Manley I Beam Pro Series 4340 Connecting Rods PN#14161-8

Hotrodtractor · Jun 29, 2012

From Manley:

Hi Jason,

Thank you for contacting Manley Performance. It is greatly appreciated.

We did list the Ford 7.3L Powerstroke Diesel connecting rods in our 2012 catalog.

But, our rod department was extremely busy this year and, unfortunately, we have not been able to develop these yet.

We are actually working on our GM Duramax rods first…

I attached our catalog. Keep in touch with us and let me know if have any other questions.

Thanks

So that answers the question on availability and testing.

Powerstroke Cowboy · Jun 29, 2012

That is to bad...... I was hopping for a in between Rod that could hold 750 to 800 RWHP
And be capable to hit the 1000 mark....

I guess it called hury up and wait....

What we should ALL do is cantact them every couple of days, and ask about the rods... Maybe after a bit they will start to think and go.. We better get them rods going we are loosing sales!!!

V-Ref · Jun 29, 2012

HRT-I shoulda done that before posting here...hopefully somebody here has been/will be part of the R&D and testing.

Powerstroke Cowboy · Jul 2, 2012

Hotrodtractor said:
From Manley:

So that answers the question on availability and testing.

I did the same thing... Here is the awnser I got...

Hi David,

Thank you for contacting Manley Performance. It is greatly appreciated.

Unfortunately, we have not been able to get these Ford Powerstroke diesel rods into production yet. Our connecting rod department has been extremely busy manufacturing all of our other shelf stock part numbers as well as private label customer orders.

We are working on our GM Duramax diesel rods now….and hopefully the Ford rods will follow.

Please stay tuned….

Thanks again for the inquiry.

V-Ref · Jul 14, 2012

Powerstroke Cowboy said:
What we should ALL do is cantact them every couple of days, and ask about the rods... Maybe after a bit they will start to think and go.. We better get them rods going we are loosing sales!!!

This thread is observed fellas. Your input/feedback on your desires help shape mfg's marketing/design plans.

So x2 on what PS Cowboy said above (but maybe not every couple days though) LOL.
Send an email to [email protected]

In the subject line type "For the Director of Sales/Marketing". Put in the body of the email what you want to see from this rod (i.e. no block clearancing, desired overall/rotating/recip mass, fastener composition/strength, I vs H beam, strength (in terms of tq/hp level), and of course price point. If you don't know or care about any of that (or I missed what's important to you) then type what you want that rod to do. Folks are listening.

bigjake0524 · Jul 14, 2012

They told me 1st quarter 2013. And the price I got wasn't to far off from anything else on the market. That is just the info I received! If I hear anything I will post up in this thread.

Powerstroke Cowboy · Jul 14, 2012

bigjake0524 said:
They told me 1st quarter 2013. And the price I got wasn't to far off from anything else on the market. That is just the info I received! If I hear anything I will post up in this thread.

Did you call or email???

If Email..

Could you share there responding email??

Big Bore · Jul 17, 2012

Sent an email last week, this is the reply.

RE: I Beam rods for 7.3 Powerstroke.

Recently I read that Manley would be offering an I Beam rod for the Ford 7.3 Powerstroke. Soon after though it was confirmed by emails from a Manley representative that these were not in production.

Currently there are two options available for those wanting to build higher HP 7.3 Powerstrokes. Option A: heat or cryogenic treated stock forged rods good for 600HP with questionable longevity for around $500. Option B: Very expensive billet rods good for well over 1000HP (some say 2000HP) in the $2500-$3000 range. Option B is very cost prohibitive for most of us.

There is a need for a 1000HP+ rated drop in rod that fills the price gap. Many simply run treated stock forged rods and hope for the best, knowing a rebuild is down the road when they start laying over. If you could make a drop in rod good for 1000HP in the $1000-$1500 price range you would be the first in an untapped market that is very very hungry for an alternative to the options listed previously.

Thank you for your time,
Big Bore

Hi Big Bore,

Thank you for YOUR time….and for your detailed email. It is greatly appreciated.

Your comments below are helpful.

I am saving your email and will keep in touch as we move further along with this project.

V-Ref · Jul 17, 2012

Jake, that's good info to know...and please do post up any new info!

BB-Good stuff, and thanks.:toast:

I encourage anyone else that's in the market, has a build in progress, or would like to see another rod offering vs what's already there to send your thoughts on up as per post #45. You don't need to post up the email reply like a couple did (but that's great)...but let 'em know your wishes on this rod.

There likely won't be another major manufacturer of this reputation/scale/capability to take this endeavor on again for our trucks....so let 'em know! :ford:

chris1978 · Jul 18, 2012

I sent them an email the other day asking about release date as well with the same response. In their reply they stated that their aim is to build a rod that will handle all the power that a Crower can but be better priced.

Hotrodtractor · Jul 18, 2012

Big Bore said:
Sent an email last week, this is the reply.

