best stock heads

[shortchevy84]

whats the best stock heads i can get for my chev 350. i'm trying to go by the casting numbers and i want to run from idle to about 5500, with roller rockers, performer air gap intake, 4 barrel Qjet, flat tops, headers and dual exhaust. i don't really know which heads are best. i looked through the chevyhiperformance website that was listed on another thread, and that helped. but i don't know exactly which are the best heads for my application, and what vehicle i could try and find them on. the heads i have are from my old 305, non california. no idea what the number is. i'm aiming for 300+hp, but i don't want to buy new heads as they are as expensive as heck, and if i'm doing heads, i might as well just save myself time and money and just get a crate engine. but i have rebuilt engine already, and don't want to do that. all i really need is the casting number of the head i should look for, and on what vehicle, to keep compression low enough to run on regular(87 octane) fuel, and still get lots of power. no towing or anything. thanks!  

[roundedline]

Vortec heads are the better than any of the old stuff at far out of the box flow.  It does required a special intake though.  See the post I made in the "head difference" post under Engine for Chevy HiPerformance's Cylinder head flow database.

Chris Lucas
www.73-87chevytrucks.com
www.captkaoscustoms.com
Project Su
Jimmy 2WD Project

[shortchevy84]

is vortec compatible with carbeurated systems?? if not i'd like to stick with the carb. i mainly just want to know which heads are the best for up to 350hp and the best torque for that power range. mainly the number i want to look for, and what to find it on. type of vehicle, and engine size. i'm trying to find the exact article you mentioned, but i'm having trouble, so if you have a link to it, that'd be great. thanks!

[roundedline]

The post is here.  It is also under the engine section.
p210.ezboard.com/f7387che...=626.topic

Yes they are compatible with carb systems.  One of the main things you need is a Vortec intake that accepts a Carb.
More info on Vortec heads can be found here:
chevyhiperformance.com/howto/97458/


Summit sells them assembled for $269
store.summitracing.com/de...toview=sku

Jegs has them for $260
www.jegs.com/cgi-bin/ncom...rmenbr=361

Chris Lucas
www.73-87chevytrucks.com
www.captkaoscustoms.com
Project Su
Jimmy 2WD Project

[1976Scottsdale]

487 castings are the best of the "old style" 76cc chamber heads.  With flat tops, you wil get roughly 8.5-9.5 to 1 compression.  You can run 87 just fine on that.  I ran 624 castings on my 76, they crack easily but will be okay if you keep them cool.  Though, I had mine up to about 240 and they did fine.  Do not run open headers through them though.  They will turn to junk very quickly.

[shortchevy84]

i found out i have 462624 heads that have 76cc chambers. it says they are the same as 882, but later model. how good are these heads? i don't know what valve size i have, i think it said they could be all 3 sizes. would they be usable to make 300hp with a cam and roller rockers, and performer intake? thanks

[77c15]

I just sold a set of 882 heads to a local guy for $100. They had been ported and rebuilt about a year ago at a machine shop and ran/flowed EXTREMELY well. They sat on top of the 307 that the guy also bought, and the combo was killer. If I were you, i'd spend the $50-100 to have the heads shaved, ported, and polished. Then, i'd have them flow tested. Pump money into what you have rather than replacing something that's not broke. Hope this helps, in any way, form, or fashion.
-Mike

[shortchevy84]

i was under the impression that porting polishing and all that for heads wasn't really worth it. i mean it works great, but for the price i was told to just buy new better flowing heads. i live in canada, so that 50 - 100, is more like 80- 160 or something, and i was originally told it is alot more than that. like 400 bucks each. and thats not that good when i could get new edelbrock perf. rpm for 600 each. i was told one head of mine was cracked, but the mechanic fixed it, which i don't trust cuz he is very shady, and completely screwed me over, but thats a whole nother story. anyway, i'll probably look into it today. thanks

[BruceLopesJr]

Vortec heads are the best and you can buy an intake and carb for them too.  The intake is different from the "standard" chevy intake.  

[shortchevy84]

ok, so if i was buying new heads, would i be better off buying gm vortec heads, edelbrock performer rpm, or edelbrock etec heads? not sure on the prices of vortec or etec, but rpm are 600 each, fully assembled. is a vortec going to out power the old style performer rpm? and i know i need the extra vortec stuff to use the heads. thanks for any replies

[lotopp79]

rpm heads for 600 each is really good if the aluminum but if your daily driving this truck I would stik  with old fashion iron head like the vortec aluminum heads tend to warp or crack so keep that in mind  

[BruceLopesJr]

Vortec heads will flow excellent numbers low in the RPM range, which is where big, heavy trucks need to get moving.  They will create more torque than the bigger aluminum heads, everything else being equal.