Little Blue 82

[Ray Cecil]

Alright. Bought an Offenhauser on ebay. Lost the bidding on the dual port, so submitted an offer on a c-series. Offer was accepted.

So, now its onto deciding on the fuel system.

Easy cheap way....500cfm carb....manual choke.

Kinda easy but expensive....TBI setup, fitech or other.

Ive got a brand new 600 edelbrock but that is too big according to a lot of folks.

[Gary Lewis]

Are always going to run a stock, and potentially worn, engine?  Or are you going to have it built up, now or later?  And will you have the time and tools with which to properly jet/tune a carb - now or later?

I ask because if the engine is going to change at some point the fuel system may need to change as well. So if you go with a carb you are probably going to have to tune it initially and you may need to change it or at least it’s jetting if the engine changes later. But if you are going with EFI it will learn and accommodate, both initially as well as later.

[Ray Cecil]

Gary, my dream is to turbo it. But....that impractical, even for my standards. So I might get a FI unit that is good to 400-500hp. That way I can upgrade the engine later if I want.

[Gary Lewis]

I know you’ve talked about several approaches on the engine, which is why I mentioned tuning a carb. That can be time consuming and is best done with an expensive AFR meter. How many times do you want to do that?

FI is more expensive but a good one self-tunes. Without needing the AFR meter.

[Ray Cecil]

Ive had a hard time making my mind up, yes. Ive always wanted to put TBI on a classic. Fitech has a deal right now. They have a new fuel command center called Force Fuel. Its a submerged high pressure pump, and its fed by the stock mechanical pump, so no need to run new lines.

[Gary Lewis]

That's a good approach as it lets you keep your fuel level sender.  

[Ray Cecil]

Speaking of....i need to replace mine.

[Ray Cecil]

Not a bad price for a new, never installed piece. I think the are 350-$400 new from offy.

[Danny G]

From the research I had done on these the C series seemed more favorable, something about one or two of the tubes not getting an even amount of something as the others etc. I can't remember, but I am looking for those reviews. My plan before I found the EFI engine was to do a offy, and fitech combo as well.

[Ray Cecil]

Im trying to figure out what the advantage if any would be to use their 2 barrel TBI. For the same cost, you can get the 4 barrel. They dont list cfm ratings. So looking at either system in terms of air velocity isnt possible.

Im thinking this one is a good practical model. Its not capable of boost, but I think realistically, Ill never boost the blue truck.

[Gary Lewis]

I don’t know why one would be better than the other. Either would use a single mass air flow meter so it shouldn’t make a difference.

[Ray Cecil]

Gary Lewis wrote

I don’t know why one would be better than the other. Either would use a single mass air flow meter so it shouldn’t make a difference.

Maybe I should call and ask them. However, if I did the 2 barrel, I would need a carb adapter. So, that is another purchase.

There has been a lot of talk about intake air velocity. Would be nice to hear from fitech if they have recommend one over the other for the 300.

[Ray Cecil]

This is from Offenhausers 1981 catalogue.

[Ray Cecil]

Next question will be Throttle body heat. With headers and an offy intake, should I install an engine coolant heat plate under a fitech TB?

I think the biggest issue with no heat is fuel not atomizing and sticking to the inside of the manifold causing stumbling/hesitation.

I think I will run without a heat plate and see how it does. It may become extremely obvious if I need one.

If I have poor fuel mileage, a heat plate would assist that also.

[Ray Cecil]

[Ray Cecil]

I guess that answers that.

[ArdWrknTrk]

Kinda.

With TBI and long exposed aluminum runners like that there's bound to be some condensation in cold weather.

Thermodynamics and the behavior of vapor don't go out the window no matter how finely atomized the fuel mixture is.

It it were port injection I would agree with the above.

[Frank Wyatt]

TBI injection, no matter who makes it, is just an electronic version of the carburetor. However, with a O2 sensor, MAP sensor and an ACT sensor it does have more inputs giving it a more refined ability to self adjust to the conditions.

[Ray Cecil]

ArdWrknTrk wrote

Kinda.

With TBI and long exposed aluminum runners like that there's bound to be some condensation in cold weather.

Thermodynamics and the behavior of vapor don't go out the window no matter how finely atomized the fuel mixture is.

It it were port injection I would agree with the above.

Point taken. The proof is in the puddin as they say. I will run it without first. If its obvious that I will need something, I will do it.

[Ray Cecil]

It would be cool to put a carb heat plate coolant circuit on a ball valve. Run a cable to control carb heat to the dash, like they do in aircraft.

It would be cool to be able to adjust timing from the cab too.