Thanks guys. I appreciate the responses.

Greg, the bolt clearance is definitely on the to do list yet. I've found that using allen head bolts and washers work best with SBC headers. You can shape the washer to sit up against the tube better versus using a flanged bolt. The other option that's worked for me are studs with nuts when there's not a lot of room to get the bolt and or socket into the area. For instance, the right side bolts at cylinder 1 and 5 will probably end up being studs. I did that with the headers I put on this engine while it was in my 4th gen Firebird and it worked great. Same thing with C2/3 vettes as some of them can be a bear to deal with when using larger tube diameter headers. Thanks for the feedback and suggestions.

Panty dropper
 

Trey
Cool fab work on the headers
I need to get serious about raising mine
as they scrape a lot

Bob

Thanks Bob. You may want to look into "shortening" your current ones. Woody on here has a 2nd gen Z28 running a SBC and he showed how to take an inch out of a pair of Hooker headers which gave similar clearance to what I did. That would have been a lot easier for me than making my own. I just wanted the challenge though. Maybe you could do something like that with your headers? Good luck! I know I hated scraping my headers when I had the 403 in there still.

Panty dropper
 

Thanks Trey
We want to drop the car some
more up front... So need to look
hard at the headers. May even go
to some aftermarket cast iron ones

Bob

I gotcha. I forgot that was an option for you.That may indeed be the best bet.

Nice work on the headers...

That is one area that I see more complaints about than any other, header fitment. Best way to get them to fit right is build them yourself I guess.

So, how come no middies? too much hp loss? its what CustomWorks did on mine for maximum ground clearance, my frame rail is 4.25 from ff and the headers are now at 3.625, so bout 1/2 / 5/8 below the rail, and no scraping yet.

Ground clearance vs. hp, is that ultimately the question?

Btw, everything looks really good Trey, you gonna do the LT4 heads cam kit at some point? its a good deal, and great torque #'s....its what i was gonna do before i shot my wad on the LS (still no regrets :thumbsup: )

I'd say you're right, Lance. These older cars can be a pain to get good headers on. The new cars are easy but not cheap for the good stuff.

Mike, when I mocked up the mid length headers, I had the same ground clearance essentially. I'm not so low that 1/4-1/2" lower than the rail is going to kill me. I decided that the long tubes would be best. The mufflers are a different story. I'm making my own because I can make them 1 inch thinner and that does matter. I'll get a ground clearance measurement when I finally get the car on the ground.

Factory LT4 heads aren't the cat's meow any more. What it comes down to are LT1 heads have more metal which allows a porter to have better control over the shape of the port. Not only that, but heads in the 195-200cc range are killer. They have come a long way in the last few years. You just don't hear about it since no one cares about LT engines any more it seems. Now, if you go with aftermarket LT4 type heads from say AFR, then you're dealing with a great head. The difference in price versus performance between using AFR and ported LT1's is too much for too little to me. I'm going to have Advanced Induction port my heads, intake, and throttle body for me. I should be a little over 400 ftlbs and hp at the wheels with a broad power band when I'm done. That's more than enough for me.

Thanks guys

Nice job on the headers Trey. I may have to go this route when I change the ride height.

Thanks! Be prepared to spend a lot of time with it. I'm no where near done and have easily 30 hours in this one header to this point. I'm teaching myself a lot of skills along the way so I consider it worth it, but it's definitely not the cheap or quick route.

My other big concern is that they actually work. I think I'll be fine but man it would suck if these things cause a restriction. lol