Road Runner Nest

i would like to hear from some folks that have had both a 440 4bl and 440 6bbl. i am building a 71 4 speed road runner an original 383 car that i have chosen to put a 440 in because it is already built and i dont want to spend the money putting together the #'s matching 383 that came with this project. the 440 i have built is a 69 440hp that is 60 over and a similar to stock cam, it has a 4bl intake on it now and i have a 71/4sp correct carter 4967 carb to put on it, however i have a friend that is in a spot and has offered to sell me a cast 6bbl intake that has the carbs on and an air cleaner base plate. the carbs have had the vacuum pods removed and have a linkage set up with some threaded rod with all 3 tied together. i have heard that the 6 pack can be a lot of trouble for a little gain but to be honest i have never had a 440/4 much less a 440/6 i have only had one other old mopar and it had a 383. so i wanted to put the question to some people that have had both the 440/4 and 440/6, what is your opinion? i know the 6bbl is cool to see and say you have, furthermore all i plan to do with the car is drive it around some. i will not take it to the track or anything like that. i am looking for opinions on drivability not cost efficiancy, if i were to buy the set up it would be to use on my motor as well as help my friend generate some cash flow.

I've tried several intakes on my 440, obviously one carb is easier to fool with.
Now here's the big but. If you've got the time, and patience to find all the parts, and get the 6 barrel running properly, you'll love it. I've never tried mechanical linkage on mine, so I can't say how that would be.
But when you're on a two lane road, and need to pass someone, there is nothing else like it!
Think of warp drive on the Enterprise!
And if tuned carefully, reasonable gas mileage, if you don't go crazy with the cam.
So have an expert look at the parts, and let you know what's missing, before you make an offer on it.
I also love the big orange air cleaner!
With any 440 you can't go wrong.

thank you for your reply i appriciate your response. any others who have spent time with both set ups? i would sure like to get several opinions over the next couple weeks while i consider buying the 6bbl set-up. thanks in advance for your replies.

When I bought my RR the second time in 1988 it had a 440 in it... with a 4 bbl. It was fun and fine. But I had always wanted a 6 bbl car so I bought everything I needed from Mancini and man, what a difference! The 6 bbl set up lit the engine up! So much more fun!

That said, you do NOT want a mechanical linkage. The vacuum linkage is what makes the 6 bbl set up livable and sane. Take my word for it. When you hear someone beyatching about "synching" the carbs on a 3 2s setup they are talking about a Ford or GM set. The engineers knew what they were doing when they set the Mopar set up as vacuum.

Second what Bruce said about the vacuum set-up. Your big concern if someone took off the diaphragm housings is how did they plug the holes? If they drove lead shot into the carbs, or filled them with JB weld, they might not be savable!
So bid low if you think you'll have to replace the end carbs. You'll also need the vacuum linkage, but that's not too expensive.
The only place I didn't like the six barrel, was at a low speed autocross. The end carbs would open about when you needed to be on the brakes! So I would just pull the vacuum hose off the center carb, and cap the nipple on the carb. This prevents the end carbs from opening. This is also a good idea when letting your friends? drive

alright, although it was two, i choose to look at it as 100% of the people who tried both set ups and replied to my post said 6bbl a lot more fun. thank you guys for your reply, advise, and consideration. you have given me some helpful info to consider before i decide to buy or make a counter offer, such as having an expert look at it and get away from the mechanical linkage. thanks guys.

I know its not what your thinking about but check out this Edelbrock Dual-Quad setup for a 440!

Before you buy anything find out what it is. Is it a factory set up that someone modified or what. Are you sure the intake is for a 440? This pic is a 383 6pac set up that was available through the dealer back in the day.



Note there are no vac secondaries because it has mechanical linkage and accelerator pumps on both secondary carbs.



Check out the #'s on the top of the carbs to find out exactly what they are and what will be needed to bring it back to it's original working condition.

Great pics of the two types of carbs, the first two shots are of the Holley non-oem style carbs.
You'll note each has an accelerator pump, these were designed for mechanical linkage.
The last photo shows the Holley oem Chrysler carbs (with the vacuum chambers removed) this sounds like what you're considering buying.