Porting and Polishing Heads

[Choppers]

How much does it normally run to have this done and install new valve locks, valve seals, retainers and sping if i remove the heads myself and bring them to a shop?

[LETZRIDE]

Re: Porting and Polishing Heads

depends what you have done...can go anywhere from 200$ up for a P&P...stock valve locks should be fine if your not going with an aggressive spring...are you going bigger valves as well? if you can take the head off yourself, you can install all that stuff onto the head...its much easier to do then taking the head off itself...

[tkoforpresident]

Re: Porting and Polishing Heads

ask john at 60inclusive.com

I think he just started working on 3.8 heads, maybe he can give you a quote.

He did my 3.4 heads and they turned out NICE

[Choppers]

Re: Porting and Polishing Heads

well i was going to get the valve locks from zzp and yea i can remove the heads but i don't want to port and polish them. i thought they remove the valves and all when porting and polishing the heads. I was planning on getting them maybe rebuilt.

[ssms5411]

Re: Porting and Polishing Heads

You can get a spring compressor from harbor freight for $10 and take out the locks, retainers, springs and valves. I had mine blasted clean, 3 angle valve job and milled .010 for $250. This was after I P/P them. Now I have new stock valves, Comp 130LB springs, ZZP modded retainers and Comp locks with Viton seals.

[LETZRIDE]

Re: Porting and Polishing Heads

well i was going to get the valve locks from zzp and yea i can remove the heads but i don't want to port and polish them. i thought they remove the valves and all when porting and polishing the heads. I was planning on getting them maybe rebuilt.

have the shop P&P them...but removing the springs/retainers/locks is as easy as getting the 10$ compressor, and takeing them off...its a joke when they are off the car...the locks, you use a magnet and they fly off...they just rest on the tip of the valve in a groove...when the spring is uncompressed it pushes this piece of metal up which keeps the locks closed...the retainer just sits there, the the spring just sits there ontop being held in by the lock.

to take it apart you use the compressor and compress the spring which exposes the locks at the tip of the valve...pull em off and release the compressor...everything slides right off lol...

[Choppers]

Re: Porting and Polishing Heads

So to have them ported and polished you guys think will run me somewhere between 200-250?

[97rs4life]

Re: Porting and Polishing Heads

So to have them ported and polished you guys think will run me somewhere between 200-250?

nope. that is the starting point. It goes up and up from there depending on how much of a P&P job you have done. 1000-2000 for heavily reworked heads is not uncommon

[Choppers]

Re: Porting and Polishing Heads

Well let me ask you guys. My grandmas boyfriend use to port and polish heads for anything with a flow bench but now he doesn't have it. Does it really need to be flow benched and also can you really mess anything up porting and polishing these heads(if he doesn't have that)?

[Rob Bell]

Re: Porting and Polishing Heads

I'd say that if he used to do it successfully then he would have the ability to do it to yours. I'm not a P&P expert, but there are principles that are going to apply to all heads, regardless of manufacturer. Granted, he's not going to be able to flow bench test them for absolute optimal performance, but if he knows what he's doing you should get a nice improvement over stock.

I think you also need to get the upper and lower intakes port matched so there is a clean, clear path for the air all the way through. Good heads won't help if the upstream pathways in the intakes still suck.

[Choppers]

Re: Porting and Polishing Heads

I might just wait until I really want to do a build later on. I am going to go ahead and cam it and change the valve seals, retainers, springs and locks. I don't really need to remove the heads I was just thinking about it. Or I might just wait and buy some aluminum heads later down the road.

[97rs4life]

Re: Porting and Polishing Heads

you can mess up the heads and lose performance doing a P&P if not done correctly. If this person you mentioned has done it professionally in the past then he should be able to do a basic job on it for you to free up some power. But yea have the intakes matched to the heads.

[Choppers]

Re: Porting and Polishing Heads

he use do build racing go-kart motors and race them nationally. He also sold his stuff and traveled the US. But I just don't know if I want to take the risk of him messing something up being he can't flow bench it.

[Rob Bell]

Re: Porting and Polishing Heads

I'm leery of counting P&Ping go kart engines as experience in P&Ping car engines. If you do end up doing this, I'd suggest finding someone with automotive experience or buying a set of P&P'd heads.

If you're going to have everything torn apart for doing the cam and such, getting the heads off isn't that much more work. Now would be the time to do it.

[Choppers]

Re: Porting and Polishing Heads

yea thats my biggest concern but I have seen his work on high end racing atvs and the racing go karts and its outstanding. But I think an automobile head might be totally different. He told me he could do it but it would be better for him to have the flow bench so I think I will pass since he said theres only so much he can do without a flow bench to flow test his work.