The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The HiPo Shop What type of headers to use on a '59 Apache?

Hello!

My '59 Apache 3600 longbed has a 350 with the original sm420 and a Dana 60 rear. It's an original v8 truck, and the engine is a '70 350 that has no mods that I know of. Right now, it has ram's head manifolds and what is probably the original single exhaust. I want to add headers/dual exhaust.

What type of headers are best to use in my truck, in terms of clearance and ease of installation? Shorty headers or standard long tube headers. Jegs has a bunch of headers that they say will fit my truck, but I have no experience as to which ones fit/work the best.

Also, are there any headers that will bolt up to a stock exhaust system with minimal mods? As it sits now, I'm planning on buying a system from Waldron Exhaust, but I'd like to avoid spending a ton more money to have a muffler shop hack up a brand new exhaust system.

I'd appreciate any help/input I can get.

Thanks...

Chris

This isn't what you asked but I will give my opinion. Unless you have a highly modified engine & are going raceing, the Ram Horn manifolds with dual ex. are all you need & the best way. If you buy a ready made dual system it should fit the stock manifolds. I always take mine to the local muffler shop & have them build the duals. You get your choice of outlet possition & mufflers. I use 30 in. glasspacks. They flow good & have a deep mellow tone & are not loud. I have a set of headers I will give away if you pay the shipping.

Thanks for the reply. The long term plan for the truck is a more aggressive engine build (heads/cam/intake, etc), but as a first step I want to get the duals and headers in place because the stock exhaust system is on its way out...If I'm going to do exhaust work now, I might as well get it where I want it rather than doing it over.

I'd take it to a muffler shop as well, but whatever it costs in KS, just add 40%, and you'll get the cost on the east coast...it can get pretty costly.

If you're giving away the headers, I'll be happy to pay the shipping. PM the cost and your address.

Thanks...

Chris

PM sent

Get ready for a major increase in underhood temperature and noise, and chronic problems with gasket leaks at the header flanges. Unless you're planning to run at engine RPM's above 3,000 all the time, the only thing a set of headers does is make a visual impact when the hood is up. I've done numerous dyno runs with ram's horn manifolds VS headers, on some highly-modified engines, and there's no noticeable improvement in HP or torque in the low to midrange RPM area. If the engine is capable of normal street operation, it probably doesn't need headers.
Jerry

I gotta agree with Jerry and George, the rams horns are great, if you think you need better, get a set of the vette rams horns that are slightly larger, otherwise a change to headers is money wasted that could be much better spent on other areas of your build

Bill

The rams' horns for the 300 HP 327 used 2 1/2" exhaust pipes. Combine them with mid-70's Cadillac mufflers that have front and rear pipes that are also 2 1/2" each. Each muffler is designed to flow the output of an engine up to 500 cubic inches. Two of them make a 350 breathe about like it's got straight pipes. Put a crossover pipe ahead of the mufflers to improve the flow even more.
Jerry