Headers for 440 Ebody?

[440_man]

Hi all,

I have a 1974 Barracuda with a 440 in it.  Have owned it for 20+ years, and the headers are now rusted out and leaking and in need of replacement.  The headers were on the car when I bought it, and I have no idea what brand they are, but that really doesn't make much difference, since they were all dented up to make them fit around the steering and the starter.  What have you 440 guys found to be a good fitting header that doesn't need to be beat into submission to fit?  It would be nice if I could also get at the starter without being a magigian.
I like the idea of factory HP manifolds (if they can be found) , but I imagine there is a significant horsepower loss going that way. 

thanks!

[Chryco Psycho]

Welcome to the site 
The only 2 that are worth using are TTI or Dougs & get them ceramic coated to keep the heat & corrosion down .

[JS29]

  And 

[440_man]

Thanks for the replys.   Any opinions on shorties vs. regular full length headers.  Do the shorties allow for easier starter access if need be?
Also, I have seen some positive mention of Schumacher Exhaust.  Does anyone have experience with them?  One more question to throw into the ring:  With the TTI or Dougs, can my factory starter be used, or do I need to buy an aftermarket model?

Thanks!

[Chryco Psycho]

 Both are designed for the factory starter but I prefer to use the Mini , I have not used the shorty headers , the Schumaker are a tri Y header , not the most efficient .

[hanksemenec]

Dougs D-452 have poor clearance by the torsion bars and will not clear Borgeson box. My setup is 440 with 727 and mini starter.

[anlauto]

TTI's all the way 

[dodj]

I have Hedman ceramic coated elites.  Perfect fit. Couldn't ask for better.   BUT, I seem to be one of the few. Others, including Brads70 on this site have had to modify their Hedmans.
TTIs are $1k

[Strawdawg]

When I put my stroker into my Challenger, I bought the Dougs D452.  They fit, but were not what I would call a pleasure to install.  The 2" tubes don't leave much room for anything and I ended up with about 1/32"-1/16 clearance to the steering box.  I guess I should have lifted the engine back up and wrestled the header out to put a small dent in the offending tube, but I am old and cranky and I said to heck with it.

Moving forward to the present, I am helping my son drop the 440 that had been in my Challenger into his Satellite wagon.  I went with the TTI 1 3/4" tubes as this is a cruiser and the pipe size won't be a restriction problem to any great extent.  They dropped right in and don't touch anything and have enough wiggle room to allow any normal engine movement.  Obviously, it's a B Body but the smaller tubes make a difference in my observations.

[70vert]

Thanks for the replys.   Any opinions on shorties vs. regular full length headers.  Do the shorties allow for easier starter access if need be?
Also, I have seen some positive mention of Schumacher Exhaust.  Does anyone have experience with them?  One more question to throw into the ring:  With the TTI or Dougs, can my factory starter be used, or do I need to buy an aftermarket model?

Thanks!

I have Schumaker Tri-Y on my '70 w/440 and they are great. I got mine with ceramic coating, agree that is a must. No denting required, easy to get to plugs, have a high torque mini starter so not sure about OE starter. I have TTI 2 1/2 exhaust with cross-over and they mated up perfectly.

PS: Unfortunately I don't think they are available any longer, founder passed away and they have a limited offering now, but you might reach out to them directly if interested.

[EDL94]

  I also run the Schumacher tri-Y shorties. I chose them because I am running fuel injection and I wanted the AFR sensor closer to the ports than a long tube header. I also got the ceramic coated and love them. TTI sells an adaptor tube to connect them to their systems. They fit good, more ground clearance, and never had an exhaust leak.

[440_man]

Thanks for all the responses.  Things got busy and the hobby had to be put to the side for a while.  But we are back at it again...

Sounds like ceramic is the way the go!  I like the idea of the Tri-Y, but it seems nobody makes them anymore. Unless some of you guys know of another place to find them other than from Schumaker's?

What about the regular shorties that TTI offers?  Any one have experience with them? 

If I do opt for full length, for a 440 with only a mildly upgraded camshaft, would you go with 1 3/4 headers then?

Thanks!

[rikkitik]

 The 440 Challenger I purchased had TTI 1 3/4" on it when I bought it. Fairly nice headers, very acceptable fit.
They will not be going back on. Going with American Racing 1 7/8" stainless. I believe 1 3/4" to be much more appropriate for 383's, even mild 440's should benefit from 1 7/8". As far as "block hugger" shorties, I only have experience with "modern" applications. Against newer, well designed/developed, manifolds shorties show little if any improvement, (even in supercharged applications).

[Montclaire]

The old Blackjack/Cyclones fit my 73 without any major issue, AND they cleared a fast ratio pitman arm. I believe they are 1-3/4" tubes.