henderjl

I have a '71 454, originally an LS5, 365HP. I have upgraded it with 2.19/1.86 valves in the stock oval port heads, cam grind similar to the LS6 425HP motor, and headers. The cam is 242/242 at 0.050, .520 lift, 3200-6500 RPM, mechanical lifters.

I am considering an Edelbrock Torker II manifold and Holley 750 double-pumper, mechanical secondaries.

Can anyone comment on this choice and will I be able to get the hood closed? The Edelbrock web site says yes.


[Modified by henderjl, 1:37 AM 4/30/2004]

zwede

Yes, you can close the hood with a drop base aircleaner and 2.25" filter. The lid will be too close to the choke horn so you have to cut the choke horn off.

Don't know if I just had bad luck, but that intake never ran well for me. Always had a bad stumble off idle.

Solid LT1

You may wat to check out the Brodix HVH 2plane intake for the BB Chevy. The small block manifold is a very good runner and fits the flat SB hood.

LemansBlue68

That cam has a lot of duration for a Torker II manifold. TorkerII is the only aftermarket manifold that I'm aware of that will fit under the stock big block hood and I'm not so sure that it will breathe well in the RPM range that your cam is the strongest. I'm pretty sure that the LS6 manifold was a high rise style to support higher RPM breathing (it WAS in the Chevelle). If I were you, I would look in to going with a higher profile hood (like an L88) and go with a manifold more like the Edelbrock Performer RPM. Those cam specs are perfect for that manifold.

The way you stand now, you're stuck with the worst of both worlds: An intake that won't breathe, killing off all your high RPM torque and a cam that does not make good torque at low RPM because of it's high duration.

henderjl

According to the Edelbrock web site, the Performer is good for idle to 5500 rpm and the Torker II is good for 2500 to 6500. That would seem to fit my cam pretty well. Am I missing something here?

Another question. The 1971 LS6 came with a Holley. Why does it seem to be so difficult to put a Holley on one now?

blue427

I'm running a Torker 2 with a 770 holley avenger 280 comp cam,2 1/4 air cleaner but did not have to cut anything. no stumble off idle.oval ports run out of air at 6000rpm. Very few choices with stock 427 hood. :steering:

Super Stock

I am running a 20 year old Holley Street Dominator that I port matched w/ a 3310(less choke tower) and a 2 1/4 drop base w/ the same cam and it pulls hard to 5500. (small port heads).

henderjl

When you say "less choke tower", what exactly do you mean? In my Summit catalog, the 3310 has a choke tower. Did you machine it off? If so, is starting in cold weather a problem?

Super Stock

I machined it off for more frontal air flow and a/c clearance. As for cold weather I don't hve that many really cold days to deal with so I can't be much help . Sorry.

bigvette1

Little confused here. I tried a Torker 2 with the Holley Avenger 770cfm and a AC Delco air cleaner that says Chevrolet on the lid (drop base style) and it all fit using a 2 1/2" air filter element. This is under a 73-454 with that years hood. No machining of the choke horn was needed.

I removed the combo for other reasons, but while it was on it ran pretty well. Can't compare to Performer or Performer 2.0 as I have not tried them (does not fit). The Torker 2 intake seemed a little better than the stock at that time. FYI

henderjl

Thanks for the info. Were you satisfied with the performance, tunability, etc., of the Avenger? Also I would be interested in opinions from anyone about mechanical secondaries for the street.

Doug Brandon

I have a '71 with similar combo. I ran the Torker II for a while. It fit using a drop base air cleaner (LS6) and a 2.75" K&N filter. With a 750 Holley (3310), motor would not pull above 3000 rpm, so I switched to a carb w/o a choke horn and solved the problem (what Zwede referred to). Current carb is mech sec, btw, and works great on the street.

As to why Chevy got it all to fit with a low rise LS6 intake, there is a difference in the height of almost an inch between the Torker II and the factory low rise LS6 intake (I just went downstairs and checked, as I have both manifolds sitting on my bench). The factory intake is shorter which allows for a standard 14X3 air filter and heat shield, etc.

I ran the Torker II for several years on a 433 with oval heads and 2.19 valves. I used a milder cam (.527/.553, 224/232 @ 050). The combo made good power, but did have a slight off-idle miss that I could never get rid of. That intake is best from about 2500-5000 rpm (at least with my cam). It makes lots of midrange torque.

I am going back to an LS6 look with factory hood, rect port alum heads, and solid cam in a 496. I currently have an Air Gap intake on there with L88 hood. Email if you want any other info on the Torker II and how it compared to the Air Gap.

bigvette1

The Avenger is a good carb out of the box for themost part. I have to set the float levels and then the idle came right in. I had one problem with the secondary throttle plates being slightly misaligned with some burrs on them from stamping and would not shut unless you snapped them. Hence, the idle would stay too high. Took them of and sanded the edges with emery cloth and realigned and they were perfect. You mentions a mechanical secondary - the Avenger is a vacuum secondary with tunable tip in points via the springs and is super easy to change out.

henderjl

I still don't know what to do. Bigvette1 had success with the Torker II and a Holley, but several others have said it didn't work for them without cutting off the choke horn. I don't really have any way to do this, though I suppose I could get it done somewhere. I am a little concerned with starting problems in my relatively cold climate with no choke.

I am starting to wonder if it wouldn't be better to keep my stock manifold and just go with either an Edelbrock Performer Q-Jet 750 or maybe a Holley with an adapter plate. Opinions?

Brettmc

I've got the Torker II/Holley 850 combo. I've had it running good at times. I think something is wrong with my carb tho. I just converted it to a 750 DP with a Proform main body, 2 Proform metering blocks and a Proform throttle plate. I got it on and rough-tuned today...road test to follow when the roads dry out. Email me for more info.

Brett :thumbs:


[Modified by Brettmc, 10:38 PM 5/1/2004]