Edelbrock Air Gap

[Jonny]

Has anyone fit an Edelbrock air gap in an e body with stock breather/Rallye hood/small block?

[Cuda Cody]

Welcome @Jonny     I think @Chryco Psycho  might know the answer to that? 

[bennydodge]

I'm running the air gap on my 1973 340 Challenger and it clears with the stock orange "tennis racket" air cleaner, Holley 870 and a 3/8" insulator. If you run the stock hood insulation the snorkel on the air cleaner will rub slightly, no pad everything clears but it's close.

[Jonny]

Hey thanks!

[Priesty]

I'm also thinking of an airgap manifold for same application, I currently have a 1/2" phenolic spacer because of heatsink issues.
Will the airgap manifold avoid the heatsink issue so I can do away with the spacer ? Concerned over clearance issues otherwise.

[Brads70]

The air gap will run cooler , there is also the Coolcarb spacers only 3/16" thick that work very well

[bennydodge]

I'm also thinking of an airgap manifold for same application, I currently have a 1/2" phenolic spacer because of heatsink issues.
Will the airgap manifold avoid the heatsink issue so I can do away with the spacer ? Concerned over clearance issues otherwise.

Depends. My setup with lots of compression and aluminum heads gets the intake manifold pretty hot(colder plugs help a LOT). My all-aluminum Holley has hot start issues without the insulator. I've ran an OEM AVS and a 750 Street Demon with no insulator(thin fiber gasket) without hot start problems. With the thin fiber gasket you can also run the stock hood insulation as well.

[kawahonda]

Great question! I definitely am planning the RPM Air Gap (painted hemi orange) for my A66 chally in the future. Glad to know that even though it's a tight fit, it fits!

AFAIK, the Air Gap is basically a Performer RPM with a built-in spacer. There's certainly more improvements, but I was watching a show where they got the RPM to perform very close to the Air gap just by going with a carb spacer and cutting out some metal. For my application, I would think a spacer isn't necessary.

[Jonny]

Ok kawahonda, now you have me thinking about painting my Air Gap to match my motor. I was just about to put it on with the rough factory finish until I talked to the Edelbrock tech and he scolded me telling me it defeats the porous "breathability" for heat relief but they sell the black painted one also so I'm confused.

[Cudakiller70]

Check your intake runners carefully. I had some casting sand stuck in 2 of the intake runners in my air gap.

[Cudakiller70]

Ok kawahonda, now you have me thinking about painting my Air Gap to match my motor. I was just about to put it on with the rough factory finish until I talked to the Edelbrock tech and he scolded me telling me it defeats the porous "breathability" for heat relief but they sell the black painted one also so I'm confused.

I'd paint it. It's an air gap "breathability" sounds fake, I doubt you would loose little if any measurable horsepower.

[kawahonda]

It's pretty much the best intake for the 340. I'm totally going to make it look stock! 

[Jonny]

Cudakiller70 thanks for the tip on the casting sand. And the Edlebrock tech didn't use breathability, I manufactured that. I meant heat dispersion but couldn't think of it but I think that's what he meant. I'm back to painting it though...

[Shane Kelley]

Works fine. Excellent intake!  There is about 1/2" of clearance with this setup in a Cuda. I doubt a dual snorkel would work.

[gzig5]

Cudakiller70 thanks for the tip on the casting sand. And the Edlebrock tech didn't use breathability, I manufactured that. I meant heat dispersion but couldn't think of it but I think that's what he meant. I'm back to painting it though...

He may have been alluding to the fact that radiant cooling efficiency is directly linked to surface area. A rough cast surface has more surface area than a smooth painted  /polished one. Painting that cast surface fills in some of the valleys and reduces the surface area that's there marginally reducing the thermal efficiency.
If you want your internal engine temperature as cool as possible paint everything black.  block,heads, intake, everything including internal surfaces if it will hold up.  Black has the highest rate of emissivity. Our testing on radiant cooling systems at work found a 4-8% decrease in core temperature between natural aluminum and a system anodized and painted black on inner and outer surfaces.