So,tell us just what's wrong with the #16 iron heads?
Odds are if those heads need any significant amount of work done to them,you'll end up with at least half of what a set of the aluminum heads cost into those iron heads (likely more than half),and then where are you at,pretty much back to square one right where you were before.
If those #16 heads still have stock vavles in them,that right there is a serious risk by itself,as it's not @ all unheard of to see the "high mileage" OE 2 pc. valves "pop the heads off" of them when aftermarket valve springs come into the picture.
So right there your looking at new valves,guides likely,valve springs,along with the corresponding machine work,and often that's just the tip of that iceberg.
Just dont say you were'nt warned that the cost for a basic "re-work" of some OE iron heads can end up being quite a bit more expensive than one originally thought it would be.
IMO the bottom end is only a "big deal" if you make it out to be such at this point in time.
Dont get me wrong here,I dont care for those "low end" pistons anymore than anyone else here does,but there are ways to deal with those sorta issues if you absolutely have to.
And you would only hafta send the KRE-D heads back later if you wanted them ported further,honestly you would'nt really need to do that if you found that you were infact prefectly happy with what you get from them @ the 260 cfm port level.
At the very minimum,if you opt to put it back together with the #16 iron heads,I'd be sure to use the .027" thick cometics head gaskets,now understand that they aint low budget head gaskets,but that's about the only way you can help that poor deck height issue besides doing some machine work to the shortblock.
In the end,the choice is yours,think about this long and hard,and be sure to get estimates and prices upfront and compare such between all the various options you're considering,as these days it's easy to be pennywise and pound foolish.
Nobody I know likes spending money twice for the same thing.
FWIW
Bret P.
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