Alum head damage advice please.
 

I just bought a set of used edelbrock round port heads ported by butler for a good price. However upon receiving them on chamber has some damage from FOD dropping into the cylinder and beating it up a littler and there are two that look to have been ground on in the chamber and its not smooth or even at all. I have never ran aluminum heads and looking for advice on them, could I smooth it a little with a scotch bright disk / ball and have it not make a difference, or am I worrying about nothing and should just run them?

Those divots don’t concern me at all, but the general surface of deck and all that small pitting around and under where the head gasket fire ring seals for sure does!
Those heads need to be resurfaced.
The deck needs to look near mirror like to have the gasket do it’s job for a good long time.

Gez, you just can’t get cut a break with this motor, but non the less hang in there and get it right!

Meh, it happens. Seller has been really good to deal with and I think it was mainly just two different view points, his being very experienced and doesn't sweat the small stuff and mine being amateur definitely sweating the small stuff. I think I'm just gonna post the back up for sale for what I paid and clear pictures of the heads. I still think they are a really good deal for someone, but I'm just going to order a set of kauffmans.

Heck some folks used to add divots in chambers to increase turbulence to keep fuel in suspension!

Maybe it is an optical illusion from my small phone screen. But it appears those heads are cut for a fire ring type head gasket, if that is the case you need to be looking harder at the fire ring cut and adjacent surfaces next to the ring.

Agree with, Jay.
Looks like a groove for a copper wire (or whatever wire)
Was it originally used with alcohol?


:confused:

Your both right!
I should have enlarged my screen.

The heads look to be set-up for a .041" wire ring and copper gasket as mentioned. We typically would cut that groove .025" deep which would protrude the wire .016" for a great seal in a dead soft copper gasket. The receiver groove in the block would be .020" deep , .060" wide. . Your going to need to cut those heads to remove the groove to use with a conventional gasket. Or you could have the grooves welded up and then resurface to remove less material. The chambers don't look the best but typical for E-heads that have been sprayed hard and had some chaos over the years. As long as the valve job is good, they should perform just fine. Personally, I would massage them a little but not necessary.

Yup, you have to fill those grooves by welding or some wire and deck to make them smooth or they will leak with regular gaskets. Been through this before.

Yeah, he sounds like a really honest seller, just omitted a few minor details like the heads being unusable unless you O ring the block.

NeighborsComplaint, there’s an awful lot of assumption in your post. Before you go running through town with a torch hollering get a rope, you may want to just answer the OP’s question and keep your retarded opinion to yourself.
For one thing there were pics posted on the original ad and more pics with conversations between the buyer and seller. Like the op stated, for different skill levels and engine builds this would not be a problem. Don’t be insinuating that there was deception here. What could you know?
To improve almost any chamber involves grinding, sanding, and reshaping the chamber.
What is a huge deal for one man, may be routine for another. Like your cookie cutter slow_ss Pontiac for instance…..it may blow your skirt up but for others would bring a “um yeah nice car, ran good”
Don’t be on here calling anybody dishonest or liars without the slightest bit of information. You just make an ass out of yourself mostly when you ass ume right?

Let clarify that the I was informed that the heads were o ringed. I had done some reading and talked with the seller and had assumed I could use a standard head gasket or if not I could get them milled or try a different option. Maybe this is wrong but it was established. However the other items were not and the pictures were not kf great quality and if they were I would not have purchased the heads. But again I dont feel like the seller was trying to pull a fast one. I'm not thrilled about this as I was trying to save a buck but instead it's gonna cost me two. That being said the heads aren't unusable and someone can definitely get them to work for them. I am hoping I can get what I paid or close to it as either way I'm losing out on $400 in shipping.

Apparently I know more than you. The OP even admits he got screwed. As for my "cookie cutter slow ..ass Pontiac", I suggest you just just kiss my slow @ss. Jealousy is not a good color on you.

Neighbor I can already tell you’re one of those loud mouth potbelly drunk neighbors that’s always loud and in your everybody else’s business. Your name is apparently really accurate.
I’m gonna hurry off here before you’re in my face with your beer breathe telling me how bad your 13 second Pontiac is because you zero decked the block and bowl blended your $50 6x heads.
Mind your business Otis.

Skippy I’ll call you this evening. But I sent you pics and we texted. I answered all I could about your questions. I told you they were a little old and rougher. Needed some polishing. Even told you about the rings, that they were for boost or a lot of nitrous and that’s why that bolt tower was welded up. Even sent you pics of my brothers heads with the tophat washers showing how to fix it correctly. They are very usable heads that’s been “used” . Please don’t insinuate the negative stuff, as a lot of it will only hurt you on here trying to sell those heads if you don’t want them. I told you that’s how I bought them and I changed my mind on what I wanted to do. Nothing more, nothing less.
Retards eat that stuff up on here like Neighbor.

Well now, the truth comes out and you're just some loudmouth slinging junk arts you keep buying that don't work. This cookie cutter you refer to is called a tried and true formular for a fast street car with a good ROI, not throwing money at stupid junk parts not meant for a street car.

Your assessment of me is what a person with a lack of intellect assumes because he has always been able to shout his mouth off loud enough to win an argument rather know the facts.

I don't buy junk parts from loud mouthed, intemperate hillbillys like you because I know better. As far as the rest, I like to take the high road in life but every once in a while, you wind up in the gutter with idiots like you. See, people with an education don't say things like "needs rebuilt" or "heads that's been "used" when they refer to abused parts, especially in a hobby that is supposed to be a brotherhood.

Yeah your right Neighbor. Drink another beer. You don’t have a clue and I’m done arguing my point about any of it. Especially with you that has absolutely nothing to do with this. You’re the typical idiot you know that?

I could see the heads leaking if the fire ring crossed over the groove... before throwing in the towel i would place intended head gasket on the head and see if the gasket fire ring avoids the cut groove

You could also just mill the heads both intake and deck

Kentucky. I get it now. Hush Honey, you're wasting your breath. Save it for your junk parts sales pitch.

OP. sorry you had the misfortune of dealing with this boor.

If you attempt to surface the heads far enough to remove the fire ring, you're going to kill your quench and wind up with high potential for detonation on top of the reduced chamber cc's. You could weld up the fire rings but you have to be sure not to not wind up with voids that can erode the standard gasket fire ring, especially between cylinders.

Really? Did you read Mike’s explanation on HOW to repair this set of heads? .020 equals 3-4 cc( .005-.006 per cc on a straight mill) Of course. you could always weld the grooves, mill the head deck flush and have lost, maybe, 1cc. Then again, cutting the valve seats and grinding the valves can add as much as 5cc to the total chamber volume. You do realize Mike has repaired aluminum heads far more than you have? After all, he was just the engine builder for Grocery Getter and .