference between a 302 and 351w.

 

[393clevor]

Ya I know 2V c heads don't need adapters.. and yes I know all about he 4v heads, they are to completely different animals .... did you look at the pictures I posted? guess am I the only one here that has had a 400 head on the bench and seen the exhaust port in them.. yes it the same basic head and it will bolt to all the 335 series... I didn't tell him to go buy a set of 4V but I did agree with someone that they would work awesome on a 400... the OP said he could get a set of 2V C heads and I said get them, they are way better than the 400 D5 head he has and to not spend a penny on the D5's... But everyone says the 2V C heads wouldn't be worth it and I bet not one of them has ever swapped a D5 head for a D1 like I did .. the difference was very noticeable.

 

[393clevor]

The top of the guide boss runs flat across the port... what you see for an opening at the short turn is all you get..

D1 head

 

[Bax]

Another vote for the aussi 2 v heads. I run a set in my 68 bronco. I have lots of good torque down low and no problems up to 5K. The aussie head has a better exhaust port than all the other 2v heads. They work good on the 400. The W was mentioned and something about better flow out of w heads than 400 heads? crap + crap still = crap. put the aussie head on the w and go have fun. The 2v aussie head will out breath all the stock w heads ever produced.

 

[393clevor]

Another vote for the aussi 2 v heads. I run a set in my 68 bronco. I have lots of good torque down low and no problems up to 5K. The aussie head has a better exhaust port than all the other 2v heads. They work good on the 400. The W was mentioned and something about better flow out of w heads than 400 heads? crap + crap still = crap. put the aussie head on the w and go have fun. The 2v aussie head will out breath all the stock w heads ever produced.

Thanks you

didn't see anything about the W flowing better than the C head... I made mention of how choked up the 400 head is compared to the W head.. I said the W would flow more than the 400 head ( being sarcastic) .. not the C head.

 

[Bax]

Not really pointed at you. Just a general statement comparing the aussi head to any stock w head.

 

[dragogt]

Another vote for the aussi 2 v heads. I run a set in my 68 bronco. I have lots of good torque down low and no problems up to 5K. The aussie head has a better exhaust port than all the other 2v heads. They work good on the 400. The W was mentioned and something about better flow out of w heads than 400 heads? crap + crap still = crap. put the aussie head on the w and go have fun. The 2v aussie head will out breath all the stock w heads ever produced.

Link to aussie head?

 

[DNFXDLI]

http://www.tmeyerinc.com/aussieheads.html