I'm not sure that I fully agree with how you rate the current power capabilities of the rods. All too often these motors pop apart at lower power numbers - this is due mostly to the setup and tuning of the truck. The HUEI injection system is about as slow as you can get as far as fuel delivery is concerned - if you want to make power you need the time to get the fuel injected - this means injecting fuel at lower RPMs - which is higher torque and higher cylinder pressures for longer periods of time. In HEUI form - I don't doubt that the billet rods on the market from say Crower could handle a 1000hp even though there are few examples of that capability. In a mechanical injected scenario - I bet you could easily hit 2K with that same rod. A common rail setup with "off the shelf" components is going to be closer to the mechanically injected scenario if not exceed it due to its gains in combustion efficiency and control.

If Manley wants to produce a lower cost rod for us - great - a 1K HP HEUI rod should be able to handle 1650-1875 ft-lbs of torque from 2800-3200 RPMs - the only way to get a lighter strength rod to hold that kind of force is to improve our injection system - either with faster HEUI injectors (can be done, but not cheap) - or a completely different injection system all together. A 1K hp capable HEUI rod is one beefy rod - a 1K hp mechanical injection rod isn't hateful - but also is making that 1K hp closer to say 4500 RPMs and is a lot more peaky than the HEUI setup - a 1K HP CR rod can be as beefy as the HEUI rod if someone sets it up to make those torque numbers down low - or could be as light as the mechanical rod - it all depends on setup and tuning because these injection systems have so much more control AND injection speed capabilities.

In order to define the amount of power a rod is capable of - you have to define what cylinder pressures you want it to be able to withstand and determine the RPM range that you want it to operate at. With HEUI - you will always be high cylinder pressures at a relatively lower RPM range unless you do some exotic things. It requires a "beefier" rod than what would normally be accepted for a particular power level. Go through all the dyno sheets that you can find - I bet you don't find a single sheet that peaks its power less than 3400 RPMs unless the tuner was holding back the peak power capability down low on purpose to keep it alive - a practice that should be done more often than it is.

Big Bore · Jul 18, 2012

Well I can send a revised email edited by you Jason if that would make you feel better. :doh:

Hotrodtractor · Jul 18, 2012

Big Bore said:
Well I can send a revised email edited by you Jason if that would make you feel better. :doh:

I just wanted to emphasize the differences in the rod requirements when it came to power production - the RPM range is pretty critical in order to determine how strong a rod needs to be. Manley knows that RPM range where peak power and breadth of power is a critical design element. I just didn't want that post in particular to be read as some sort of determining factor when it comes to the power determination capabilities of any of the rods listed. Say for instance you converted a 7.3 to alcohol and spun it up to 8K RPMs - what do you think the power production capabilities would be with those already beefy factory rods? LOL Is it 800hp? 1200hp? 1600hp? My whole point is it takes the whole picture to understand our current limitations and where its going. Obviously the target market should be the 1000hp HEUI market - but in reality how different is that than what say the current Crower rod is that is the benchmark being used today? (I honestly don't know - I've never ran the FEA on the Crower rod to determine its cylinder pressure limits).

Big Bore · Jul 18, 2012

I guess if someone is gonna bust my balls, I could do worse than you Jason. LOL

Hotrodtractor · Jul 19, 2012

Since we are on the subject of making new rods - I'd like to see the option for pin oiling - I know there are companies making rods right now that have this provision - but I really think that at this time if you are developing a new rod for this application that it would be a wise move to include this feature. As we continue to push forward and push these street vehicles harder and harder I think the need is going to arise for this particularly as the number of common rail engines being built increases. I believe it is going to be fundamental in making them live with aluminum pistons. Plus if I was a betting man that I would tend to guess that as time goes forward more and more conversion engines will be built compared to the HEUI engines. Most people are looking for more power than what the HEUI setup can deliver without jumping through lots of hoops. I'm still a big proponent of HEUI because I like challenges - but the allure of a CR engine is pretty tempting to know that I could do everything that I like about the HEUI motor with more top end potential and most likely less quirks than a system controlled by pressurizing your engine oil and forcing it do amplify your fuel pressure.

MadDiesel73 · Jul 19, 2012

Do crowers or r&r's have pin oiling?

Hotrodtractor · Jul 19, 2012

MadDiesel73 said:
Do crowers or r&r's have pin oiling?

I don't know about R&Rs - Crowers do not - I am not sure if there is enough web thickness to EDM the oil port or not. I've got a set I could measure in the shop. Its definitely not a common request for a 7.3 build.... you really shouldn't utilize it in a street HEUI truck as it will tax your lpo system even more - something you don't really want or need unless you are adding additional oil pumping capabilities (which you don't need for a street truck) - BUT just using the factory oil pump in a conversion motor (if you wanted) you suddenly have lots of oil to do nifty things with that you didn't have before.......