What size Holley?

Discussion in ''Da Nailhead' started by yonausti, Feb 21, 2005.

  1. yonausti

    yonausti 53 Super Custom

    I just bought a 4bbl manifold from a 55 Century to put on my 53 Super (322 V8). and was wondering if anyone could suggest a good size Holley carb for a stock motor.

    thanks in advance,
    Don W.
     
  2. buick 494

    buick 494 My happy place

  3. R Bear

    R Bear Well-Known Member

    Nailheads love BIG carburation. Start with a 600cfm if you want to be conservative. Edelbrocks (Carter AFB style) seem to stay in calibration much longer, on cars that sit a lot, than the Almighty Holleys. Look at old threads on this site for more advise/opinions. Some folks run 3-2bbls & 2-4bbls on these relatively small Nailheads. A 322 is not a really small engine, converts to about a 5.3 litre, like lots of full size, late model V8 pick-ups & SUV's.

    Have Fun!
     
  4. doc

    doc Well-Known Member

    carb

    Personally I would go with a small 600 cfm holley,but, if I remember right the 322 s had a small base wcfb carb on them . To do it right You may have to change the intake manifold too. Probably the easiest to do would be the ebrock s so the linkages,bolt pattern ect. will bolt up.
    Take a long hard look at it before You start. It is worth the effort,and the gains are good. I am not known for doing the easiest and most simple thing sometimes. :Brow: I would tell You to be sure to clean the crud out of the heat riser passages in the intake and put a heat shield plate under the carb to keep the corrosive gases from eating the base plate up. :Smarty: You need the heat in the manifold to vaporize the fuel and the plate to protect the carb. If you dont run heat to the intake the performance will be disapointing. :Smarty: Cold intakes are great on the strip and at high rpm,but some heat works great on the street in the real world. I love Holleys because so much can be done with them but for your purposes a ebrock might work out best, like i said take a long hard look before you start. Did You ever think about building a intake/carb for crusing and a intake/carb for performance? On a nail head the intake /carb assembly can be swapped in less than an hour. Take a long hard look- just some ideas. :pp
     
  5. DualQuad55

    DualQuad55 Well-Known Member

    For either crb you will need an adapter for the small pattern on your manifold to the large pattern of the carb. I think these are availible from Jegs (just went through this conversation on another post)
    Although Ilike Holleys for their performance, I would recommend an Edelbrock 1405/1406 for most street driving. These are about 600cfm with vacuum secondaries. They tune very easily even for a novice and work very well on street cars.They are based on the Carter AFB that GM and Mopar used for years including dual quad nailheads and dual quad Hemis. (obviously different cfms).
    I have three intake set ups I keep for my car. If you spend some time to set up the fuel line(s) and linkage the first time, you can swap in about 10 minutes(no b.s.) My brother gave me the sweet idea to install studs in the four corners, this allows me to drop the gaskets on and then the intake(s), hook up the fuel line and then the throttle cable, plug the trans modulator in and it is DONE.
     
  6. doc

    doc Well-Known Member

    studs

    Hey , Joe I like the idea about the studs on the intake . I am gonna do it. :Brow:
     
  7. yonausti

    yonausti 53 Super Custom

    Thanks for the replies

    I just want to thank all for the replies. I ended up getting a really good deal an a Holley. I will measure the bolt patterns for both the manifold and carb to make sure the adapter from JEGs will fit. The car still has a couple of years before I finish making it roadworthy and an additional 3 to get it where I want (ie...paint, running gear, interior).
    I will definitely stick around this board for all the great responses (to my posts as well as others).

    Thanks again,
    Don W.
    53 Super :)
     

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