66 BADBOY

iTrader: (2)

Hey guys,

Tried to search this out on here and came up short.

I have a very low mile set of 243 heads, and like everyone else, the budget is tight. For a long time now, I've been sold on doing CNC work with either AI or TEA, and the car will be cammed, stock ported TB, LS6 intake, rebuilt injectors from FIC, and all the standard "upgrade" parts that go along with it.

But as I look at things, I'm wondering how much there is to gain by doing the CNC port work vs just doing a "competition" valve job on them and upgrading the springs? Obviously I could use the savings elsewhere in the build.

Its going to be 100% street/classic cruiser conversion. Looking for power under the curve, not looking to set landspeed records or brag too much about the dyno.

So a few HP/ftlbs really doesn't matter. But what is the general power difference in the portwork vs valve job? Once I know, I'll weigh out the benefit of spending/saving the cash vs the extra power and torque.

Thanks!!

mark21742

Really it depends on your setup, could be a gain of 40+hp with a good port work and vj

dphc18

iTrader: (5)

just had a set done at TEA and are setups sound the same hope to get car going in two weeks, so I will let you know how it turns out on the dyno if you haven't made a decision by then.

*02WS6TURK*

iTrader: (13)

Send them to AI. Their work is hands down the best.

66 BADBOY

iTrader: (2)

Thanks guys. I understand that the portwork a typical range of 40HP (at least from what I've read about), and that TEA and AI are top notch.

But what I'm asking is basically this: How much power increase is there with a valve job only?

Rare96LT1Formula

iTrader: (32)

I've been hearing this quite a bit. I'm in the market for some 243's myself. Once I get them, I'll be giving AI a call and shipping them out. I've heard of gains as high as 56 rwhp from a set of their cnc 243's. Thats alot of power!

KCS

iTrader: (20)

The majority of gains will be made in the valvejob and immediate areas. You could likely spend $200-$400 on a pretty decent valvejob and bowl work and come within 10hp of a fully CNC ported head.

66 BADBOY

iTrader: (2)

Thanks man. That's exactly the kind of info I was looking for.

HOSS Boss

I realize this doesn't answer your question (like most of the others here as well) but AI is the way to go. I've heard so many good things about them and their heads. If you can't dig up much information about valve jobs then I would say go with AI. They seem to be a very reputable company with great customer service and even though you may be spending around $1000 it will be well worth it and you can be sure you've got a good set of heads. I've got a set of 243s that I will be sending to them next year sometime, can't wait.

66 BADBOY

iTrader: (2)

Hey man, I've been following your AI thread too. I'm down to them or TEA. But I'm starting to weigh out saving $$$$ vs a full blown CNC job. I need to call both places to chat and see if they just do valve jobs, and how much they cost.

I see you are in Michigan.....are you getting any other rebuild work? If so, who is doing it? Who are you going to have do your tune?

Conrad

iTrader: (20)

Hey, this is HOSS Boss...make a different username...anyways I'm going to go with AI for the heads, beehive springs, pushrods, and custom cam for a package price of $1750. No other rebuild work. I don't know who I will go to have my *future* car tuned. I'm not sure where this is at but there's a Livernois Motorsports shop that dyno tuned a buddy's car and they did a shitty job. He had to get a retune.

farmington

iTrader: (14)

Try Motorcity Speed. They're in Walled Lake. Northwest of Detroit.

66 BADBOY

iTrader: (2)

That's where my short block is at right now. Read lots of good stuff about Billy, and he's one of the coolest engine guys I've ever met. He took a lot of time to talk with me about what I wanted. Great guy. Can't wait to get it back!!

LilJayV10

iTrader: (39)

Really?

Why does A.I. spend hours apon hours CNC'ing their heads for 10hp? If that's the case that's the worst hp/dollar upgrade I have ever seen.

I'm not being a dick at all I'm asking a legitimate question.

KCS

iTrader: (20)

Street car engines typically have small valves and and relatively low lift, which is not enough to take advantage of the port work that companies like AI do. For example, if you were to cover the opening of a garden hose, it's like never fully taking your finger out of the way. Most of the port really doesn't matter as much when all the action is happening at the valve.

Race car engines are not like that. Big valves and big lift gets the valve out of the way as quick as possible, so the limiting factor is in the port. That makes all those details in shape, size, etc more crucial and that is where you can make big differences in the power ouput with small changes in the port.

thunderstruck507

iTrader: (18)

I would think a good chunk of the power gains comes from milling them down as well.

I am thinking of having a good valve job done on my 799s, then clean them up by hand, polish the chambers and exhaust ports, and mill them down. Should be a healthy increase in HP without breaking the bank. I don't think it would be too far out of line to hope for 25-30hp over stock 99 heads.

Deviant LS1

iTrader: (4)

I went from an LS6 intake, ported TB and mildly hand ported 241's milled to a 63 cc chamber to a ported FAST85/85 and TEAs stage II 243 heads milled to a 63cc chamber and picked up 42rwhp/20rwtq. Both of them ran with my baby 228/232 cam.

02TransAm/Batmobile

iTrader: (32)

I don't understand why people keep posting information completely irrelevant to the title of the thread. How does going from hand ported 241's to TEA Stage II 243's with along with a FAST 85/85 help answer the question the original poster poses?

The question is: Given the same head, how does a simple valve job compare to CNC porting in terms of flow and power potential?

BattleSausage

iTrader: (3)

I haven't ever tried a back to back comparison, but judging by past experiences I'm willing to bet KCS is absolutely spot on. A good bowl blend and valve job will do wonders in promoting better flow. For instance, I picked up roughly 15 cfm peak & ~20 cfm mid lifts on a new cnc'd set of 2v TF heads that were hand blended. Granted, it could have been a generous flow bench, however I'm inclined to agree with the numbers from what I've seen from other people having the same work done. The valve job and area around the seat is so important because it is the bottle neck for air traveling into the cylinder, so the smoother the transition, the the better of you are.

BlackScreaminMachine

iTrader: (17)

I would advise speaking to a good head porter. Maybe Tony Mamo or Tooley, someone who has done the work.