Drive Belt - This Overkill??

[tsmith8]

I want to go this Gilmer style belt kit on my new 383 i am building but my brother thought it would be overkill. Is there any negative side to this compared to a V-Belt style??

I am building a 383 with a Tri-Carb setup and would prefer the Gilmer style belt because it is different compared to what you normally see.

[geezer#99]

Sure it will work.
Might cause clearance issues to the rad depending on what you’re putting it into.
Do you have a kit for it or are you just cobbling it together.
Why a tri-power.
Looks good but robs power.
Likely loose 30-40 hp over a single 4 bbl.

[Hampshire]

Why a tri-power.
Looks good but robs power.
Likely loose 30-40 hp over a single 4 bbl.

??? - the guy who help me build my truck has built tri-power setups for racing vintage racers for decades. Every built motor for the racers was run on a dyno. The base was with a 4bbl and then run with the tri-power to verify the gains.They were always modest gains of 10-20hp, not a huge increase, but definitely not the huge power loses you are claiming.

Check it out with Ron Kellogg of http://www.chevytripower.com/index.shtml. Ron is an icon in the Midwest and the early NHRA. His counterpart and friend(s) are John and Mike at http://www.pontiactripower.com/. These both do Rochester setups.

Yes, it has the cool old school look (that I like), decent grunt, is very reliable and generates a lot of fun conversations at meets. If I wanted huge, reliable power, I would have gone with a LS and FI.

[Jesse Z]

Did someone actually say "Why tripower?"

Uh, cuz 4-barrels are ugly and boring for one thing. And I too dispute the horsepower claims. I ran my truck on a 650 cfm 4-barrel for a couple of years until I found a used tripower at a swap meet. The bolt-on horsepower gain was spectacular. When you kick in FOUR auxiliary barrels instead of just two, you really feel it. Pretty sure Holley and Edelbrock sponsor those magazine articles.

Regarding the choice of belts: no such thing as overkill if every time you open the hood it makes you smile.

[mongocanfly]

id have to say its overkill..but would cool as all heck...

[mr48chev]

Unless you have the blower to go with it that belt drive is just decoration. It might get a few dozen Bubba points over the season but that is about it. But if it makes you happy it doesn't hurt anything except your build budget.

I think the power loss thing is sticking three old Stomberg 97's on a rather stout small block that was tuned to the max with the right 4 barrel and intake. The Strombergs while the holy grail of hot rod carbs for older cars with flatheads are pretty small in the air they flow. A proper intake with three Rochesters set up for Tri power doesn't have that issue

[tsmith8]

My current setup has three Rochester set up on an Offenhauser intake with progressive lineage.

I am switching to a new Edelbrock intake as i will be running Vortec 906 heads.

As for the budget. The Gilmer belt drive kit is $138USD and buying a summit brand machined aluminum belt drive will cost about $100USD plus the cost of the belt.

So pretty much the same cost.

[_Ogre]

carbs are over rated efi is the way to go
i hate anything with a carb: i hate my lawnmower, i hate my chainsaw and i hate my weed trimmer

as for the gilmer drive belt? yes, it's overkill. go for it. make sure you have the room for a fan before you buy it