Tips and lessons learned help

[LZ]

Hi all:
Say I wanted to start a thread about said topic. Hearing others it seemed like it would be a help if we could concentrate some experience on here for the support of our group.
Fire the next pair.
Luke

[LZ]

So the other day the question was raised about build , buy used or get one built. Having just ran into a situation thought to share.
Last year when I made the (fairly painful) decision to sell my altered and get something closer to track ready. Had a pretty good idea as what to look for (or so I thought) when jumping to a FED.
Now the thing that I thought was most advantageous about the car that worked to my benefit caused me to be lackadaisical and ended up being a huge problem.
So worried about issues like the pan. Pumps configuration. Mounting, wiring, tranny configuration etc. The fact that my car is 20 inches between the rails at the engine plate blinded me to see my situation. My headers wont clear. The vintage hemi has a very obtuse angle at its exhaust side.
Have managed a little time this week to draw, measure layout a plan. But the most simplest solution is most likely just scrap the whole hemi deal and go to a different engine combination. 
Not one to give up easy I can make this work. But it will involve making a adapter plate of sorts to bring the exhaust face to a right angle to deck, then raise the port exit point in the plate , Fabricate a zoomie that come up at angle to the header flange to some degree.  This will also involve making a new steering rod with a bend in it, some welding on the heads and moving a couple of the exhaust fastener locations.

Not best photos sorry but again just wanted to share.  I have really gotten attached to the idea of running an old hemi but regroup and carry on. Theres people around us fighting much worse issues.
carry on thank you
Luke
Some ref photos attached . The one you can see the head exhaust side relative to the frame rail. This photo does not show the bigger problem of the steering rod.

 
Then you can see with the header in place how far it is from its location.


I made a wood model of the Header plate to get a quick visual of what I was looking at.

[dreracecar]

Did somthing simular on a show car. The cust had a 392 in a chassie and wanted funny car style headers with the large tubes over the the header pipe. The stock bolt pattern would not allow it, so I made an adapt flange that bolted to the head using the stock pattern (countersunk allen flatheads) and the new header flange had a 426 style bolt pattern to clear the 392's. Huge benni to that was we did not have to deal with "ovaling" the tube into the flange and just left it round

[32bantam]

Hey Luke...sorry to hear about the problem. I had exhaust flange problems with the Arias in my car ....but a little mill work fixed it. I would go with the adapter. And I would get in touch with Paul F. to get them cut out with water jet. Then you can finish them.
Steve 

[wideopen231]

Another issue you will find with Hemi or I did. The cowl and right cyliner head. Head sits way back and on mine VC is over cowl enough to cause issue removing and installing it w/o hitting head. On  Hemi oil pump can cause issue with uprights or diagonal. I head to step diagonal back from intersecting with up right to fit pump in.

Now I know why so many run SBC in these things.

[rooman]

Another issue you will find with Hemi or I did. The cowl and right cyliner head. Head sits way back and on mine VC is over cowl enough to cause issue removing and installing it w/o hitting head. On  Hemi oil pump can cause issue with uprights or diagonal. I head to step diagonal back from intersecting with up right to fit pump in.

Now I know why so many run SBC in these things.

You are talking late hemi mate, Luke has an early one. Different problems---need an adapter to route the oil lines from the original filter location on the right rear side of the block and the exhaust side face on the head is at more on an angle compared to the block face, hence his problem with the headers.  A late hemi will fit in a 20" inside chassis with off the shelf headers but an early one usually won't unless the top frame rail is low or the headers  come off the flange at an angle. On the early hemi the valve cover rail is about an inch forward of the bellhousing mounting face and on the 426 style it is about an inch back, hence you cowl problem. Brendan Murry had the same problem when he switched to the late motor as I built the car for the Chevy/Arias package.

Roo