With all this talk about blowers I have a few questions.
On the Whipple charges they have a 510R if I remember right that supposedly takes about 60% less power to run it, runs cooler, is approximately same size as an 8-71 and can put out as much as a 14-71 blower.

How much of that is true or is it advertising fluff? If they do as advertised why doesn't everyone run them? What are the drawbacks if any?
What about the PSI blowers?

Simple math and common sense tells us that taking less power to run it will be easier on rotating assembly.

The 250 Baby Blowers are popular and cheap enough but they have limitations and I would think a small blower like that working so hard would build a lot of heat compared to some of the others?

I do not know if I am going to a blower but kind of looking into possibility of it and like some thoughts from those with actual experience.

I wouldn't worry about the "horsepower it takes to run". The benefits far outweigh the costs in that regard. The front of your crankshaft is the same material as the rear that bolts to a clutch or torque converter, so it's not going to notice the blower from the turning aspect. The crank support keeps it straight when you're pulling hard on it with a big huffer. The fuel cools the blower, so the heat is managed fine unless you are really worried about running the fastest possible ET to win a heads up race.


The bigger the blower the more air with less overdrive, but once you get past 10/71, it's time for a crab cap and a crank trigger.

I don’t know anything about the whipples, but I have a TBS 8-71 high helix on my sbc and we have a TBS 250 on my dads bbc and we love them. I used to run a large cube 468 smallblock NA that was hard on cylinder walls, pistons, crankshafts, and valve train. My blower motor has been nothing but lash the valves before every race and change the oil every 25 passes. I was able to get away from all the hard to get custom parts that were in my NA motor except for the crank I run. My S10 gained 135 lbs when I put the blower motor in and it runs 2 tenths quicker and 6 mph faster in the 1/8 on only 6 pounds of boost. That has the blower at 14.5% underdriven. At 6% underdrive it makes 10 psi and picks up 160 hp. Haven’t run that pulley yet on the track.

On my dads we only changed head gaskets to knock a little compression out of it. Still the same NA camshaft and converter and it picked up .4 and 10 mph on 6 psi. His is the same as mine as far as maintenance.

Too much blower does make its own issues. They gobble up methanol by the gallon, so pick one that matches your MAX HP needs. The 250 on top of a 598 can make 1250 to 1350. Whipples are out of my price range, so i have no clue there.

I've had a HH 14:71 and tried to make it run 4.50's so 1200-1300 range in a 4 link dragster, mine had to be 10% underdriven to do it, it did fine but it used a decent amount of alcohol, 2.5 to 3 gallons per run trailer to trailer. Gotta keep in mind you are turning the blower all the time, so a bigger one will take more fuel to run at an idle regardless of the overdrive, obivously it will need more fuel progressively all the way around as overdrive increases, but there's a fixed amount it takes to drive it and the bigger the blower the more HP it cost to turn it. Mine seemed to surge no matter how i tuned it or set the idle mix and never was able to get fuel consumption down below 2.5 gallons per run.

The 250 on my son's 598 is about 2 to 2.5 gallons trailer to trailer and i haven't really optimized idle mix yet. It's compact and short, doesn't cover the distributor, and is relatively cheap bought the entire kit for 3800. Its been 4.45@155, Enderle bird catcher MFI, methanol, in a 4 link dragster and it has better manners than my 14:71 ever did. Very minimal if any surge after the burn out.

71 series blowers are great, i'd recommend a Hi Helix stripped version in whatever size you settle in on, but if you don't intend to make 2000+ HP i'd stay away from 10:71 on up. A good 8:71 high helix would be my top choice if you intend to stay below say 1500 ish HP. Based on 6 months of experience with the 250 and my desire to be in the 1300 HP range, i don't need to get into the 71 series blowers unless i got a heck of a deal on a complete setup or if i was looking to make some serious steam 1500+.

