[Z Code 400]

I am contemplating selling my recently refurbished 1965 date coded (1966) 092 heads and diverting those funds into my 372 CID Pontiac project. Before I advertise them, I wanted to see if I could get some feedback from you guys.

These heads have been surfaced and fitted with spiralized .500" cast iron guides. The valves are stainless steel/undercut stem 1.920" intakes with 1.660" exhaust in the stock length. Spring seats are set at 1.700" and they are fitted with Crower 68405 dual springs, stock Pontiac retainers and Viton positive seals.

These heads have not been ported and still have some flashing present in the ports. They are painted and ready to bolt on.

Your input would be appreciated...Robert

[Cliff R]

I took a set to the Pontiac Nationals two years in a row. I was giving them away for free....no takers!.....Cliff

[Z Code 400]

LOL!

Yeah, I know...I just got rid of a set of 093's, but those are much more valuable than 092's.

I will probably throw them on the shelf where they will sit for several years until somebody comes over and says, "You got any old 389 heads????" Too bad they are not as valuable as the early 421 heads with the funky intake bolt pattern....

That's how I sold my last set of 421 heads. I spent about $300.00 on them and they laid around for a couple of years. One day, a guy stopped by and said he had been told I had a bunch of old 421 stuff and he wanted a pair of heads. They fetched $700.00 complete for the pair...Robert

[Cliff R]

I still have those 092's around here someplace, they are still free, but I doubt if they are worth the shipping price?.....Cliff

[Cliff R]

"I am contemplating selling my recently refurbished 1965 date coded (1966) 092 heads and diverting those funds into my 372 CID Pontiac project."

PS: What happened to the 406 project? Then what happened to the 350 weekend head and cam swap project?....Cliff

[Juliano]

My 65 389 with 77 heads and 068 OE cam sounds and runs great, car does 3000 Km long distance round trip every year for the past four years plus moderate abuse around town, Total mileage on rebuild 20,000 Km........would bigger valve heads wake this engine up with out changing the cam ? I am considering KRE Dports an account of headers already on the motor.

[Z Code 400]

LOL!

Where do I start???? Honestly, I just haven't decided which way I am going to go with the engine at the moment. My wife has suggested abandoning the 350 Pontiac project altogether, but I have a lot invested in 092 heads now (ARP 1/2" x 7/16" studs, stainless 192" x 1.66" valves, 68405 springs, etc.) that I can't use on anything else, so I am just tossing around several options.

Right now, I have been re-working the chassis, painting the engine compartment, installing the new steel lower control arm bushings, SPC adjustable upper control arms, new brake booster, lines and disc/disc prop valve. I also had new front springs custom wound by Coil Spring Specialties (in Kansas) to get the car where I wanted it to sit and get the front suspension properly tuned.

As far as the engine goes, I picked up my Canton 15-450 road race oil pan and a one piece gasket from BOP, which were a couple of things on the list of needed parts for the engine. I had planned on throwing the 092's on my 66,000 mile Pontiac 350, along with a 220°/226° - 111.5° LSA Bullet cam I have had on the shelf since 2003, but recently, I began to re-think that approach altogether.

I still have the 412 block on the stand and just picked up the complete reciprocating assembly from the balancer over the weekend, so that still needs complete assembly. As you may recall, I stripped out the resized cast rods in favor of PPR 5140's which required rebalancing.

If I go ahead and complete the 412, I will need a new KRE timing cover, but will also need to finish a set of unfired 6X-4's that I have on the shelf. They are complete and already have new K-Liners, but I pulled the stock replacement 2.11" x 1.66" valves and OEM dual springs out in favor of 2.11" x 1.77" undercut stem stainless valves and 68405 springs.

These 6X-4's will need another .030" cut from the deck to get them to 89cc's and the intake face needs about .015" removed from it for proper intake manifold fit. Not a lot of work, but still time consuming.

I figured that by using the splash shields (providing they fit the 68405's correctly which I haven't tested yet) that will knock about .030" off my installed height and a .015" shim would get me close to the 1.700" IH I want on those heads.

The installed height is currently 1.750" and I still haven't cut these heads for PC seals, which I really don't want to do. I think one reason we have had such good luck with K-Liners is we don't remove material from the guide boss (thinner is hotter) and we still run the 'O' rings. B-Man has a set of #13 heads from one of my 400's built in 1988 with K-Liners that had well over 100,000 miles on it. The K-Liners were still in good shape in those heads when I pulled them off in 2002!!!!

Then, as a side project, I recently had an old '990' 421 SD crank destroked to 3.590" with 2.100" rod journals, which didn't cost me anything. My plan for that crank is to combine it with a 6.00" SBC rod and a sleeved down 400 block (4.030") for a 372 CID Pontiac.

So, I am going to have to make a decision on which way to go this week and liquidate everything else that may pose a distraction. Otherwise, I try to build everything. My garage is 20' x 33' and it is almost full of parts. My 1975 Formula is buried in there somewhere.

My plan is an all-aluminum 4.250" x 3.750" IAII with Edelbrock heads and a stout solid roller. This is where I am going with the car, so whatever I put in it now, for the upcoming autocross events in February, 2010, is just temporary anyways. The light weight aluminum engine would greatly benefit my handling, since this is more of a road race car anyways.

Decisions, decisions, decisions...Robert