[Brandon Potter]

My dad and I recently acquired an old 401 Buick with plans to put it into a street rod. So we found a nifty lookin' dual quad manifold from Offenhauser, but we'd like to block one of the intakes off and run the nailhead on just one carb. We've heard about guys doin this before, but we're not sure which intake to block off, front or back. Again, it's an Offenhauser dual quad manifold. Thanks for any educated info you have.

 

[JdOwNj]

Im not a nailhead guy per se, but running one carb on a two carm manifold is gonna make that thing run like dog doo... your a/f ratio will vary greatly... the cyls right under the carb are going to run normal/slightly rich, but the others are gonna run HOT and lean... can you say burned valve invitation....

 

[reddwarf]

Yeah, not the greatest idea for performance, though it will run that way. Forget performance though.

 

[catdad2u]

Nailheads. Try Friscosoldies.com This cat has a site for oldie songs (doo-***) but he's a rodder from the 50's & 60's, and still is today(32 ford p.u.). He once ran a T-bucket with a nailhead. Yank his chain.

 

[woodz428]

Running it with one blocked off won't create that big a deal, it's like running a progressive set up and never getting into it. Which brings up the question, why not hook it up progressively and just keep your foot out of it if you're worried about mileage.

 

[SJFast]

How about a pair of Holley 4412 2bbl carbs on adaptor plates ? This would be simple to rig and attractive under the right air cleaner.

 

[[email protected]]

better yet just leave the single four barrel on it,, seriously i ran nailheads back in the 60's had one in a studie coupe one in a 47 merc coupe, had one in a 27 "T" and then an anglia. it was the only 300 hp motor you could buy for $35-50.00 at the boneyard, Flint mich had at least a zillion of them in the yards. now you can't find even one. anyway if you must block off a carb, block off the front one, that way when you are running in the primary circuit it is closer to the center of the manifold,obviously you are looking for fuel economy, but this ain't the way.get a four bbl intake,

 

[Frisco]

Do NOT block off one of the carbs. <img src="graemlins/nono.gif" border="0" alt="[nono]" /> If you only want to run one four barrel carb; then get a single 4-barrel intake. I used to have a '56 Buick Nailhead engine in a '24 Ford 'T' roadster pickup. Stock engine except for a Buick export cam & kit (Higher lift & more duration). I ran 6 carbs on a log manifold for a while, then switched to 2-fours and finally to a single 4 barrel.