another 400 to wake up

[Wicked72]

so i finally stopped myself from letting the car sit a dreaming of what it could be and just enjoy it already. i have a 400 that will be built into a beast but for now i just picked up another 400 with a 727. i know the compression is whats killing this motor at 8.2 but hey maybe i ill throw a paxton on it  as for now i just want to get the 2brl off it and get it to breath. i have both a single plane and dual plane edelbrock intakes. im thinking of using the dual plane for the tq but i havent decided yet. getting to the questions what size carb should i run on the engine and what size headers would i benifit from? and im probably getting some elcheapo blackjacks since ill be damned to spend $700 on headers right now. also should i even bother changing out the tq converter for anything? ill be mostly street buming it and i dont have a rear yet some dumbass being me sold it thinking id get a bamf moser to replace it....woops

[Ghoste]

Go with the dual plane.  With the low compression I don't know if I'd get too crazy on the rest, the tc won't have much there to take advantage of.

[JB400]

dual plane intake with a 750 cfm carb. save your money on the headers, and torque converter until you get the other one built.

[c00nhunterjoe]

Dropping a 750 on an 8:1 400 with a 2 barrel cam may be a bit much.

[FLG]

Gonna change the cam too?

Little better cam, new converter, steel head gaskets (will bump up compression a bit), and a 650 carb will wake things up.

1 3/4" for the headers, any bigger and your going to be loosing bottom end torque.

[Wicked72]

well if i could get some pistons to bump the compression up a bit tht would help majorly ive been considering it. anyone know a place to get cheap runable pistons to get my comp up?

[Cooter]

Slam a set of closed chamber heads on it to help a bit..About 1/2 point, but more if milled. ALOT easier than swapping pistons. Especially if you are gonna run that blower later on.

[c00nhunterjoe]

I've seen plenty of stock bottom end 400s run really well. A friend with a duster runs 12's with his. Granted its a lot lighter then a 2 ton charger, but it can be done.  The key is induction.  Choose the right cam\intake\carb, and it will really wake up. Drop a set of heads on it for even more. Power can be made with low compression, you just have to be smart about how you do it and not overdo it.

[Ghoste]

By the time you change heads, cam, and induction why not go the rest of the way and rebuild the bottom too?

[JB400]

By the time you change heads, cam, and induction why not go the rest of the way and rebuild the bottom too?

And shove a 440 crank in it 

[Ghoste]

Stroker kits are relatively cheap, go for it!

[Wicked72]

i have another 400 thats going to be built completely but for now i just want to squeeze what i can out of the one i just picked up so i can drive the car for once...and more importantly get it on the road before my twins are born. still need a complete rear and a wiring harness front to back..... other then that ive got everything else!!

[Wicked72]

so im working on getting a cheap used set of headers atm. just won a 600cfm edelbrock carb off ebay for $75 and working on cleaning up the engine and the dual plane. going to pick up new seals and ive got a nice set of valve covers. anyone know of a place to buy a cheap set of headers? i saw some on jegs but they said they didnt work on cars with pwr steering...

[Ghoste]

The problem with cheap headers is going to be fitment no matter what.  Outside of good used ones your best bet is probably going to be to moving to a little higher priced set.

[JB400]

The problem with cheap headers is going to be fitment no matter what.  Outside of good used ones your best bet is probably going to be to moving to a little higher priced set.

I'm going to have to agree.  The older ones probably don't fit all that well anyway.  Manufacturing Technology has moved along in just the last 5 years.  Things fit heck of a lot better.

[Indygenerallee]

TTI Headers are #1 I bought my set for my Daytona 5.7 Hemi conversion and they are ceramic coated polished, They are not cheap (mine were $850.00) but with everything you get what you pay for.

[Ghoste]

Yeah, those are about the best fitting Mopar header out there.  You should be able to find something somewhere between the TTI and the Jegs specials that works for you but you are the only one who can dcide how much you are willing to pay and how much headache you're prepared to endure.  I have Hedman on my B block with power steering and the fit was very good.  There are some who don't like the Hedmans and there are some who have had fit issues with them.  I can only relate my own experience.

[Wicked72]

Ill throw a hammer to some el cheapos and get tti when i finsh the next engine  so i just got a complete rear. E body 8 3/4 41 case open 323 with green bearings. Gotta relocate the perches since they are 1.3 inches to close, tried like hell to find a housing for my car, oh well ill make it work. Now to find a complete whole car harness......woohoo