i don't think there ever was a factory stage II. a stageII would have 3705 carbs and the intake primary throttle bores opened to 1 11/16". i also believe they got the .520 lift cam vs the .509. i know nhra didn't allow the late '63 stageII to race. the "stageII" features were carried over to the stageIII. anyhow, thats my take on it.
First off, the a 413 Maximum Performance Wedge is NOT a "Stage I" Max Wedge. It is simply a 413 Maximum Performance Wedge or Max Wedge if you prefer to keep this simple. When the 1962 413 Max Wedge was dreamed up they simply called it a Max. Perf. Wedge. In 1963 the engine size was increased to 426 cubic inches and was simply referred to as the 426 Max. Perf. Wedge. They didn't start calling the 413 a "Stage I" and the new 426 a "Stage II" like some of you might think.
Here are the "facts" on the so-called stage I II & III motors.
I owed and raced at 1963 Max Wedge Liteweight in 1963,64 and 65 when I was 21,22 & 23 years old. I raced it at the NHRA Nationals (Indianapolis) in 1965 and I raced the the class AA/SA. My car was the 13.5-1 Compression Motor with the big 3705 Carbs. NHRA, of course, allowed that because I raced at the Nationals and passed Tech. Back then NHRA allowed "any solid lifter cam" in the class. I ran an Iskenderian 1012B cam as did almost all of the AA/SA mopars ran back then.
The way the "stage" thing got started was when Chrysler was coming out with an improved version of the already existing 1963 426 Max Wedge Package in May 1963. The improvements included bigger carbs and an intake modified to use them, a clutch fan for less horse power robbing drag on the engine and improved cooling, some slight port machine work not on the previous 413 and 426 Max Wedge heads. They also moved the battery to the trunk for better weight distribution. The engine though, with the new improvements was still a 426 so they referred to it as a "426 Super Stock II" for the Plymouths and a "Ramcharger 426A" for the Dodges. That's where the "Stage I" and "Stage II" talk started. Then in 1964 they made some more improvemnets to the engine and it was referred to as a "426 Super Stock III" for Plymouth. The Dodge version was referred to "Ramcharger 426III". The common term became "Stage III".
1962- 413 11-1 410HP 3447 carbs
1962- 413 13.5-1 420HP 3447 carbs
1963- 426 11-1 415HP 3447 carbs (referred to as "Stage I, after Stage II came out)
1963- 426 13.5-1 425HP 3705 carbs Stage II, improved heads and bigger carbs over Stage 1
1964- 426 11-1 415HP 3705 carbs additonal motor improvements, Referred to as Stage III
1964- 426 12.5-1 425HP 3705 carbs additional motor improvements, Referred to as Stage III also
So there you have it.
The 413 Max Wedge was simply the 413 Max Wedge.
The 426 Max Wedges are the true Stages I, II and III. Now you know the correct way to sound like you know what you are talking about.
