Aftermarket carb/hood clearance

[chrism202]

Hi all, I'm in the process of restoring my Bronco finally after all these years. The body has been media blasted and the old girl is in surprisingly good condition except for the hood. I'm also rebuilding the engine and will be installing an aftermarket intake manifold and carb. Can anyone tell me if there is potential for any clearance issues with a stock hood and aftermarket intake/carb set up? I do not plan on installing any kind of body lift. I really like the factory hood but would consider installing either a Buckaroo or Pro-Flow if it helps with clearance. Am I making something out of nothing?? Thanks Guys!
Chris

 

[miikee73]

I have a 73,no body lift,edelbrock carb with electric choke,stock hood. They make low profile,drop center air filters .The 1 1/4 drop wouldn't clear the electric choke.I got the 5/8th drop and it clears. no room for a fancy nut on top. I cut the stud about 1/2 in taller than the top and used a 1/8th thick nut . It only clears by 1/2 to 5/8 ths if an inch. Use a ball of clay on top of the air cleaner when you close the hood. Thats with a 3" tall element,you can also get a 2" tall one.

 

[miikee73]

Oh ,and Welcome to the addiction. I suggest you read a lot here and ask a lot of questions. It will save you lots of time and money. And VOTE for this site (at the bottom of the page) everyday!

 

[chrism202]

Thank you for the help, much appreciated. I agree with you that this forum is priceless when it comes to information. I've tried to research as much as possible prior to beginning this restoration so as to not post stupid questions but now things are moving forward rapidly and I"m going to need lots of opinions so as to not screw anything up, but it will happen I suppose.
Thanks again for the help.
Chris

 

[blubuckaroo]

An Edelbrock performer intake (not the RPM) will work if you use a lower air cleaner. The EGR/PCV spacer on a stock intake won't be used because aftermarket carbs come with a PCV fitting. That will save you 1". You still won't have any space to spare. I wanted to use a 3/8" thick carb spacer and couldn't until did a body lift. I use one of those bigger triangle Edelbrock air cleaners turned backward. It clears the throttle linkage and fuel inlet real nice on the Edelbrock carb. If having the script on the air cleaner backwards bothers anyone, I tell them it's so I can read it from the driver's seat.;D

 

[chrism202]

Hey BluBuckaroo, I see you're running a 3550. That is the direction I was headed. Are you happy with that transmission? If you had to do it over is that the way you'd go again?

 

[blubuckaroo]

Hey BluBuckaroo, I see you're running a 3550. That is the direction I was headed. Are you happy with that transmission? If you had to do it over is that the way you'd go again?

It doesn't have 50 miles on it yet and all street. I'm still sort of getting used to shifting again. The sound of a healthy motor & true duals rapping down between shifts is something I've missed for years. It's starting to cool down here and I still can't drive without the windows open.;D The feeling of shifting up to overdrive at 60 mph and keeping up with traffic is magic. Everything has worked great but I did do the Nix Trix Fix on the B&M shifter to get it back within reach. But yes, it's a first class mod worthy of our car.

 

[chrism202]

Can you tell me what the "Nix Trix Fix" is? Sounds like I"m going to have the same lack of reach problem. Also what size of tires are you running?

 

[blubuckaroo]

chrism202 it looks like we're hijacking this thread, but it was your thread.
I asked in a thread how to bend the B&M shifter handle for a NV3550. Nixtrix suggested cutting and welding it. I cut the shifter below the boot about 2/3 the way through with a disc grinder just like you're felling a tree. I bent the shifter back to the position I wanted it. I then disassembled the shifter and TIG welded the gap back together. After grinding & polishing, you wouldn't notice where the cut is. I did have access to a TIG welder to repair the 303 stainless but with all the stainless these days, most shops can do it.