No kidding. I don't have any numbers to argue but the seat of my pants would say I got tons of low end power by bolting a seat of cheapies up. Plus if I want to **** off my neighbors all I have to do is unbolt the collectors and race it up a few times........As for the starter, buy a good one and not an A-zone rebuild and wrap it in a blanket.........

 

Undersized pulleys will help on HP too. I understand that the "ministarters" are the way to go if you put headers on. Check out Hio Silver's build- he put the 427 headers on, and he can remove his starter.

 

15Hp at 6000RPM just ain't that much of a power loss for a truck.
Most of the "information" out there about performance comes from people who are trying to eek out every single Hp for racing.
A decent set of headers can run $500+. So one is paying some $33/Hp at 6000RPM. With an absolutely un-noticable gain in the cruising range then the cost per Hp reaches about $200/Hp.
I think that putting that money into other parts that produce more HP/$ makes far more sense.
I've been building, driving, and racing Ford engines for just about 40 years.
Once upon a time the ads in car mags convinced me that I needed this expensive part and that really expensive part. Then I added up the cost of those parts for the gains and found that Hp at top-end on a car that is only rarely going to see that RPM was too expensive. By a long shot.
But It's your money. I'm just offering a different viewpoint.

 

My flow tech headers were under $150. while not top of the line they do the job very well . my 390 peaks at 5500 rpm so getting every bit of HP and TQ for the least amount of $$ was high on my list.

 

I also got flow tech, after earned discounts etc I got mine for $99 delivered to my door from Advance a couple of years ago. Best thing I can say about headers vs logs.....no more nerve grinding hiss from a leaky donut gasket or broken bolts in my heads ears.....Downside, if my starter goes out while I'm on the road.....I'm gonna need a push to get her home...lol

 

Ah it's nice to be able to change out a starter.

32 yrs. ago was living in Carson city NV. I was having a starting problem,
had to jump start to get it fired up. Two days of this convinced me to get a replacement starter. Drove to the old Grand Auto store.

1O:clock am and 12* degree's across the street at the bank temp sign.
as, I noticed pulling into Grand auto. Well got the starter jump in the truck the truck won't start! Holy sh xt, I am thinking now what am, I going to do.
The parking lot had ice puddles and right where, I was parked now has watery icy pond is now right under truck at the engine pan area.

I try a few more times to get it to start Nope good. So, I get a few tools out that is needed for removing it. Put down an old blanket form the camper on the icy area lay down on it Brrrr it was cold. Well the old long tube header where built so I could remove the starter Oh was so happy about that.

45 minutes later or so got the truck started Ah"bingo" good to go now with what felt like half frozen wet cloths on parts of my body.

Back in the day wasn't many mini starters around an not cheap mainly high priced race car stuff then. So many Co's made headers so you could remove the starters with headers in place.

In today world there's a mini starter for everything now for most any vehicle that can be had for under $200 bucks.

And Co.s today just make the header any way they want to as they figure you'll get a mini starter any way and why not.

I never forgot laying in that chilly cold icy cold parking lot wet pavement.

This is why, I have a mini starter cause with my Sanderson ff427 headers I "can't" remove the oem starter. Problem solved
Orich

It's like loosing your car keys, Once you have done this you make sure to have a spare hide a key.

 

I would have to start walking......

 

I'm not trying to argue Millam, but where did you get that 15HP @ 6000 RPM figure from. I am having a hard time believing there is only 15 HP difference between headers and the flat truck exhaust manifold logs. Back then I'm sure Ford didn't think anybody would be spinning a truck FE motor up to 6000 RPM. So they didn't care about high flow. But you brought up 6000 RPM. At 3000 RPM I could see 15 HP. But the truck logs are too restrictive to be that close a HP at 6000 RPM IMHO.

 

Well if I build the 390 instead of swapping to 460 I'm going with headers since I've already bought a set of hookers for it. They were a pain to install but I feel I noticed a difference. The engine seemed to spool up faster than with stock manifolds. Unsure of how much of a power increase but it definitely seemed snappier. Plus here in Alaska those cast manifolds crack and break all the time with this cold in winters it seems(-20s to -50s). The truck has gone through countless manifolds when my dad owned it because they would keep cracking in winter. With headers I won't get that and if they do crack they can be properly welded and fixed vs. Getting a new set.

 

-20 to -50 isn't fathomable to me........I would crack and break.

 

When I lived in Fairbanks, we could hardly wait for it to drop to -25 so we could go outside and throw water into the air and watch it turn to vapor.-Cheap fun

 

Ha ask a kid today if he wants to try that

Who every thought that a hand phone would become addictive with so many people.

Now it causes more car accident's the drunk drivers do.

A drunk driver has consumed a mine altering drug booze.

A person messing with a phone knows what the Hell their doing an still do it. Taking their eyes off the road from Texting mainly should loose there drivers Lic. a long with the impounding of there vehicle. Plus go to jail long enough time to let them think about what they've done.

Where's the mothers against texting & driving ??

Hmm may be, I got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning
Orich

 

I love doing this. One of the coolest things to do when it's crazy cold out.

 

I don't even want to go outside at +25.......