'66 Side Oiler, My Barn Find and Build

[TerrysSPF]

I agree with the above about NOT cutting those heads! I also have a 1966 side-oiler and it makes me cringe thinking about cutting into those heads!

Why not keep those heads the way they are (maybe even sell them for a buck or two) and pick up a pair of Ebrock bare bone heads and have the valve stuff custom done. Mine are massaged to 2.19/1.73 to 2.25/1.75 intake/exhaust.
Heck, if you're dealing with Keith anyway, just pick up a set of his StageII heads and you're good to go!

I also agree with Rick on the previous page about using the BBC rods. I have Eagle H-beam BBC rods and an offset-ground crank that uses BBC journals. -This makes oiling issues non-existent.

-Good luck with your build........that was one heck of a find!

[elmariachi]

Well I was sick about putting seats in the heads too, as was my machinist. As for shelving the heads and running Ebrocks, it crossed my mind, but I really want to use them and not waste or sell them. If I can safely run this crappy coastal Texas 93 octane and not hurt the heads by not having hard seats, then by all means that would sure be my preference. Again, that's one of the reasons I posted here...looking for perspectives while thinking all this over. Thanks for the feedback, keep it coming.

[RICK LAKE]

elmariachi I have tryed to convince you about saving the block and failed. I will try again and tell you the same about those heads. If the heads have matching date codes and some one is looking for a 100% perfect car they are worth $5-8,000 untouched. No you are not going to get this much money for them now with the way the country is in the crapper. They are an investment for down the road. KCR sells his Stage 2 heads on sale here for a great price. As far as valve seats, YOUR machinist gets 1 time to get them right. I have seen way to many guys do this job and 6 months later they fall out or come loose. This is not a simple job. .0005" off will cause problems. Once done you can't undo this. I would tell you to go to plan "B". Run the heads with octane boost that has lead or buy race fuel and mix it to unleaded stuff. The ONLY real why to know if the motor is going to have a problem is to install a knock sensor kit. These work realy well on hydro cam motors but not 100% sure on a solid lifter or solid roller motor. LM-1 A/F meter would be the other thing. Running a little rich will not hurt the motor as bad as running LEAN. 12.7-13.2 is a good save area. Any higher or lower and you are looking for a problem. I hope you are just having fun with us on this motor. The thing to remember from some of us is this, damage the block or the heads, there is about a 40% chance of repairing them. You could have a pile of scrap metal worth $1.00 per hundred pounds. Build an aluminium motor and heads, there is maybe a 10% chance the motor is not repairable. Rick Lake Ps call KCR and compare his heads done complete to the work you guy is going to do. My guess is about $800.00 for machine work and valve seats. He then have to regrind the valves and lap them in. If he has done some machine work on them alreally, add this to the price also. Good luck. PSS I have a question for you to think about, what happens if the seat falls out of the head and major damage is done? Will your machinist stand behind the work and replace them heads? Try and find a set of heads that have not been milled,ported, or raped. He will stake the seats in but have seen the stake areas burn out and they come loose. Call Gessford and talk to Neil about this work. Keith would also be another good opinion to talk too.

[Barry_R]

I know that there are folks that will gladly pay 1500 or better for those heads as basic core castings without any work done on them at all - as long as they are not totally trashed. Even without all the date codes and such. Ersons would be the better pick for rockers - the T&D setup - while far superior - requires cutting the rocker pedestal area flush with the head bolt bosses, further devaluing the heads. Personally I'd leave the iron to guys that really need them whether by rules or restoration requirements. Current aluminum heads are more cost effective and better performing by any measure.

[elmariachi]

Originally Posted by RICK LAKE

elmariachi I have tryed to convince you about saving the block and failed.

Rick, you haven't failed, your opinion is appreciated. I just may not heed all your advice because my goals and priorities are different than yours. If someone wants to pay me $3-4k for these heads, I might listen. But I can't see any reason to shelve or sell them just so I can wind up running Edelbrocks like everyone else. I abandoned my 600HP KC Pond motor in favor of a bit milder build when I found this motor, so the performance difference in ported MR heads versus Stage 2 KCs is not a determining factor. If it was, I'd sell all this stuff and buy a KC motor. But it seems rare to have a matching block, heads and crank with a cool barn find story and I lose all that when I start parting this out. So...

I am NOT putting seats in the heads, that's for sure. So the question is...would you port and polish them or just run them? Keith said to tweak the valve grind the way he does it and just run them. Again, I am not looking for 600HP here.

Thanks,

Jim

[undy]

Originally Posted by elmariachi

Rick, you haven't failed, your opinion is appreciated. I just may not heed all your advice because my goals and priorities are different than yours. If someone wants to pay me $3-4k for these heads, I might listen. But I can't see any reason to shelve or sell them just so I can wind up running Edelbrocks like everyone else. I abandoned my 600HP KC Pond motor in favor of a bit milder build when I found this motor, so the performance difference in ported MR heads versus Stage 2 KCs is not a determining factor. If it was, I'd sell all this stuff and buy a KC motor. But it seems rare to have a matching block, heads and crank with a cool barn find story and I lose all that when I start parting this out. So...

I am NOT putting seats in the heads, that's for sure. So the question is...would you port and polish them or just run them? Keith said to tweak the valve grind the way he does it and just run them. Again, I am not looking for 600HP here.

Thanks,

Jim

leave the heads non-ported.. If in the future you decide to sell then the unmoletsed heads will command more $$. For the HP you're looking for I think you'll be fine not porting them. Just do the multi-angle valve job and let 'er rip..