I have been struggling with the clearance between my Headman headers and my steering gear box. I tried three different motor mounts and still no luck. I think I finally figured out what to do, but not sure if this will cause a problem. I put a 1/4" spacer between the motor mount and the engine block on the drivers side and I now have a good 3/8" clearance. I am not sure if this will affect anything else like the carburator or the driveline and was just wondering if anyone had any thoughts on that? I figure that even driving down the road or tire pressure can throw things off by a 1/4" or more...

I'm not sure if it will cause any problems, but most people, myself included, usually alter (dent) the header so it clears the steering box. I also have Hedman's with power steering.

Mike

It sounds like a classic example of the wrong frame stands and engine mounts. Headers usually will fit like a glove. Please do a search in the different forums, you will find more information than you want.

I returned a new set of hedman's due to PS box issues and kept my old set. This was with the correct mounts. The older 65003's fit well, the new ones are crap. I don't see an issue with your spacer and prefer that solution if a good fitting set of headers can't be found. SInce big block mounts shift the engine more than you're doing, I don't see the problem.

True, If you do have the incorrect mount stands , you will have problems. You should not have to shim up one side to clear ps. Go to David Pozzri site and he explains it well and even list the part # for the mount towers.

If mounting is correct , I will say that some headers and Hedman is no exception , will hit the ps box. I had Hooker 2451 and they cleared by 3/4 " but the hung down on driver side. After living with it for 15 years,,, I opted out for Thorley 376 1 coated. They fit perfect but the collectors are 2 .5 " which does not matter to me as the remainder of my pipes are the same size. They are 14 guage tubing, 3/8" flanges and they send you the collector hook ups that dont use flat gaskets that leak. About $520 delivered. Still a good deal. Do your home work first.

One other thing , later sbc and bbc mounts are the same, 2 1/8" from bolt eye to flat plate. Earlier ones are 1 3/4. They are easily mixed at the parts counter.

I am using all correct mounts in '68 454, using Hooker Super Comp headers, and I had to "clearance" (aka: dent) the headers in about 4 spots to get them to fit. One spot was the high-pressure line for the PS box. It really jerked me off to have to dent up a beautiful brand-new set of $600 headers. I did a LOT of homework before I bought the headers.

Truthfully though, I've been messing with SB and BB Chevy engines in Chevelles and Camaros for 35 years and headers are always a tight fit, especially larger-tube ones.

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Assuming you've corrected the "motor mount wider than frame mount" issue from your previous post, I don't see a problem with spacing the left motor mount for clearance.

if you have not coated the headers take it off and dent it with a hammer slightly to give you the clearance you will need. remember the torque is going to twist the motor away from the box so you won't need much of a dent .

This is where doing homework is good. Alot of hedman headers are designed to work with manual steering boxes only.Why they can't make a set to clear the power box on all aplications is beyond me, but they don't. Check and see if your headers are for non power boxes.

Glad you mentioned this.. There is a footnote on some of Hedmans stuff that says " Will not fit cars with 825 Saginaw gearboxs" and thats the only ps gear box that is on these cars..

Really...I didnt see that and the guy at Jegs said it would fit fine...better than anything he has seen. I have the 3rd generation steering gear box in there...is that a 825 saginaw box?

The 825 is the orginal type ps box and from what I learned is that guys are using what you got,, the 2 and 3rd gen boxes,,, So I have been reading.

Check out link,, and look at footnote # 49, you have to pull up the footnote.

http://www.hedman.com/pages/hedmanmain.html

if you have a small block, you have 2 different styles of mounts.
the 307/327 mounts put the engine farther forward and to the driver's side.
the 302/350 mounts put the engine farther back and to the passenger side.
that's why 302 and 350 cars can't swallow an HEI distributor without using a Ford tool on the firewall, but a 307 powered car has plenty of room.
some headers were designed for the 307/327 mounts and should clear all small block applications just fine due to where the engine is placed.
some headers were engineered for the 302/350 mounts, and will only clear everything with the correct 302/350 mounts without some denting.
big block headers are another story- i don't know why none of them fit, but since most people just bang them up and stick them on, the header makers haven't seen a need to fix the problems.

While we're on this topic, does anyone know if a '69 BB sits the same as a '67-'68 BB? By "same" I mean location relative to sub-frame.......

thanks

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No expert here but there is only one Saginaw box and I see only one set of bolt hole in frame. Think the sub frame is differant for bbc? I keep hearing about guys installing the 2nd and 3rd gen steering boxes for clearances and turning radi reasons. Wonder if David Pozzi has something on his site?.