headers for big block A body

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moparraceman

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whats the best fenderwell headers for a 440 1973 duster? i cant see were any under chassie will work, have a set bought off a friend, he said he mock them up in a 68 dart with a 400, and they clear. with the fenderwell need a set that will hug the cowl is there a tire problem rubbing ? any used ones for sale or part # for new thanks
 
I prefer the Proparts headers; they're sort of a semi-chassis header. In other words, a few tubes run inboard of the torsion bars and a few tubes out into the fender well. Plus, if you choose to, you can easily run a 4-speed with them by modifying your bellcrank.

Bob Mazzolini Racing is making them now.
 
I ran the Hooker Fenderwells, got tired of the tires rubbing Bad. ran Proparts can ran warm ( headers and exhaust were the only change ) swapped on a set of Headman's the car picked up a little et ( don't rember exactly how much ) and the car ran cooler again. I never plugged the holes from the fenderwell headers. the Proparts I spent a Fortune on having coated inside and out ( I knew it was going to put the headers tighter to the engine and everything else. I like the fenderwells, plugs are easy, pulling the headers were easy. I like the way they look. only complaint was tire clearance and the master cylinder was close.
 
As far as the Hooker FW negatives go, cutting the IF's out, 25" tires rubbing, heat shield for the MC, if you trailer it you'll need to watch them close when loading and unloading. They run closer to the ground to get under the frame. Seen them catch between the trailer and ramps several times.
However they are easier to open up, plenty of clutch linkage clearance, and starter access. Changing plugs is not that big a deal once you know the routine.

some more header info here may help.....
Tech Index
 
In the old days, I had a '71 Demon with a 383 in it. I bought it with with fender well hedders installed.....had those removed and put regular hedders on it. To get a regular hedder to fit, the drivers side hedder has to be cut and modified. Can not quite remember, but 1 for sure, maybe 2 of the tubes have to be cut out and modified with a slightly smaller piece welded back in to fit.
If you find a quality exhaust shop, I am sure they can do it.....other than modifying like this, I would look at the T.T.I. 1 3/4" chassis, as mentioned above.....or maybe a shorty hedder may fit as well.
 
I've seen my share of original big block Cudas and Darts that have been butchered, looks like most used a hatchet or a torch. I don't think people had Sawzalls or plasma cutters back then. With TTI's nice headers there is no reason to use fenderwell headers, in my opinion.
 
Under chassis with stock steering suspension severely limits what you can run efficiently for pipes sizes. Depends on what you expect from the car.

And tti's stink for making power.

Run what you want.

Pick your part, pay your money
 
Anybody ever run the hedmans on a RB Stage VI heads? i know the PN 75161 say "INDY with stock bolt patern" the PN 75160 dont specify , Thanks
 
In all honesty there is no great fit for big block headers on an a body with the fender well you have a tire rubbing issue with the proparts headers easier to install than the tti headers but everything is tight underneath spark plug changes are a headache I only found true bliss when I ditched the torsion bars and converted to coil overs and rack and pinion and what a difference I had custom headers made now working on the car is such a pleasant event and not a profanity latent affair now you don’t have to change over to rack and pinion but switching over to coil overs will give you the clearance that will make life easier
 
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These are some of the pictures of my setup believe me it makes working on my car fun again
 
Excellent Work Man ! The budget won’t allow suspension and steering modes at this time, If I can get a confirmation the Hedmans will work with Stage VI heads I’ll probably go that way for now, Thanks for your input
 
I have hooker 2 inch coated, but I'd really like the hedman style, they fit better !
 
Rat Bastid & I installed tti headers on a small block in a duster. What a ***** & I imagine bb would be worse.
 
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