Any 216 or 235 exhaust manifold can be used, but often they are difficult to
weld because the casting has 'crystallized' over the years. You may have to
go through a number of manifolds to find one that can be successfully
welded.
Most split manifolds I've seen have been cut to make the rear two ports a
separate unit, retaining the heat box and original down pipe with the front
pair. Then a header stub is added to the rear portion, and the open areas
welded up with steel plate. My first split manifold was not cut, just had a
piece of plate brazed in to separate the front from rear exhaust pairs, but
this is a little trickier and I haven't seen another one like this. J. C.
Whitney used to sell a "Y" piece for the rear section only, about $10, I'm
sure it was called a "Super High Performance Exhaust Kit" or something, but
these are long extinct.
Another obscure trick was to cut the manifold twice, between #1 and #2
ports, and again between #3 and #4, then join the outer ports into one pipe
after welding up the ends. This requires a lot of welding and was rarely
done, but produces a different sound, more like a V8.
There' s a company called 'Night Prowlers' in Lamar MO that sells manifolds
already split, $165. the one example I've seen was very nicely done but
eliminates the heat box entirely, not a good thing. They also sell an
inexpensive tube header, for $135, again no heat, but at least pipe fittings
are supplied for running tubing to the heat box flange on the intake.
With these options, and of course Patrick's Fenton headers available, it may
not be worth the headaches of trying to weld 50-year-old cast iron but maybe
an ace welder can make it work. If you can find a donor car that hasn't run
in say 30 years, your chances will be greatly improved.
Jack / Winter Park FL
----- Original Message -----
From: "jimamy" <jimamy@n-connect.net>
To: "oletrucks" <oletrucks@autox.team.net>
Sent: Tuesday, January 25, 2000 4:18 AM
Subject: [oletrucks] Best way to split manifold
> What is the best way to split the manifod on a 235/216 and are there any
> differences in the manifolds from year to year or 235 to 216?
> Thanks, Jim 45 1/2, 49 50 & 51 3/4 ton
> oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and 1959
>
oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and 1959
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