| Air cleaner design question [message #232539] |
Sat, 07 December 2013 08:24  |
kerry pinkerton
Messages: 2565
Registered: July 2012
Location: Harvest, Al
Karma:
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Senior Member |
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I've been around big blocks engines most my adult life. Most of them had the stock air snorkel concept on the air cleaner. A few 'high performance' machines had dual snorkle. On our 440 MOPARS, we would turn the air cleaner top upside down to create a gap and allow more air through the carb.
To my feeble mind, the diameter of the snorkle being considerably less than the bores of the carb is roughly equivalent to trying to breathe through a straw.
I know the GM designers were bright guys but can someone explain how a restrictive air input helps the engine? This is further complicated by long air ducts with many curves and bends that a lot of us put on our coaches.
I understand a bit about the velocity increasing when the throat narrows and can see where getting the air moving faster could be an advantage in a high RPM condition but we don't have high RPM conditions.
This week, I went with a friend to pick up his 'new' SOB. It has a 454 Chevy in it and has a factory duct from the snorkle out to clean air in front of the radiator just like we do. THE DIFFERENCE however is that the snorkle, instead of having a 2-3" diameter end has about a 6"x2" oval opening. The 4" inlet duct goes to a round to oval transition and mates up to the much larger oval snorkle on the 454 air cleaner.
This seems like a much, MUCH better arrangement. One of my things on my to do list for some time is to shape a new, larger snorkle and figure a way to get a strighter air inlet duct. I'd like to talk to Barry Owen (ex NASCAR GMCer) about where the high pressure points are on our coaches. I don't THINK that down low near the bottom of the drivers side of the radiator is the best place for heat or air flow but that is just an opinion.
Thoughts?
Kerry Pinkerton - North Alabama
Had 5 over the years. Currently have a '06 Fleetwood Discovery 39L
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