The goal of any performance-oriented intake system is to get the air (actually the air/fuel mixture) into the engine as quickly, smoothly, and efficiently as possible.  In order to do this, the right combination of parts is pretty important.  Here are the main components of my intake system...

For my air filter housing, I decided to go with the good old open element setup.  I got the GM Performance Parts 14" drop base air filter housing.  Then, I added a 14" x 3" K&N air filter.

Here is a pretty good shot of the air cleaner.

The drop base air filter assembly works pretty well, but there is a better option that most people don't try.  You can get a flat base instead of the drop base.  The flat bas allows a more direct and less turbulent flow of air into the throttle body.

Here is a picture:

When using a flat base instead of the drop base, you do not have to use the spacer ring that normally goes between the base and the throttle body.  Having this out of the way helps make the air flow much better than with a traditional drop base with the spacer.

I chose to go with the Edelbrock Performer RPM Air Gap intake.  I originally ran an Edelbrock Performer Vortec, but I moved up to the Performer RPM Air Gap for a couple reasons:

• The Air Gap is meant to provide the best power between 1500 RPM and 6500 RPM, and the regular Performer was only from idle to 5500.

• The Air Gap has the raised middle section with a gap for air to flow between the runners and "base" (hence, "Air Gap").  This allows better cooling of the intake by allowing the air to flow over it, and it keeps the runners away from the lifter valley, which is usually splashed with hot oil.  This cooling allows the air/fuel mixture to go into the engine at a lower temperature, and possibly makes power increase.

performerrpmag-1.jpg 512 x 384	performerrpmag-2.jpg 512 x 384	performerrpmag-3.jpg 512 x 384
performerrpmag-4.jpg 512 x 384	rpmag-1.jpg 338 x 253	rpmag-2.jpg 338 x 253
rpmag-3.jpg 338 x 253	rpmag-4.jpg 338 x 253

The Air Gap intake is meant for square bore carburetors, which have a smaller "footprint" than the larger spread bore carbs.  Because of this, when I put the throttle body adaptor plate on, and bolted up the throttle body, the butterflies hit the edges of the intake at their fully open position.  I brought the intake to White's Reliable in Cicero, NY and had them grind some of the material away to allow the throttle body to open all the way.

Here are some pics...