The only downside i've seen with the 250 blower is the intake manifold. Its boat anchor heavy and there's only 1 offered for it. The bottom of it is different than the 71 series blowers so you gotta run the manifold they supply. Plus all the drive configurations are mapped out and spaced out to run the standard intake manifold from TBS and its a far cry from being optimum.

I'm considering a TBS 250 build with a Mersich or Indy competetion manifold and a custom adapter plate on top. Those manifolds are REALLY nice compared to the 40 lb TBS 250 intake. Maybe next year.

Lots of good 6-71's running in nostalgia. I agree that if you are not looking for big numbers the bigger blowers are not needed. While whipples are awesome and so are psi both are normally heavy and the freed up power is not that big of deal if you are not spinning them up. If you are going for 50 plus pounds and max OD the power to spin one is a bunch. A 14-71 hi helix at 53% od takes about 350 hp to spin it. Whipple charger at same od take almost nothing. Tight 14-71 takes pull bar to rotate and whipple you spin with your hand.

The surge mentioned above is simple BV adjustment and I freaking hate hearing them! Little more air and little less fuel and that crap goes away.

quote:

Originally posted by wideopen231:
Lots of good 6-71's running in nostalgia. I agree that if you are not looking for big numbers the bigger blowers are not needed. While whipples are awesome and so are psi both are normally heavy and the freed up power is not that big of deal if you are not spinning them up. If you are going for 50 plus pounds and max OD the power to spin one is a bunch. A 14-71 hi helix at 53% od takes about 350 hp to spin it. Whipple charger at same od take almost nothing. Tight 14-71 takes pull bar to rotate and whipple you spin with your hand.

The surge mentioned above is simple BV adjustment and I freaking hate hearing them! Little more air and little less fuel and that crap goes away.

This. A screw is a true compressor (compresses air within the blower case) whereas a roots blower simply stacks air in the intake runners. Screw blower is heads and shoulders above a roots blower in every way.

Screw rotors on the left, roots rotors on the right.

If I were going to run a blower, and didn't go the pro charger route, I'd run a psi as long as the rules allowed it.

I run a lot of Nostalgia racing and they do not allow the Prochargers. I do not know if I am going to build a blower motor or not just with all the talk about them like to learn more and get opinions.

Curly,
Figured you ran nostalgia races and that why I mentioned the 6-71's. I know some class only allow a 6-71 in nostalgia. IMO it would only make sense to run one that allowed you to use in multiple sanctions if possible.

Hands down if choice and allowed Screw blower all the way. Now see around the big SOB is different deal. I had pic on whipple on fed when I started building it. Was a what the hell would it look like thing. There was no seeing around is what it was.

Are the Whipples that big? They said it was size of 8-71 but put out up to 14-71. Which I thought sounded rather "optimistic"

Bruce, what size motor and how much power do you need to make to do what you want to do?

quote:

Originally posted by 70 Mach 1:
Bruce, what size motor and how much power do you need to make to do what you want to do?

Right now I am just considering options for next year and how I want to go about getting there. May run NE1 class. Although I have driven some blower cars never built my own

Plus I just want to hear what others think about blowers in particular the Whipple as it sounds interesting. Like to learn something new.

quote:

Originally posted by Curly1:
Are the Whipples that big? They said it was size of 8-71 but put out up to 14-71. Which I thought sounded rather "optimistic"

Depends on the Whipple. The 510 is sized similarly to an 8-71/10-71. The old A980 and R980 Whipples are H U G E.

Know a guy who had a good 10-71 on his 540 BBC in a 56 Chevy on gas. Car ran 9.60s, all steel street car. Went to a Whipple 510 and went mid 8s with no other changes.

quote:

Originally posted by Eddie Gotthainer:


Depends on the Whipple. The 510 is sized similarly to an 8-71/10-71. The old A980 and R980 Whipples are H U G E.

Know a guy who had a good 10-71 on his 540 BBC in a 56 Chevy on gas. Car ran 9.60s, all steel street car. Went to a Whipple 510 and went mid 8s with no other changes.

Wow! that is impressive.