What is the best SBC heads

Cylinder HeadPeak HorsepowerPeak TorqueDart419 at 6,200 rpm417 at 4,200 rpm (2)Jeg’s408 at 5,900 rpm421 at 4,300 rpm (1)Summit405 at 5,900 rpm416 at 4,400 rpm (4)Edelbrock395 at 5,900 rpm409 at 4,200 rpm (5)

Which SBC heads are best?

Are aluminum heads better than iron heads?

Aluminum has less weight than iron, and is easier to repair as well. Many people prefer aluminum heads for their performance, and consider them inherently better than iron heads. However, no matter which material – iron, aluminum or cobalt – is used to build heads, their performance will almost be the same.

Are 882 SBC heads good?

GM 882 IRONPort:151 ccI Flow @ 0.400:203 cfm

How much HP will Vortec heads add?

The original answer was related to modifying the heads to accept more valve lift. Our original answer combined the Chevrolet Hot cam with a set of these Vortec heads. Our estimate then and now is around 350-375 horsepower.

Are 193 heads any good?

193 is typical of most TBI ’87’95 iron heads, with half the intake valve-bowl approach blocked off—not good for serious performance. One exception is the ’87’91 Camaro TPI 350 No. 083 head that had full “open” intake runners.

How much horsepower does a 1998 5.7 Vortec have?

The Vortec generated 255 horsepower at 4,600 rpm and 330 foot-pounds of torque at 2,800 rpm, or the force required to move a vehicle forward.

How much more compression can you run with aluminum heads?

As mentioned previously, with a cast iron-headed motor on the street, somewhere in the range of 9.5:1 is the practical limit for compression; with aluminum, 10.5:1 or so is a pretty good maximum figure.

What is a Fuelie head?

It’s two half-ovals connected by a straight bar-most easily described as “two humps.” Some of these are also nicknamed “Fuelie” heads because a version appeared on fuel-injected 327-powered Chevy Corvettes. These heads appeared on 327 and 350 cubic inch engines across most of the 1960s (beginning in 1962).

Is a bigger combustion chamber better?

The larger the combustion chamber, the lower the ratio. You want a smaller combustion chamber to increase efficiency. However, the smaller the chamber, the less space there is to fit valves, so air intake becomes less efficient. The challenge is to have a small combustion chamber with good space for valves.

Article first time published on

How much does a SBC head weigh?

SBC steel heads are about 50 pounds each.

How much lift can stock Vortec heads handle?

The factory Vortec heads use a light, single-wire valvespring with a damper that generates between 70 and 80 pounds of load on the seat. Because these heads are meant to work with a 1.5:1 rocker, their tall valve guides can only handle maximum valve lifts of around 0.420 inch.

How much horsepower will cam and headers add?

Yes, a camshaft adds 10 to 20 horsepower depending on the setup. To get the full potential of the high-performance camshaft, you’ll have to swap out additional components like the air intake, exhaust manifold, injectors, and valve heads.

Do Vortec heads use different headers?

The fact is Vortec heads breathe like crazy and make better horsepower and torque than any previous Chevrolet production design. Vortec heads look similar to any ’87-and-later center-bolt head-the ends have the same accessory mounting holes, the exhaust flanges are the same, head bolt patterns are the same, and so on.

How can I get more horsepower out of my 5.7 Chevy?

Modify your air intake. …
Modify your exhaust. …
Change your camshafts and valve train. …
Purchase new cylinder heads, or have yours ported and polished. …
Have your motor rebuilt and blueprinted.

What year Chevy 350 is the best?

LT-1 – 1970. When the LT-1 hit the scene in 1970, it took the world by storm. …
L98 – 1992. Another fan favorite is the 1992 L98 350 engine. …
L31 – 2002. Last but not least, the 2002 L31 350 Chevy engine deserves recognition.

What are swirl port heads?

Swirl in a two-valve head: The air comes in the cylinder off-axis on one side and spirals down the long side of the cylinder bore, opposite the port entry. Swirl should be positive, rotating away from the inlet-port side of the cylinder.

What heads came on 327 Chevy?

Casting Number 3890462 Casting number 3767462/3814462/3917291 was used on 302ci, 327ci, and 350ci V8 engines from 1962 to 1970. These are the classic “double hump” cylinder heads that featured either the 1.94/1.5 or 2.02/1.6-inch valve packages.

What CC are camel hump heads?

Even older is the troglodyte-like 64-cc chamber heads, often referred to as “double hump” or “camel hump” heads because of their distinctive casting marks on the ends of the heads. These smaller chamber heads had better flowing ports than the later 441 or 882 castings.

What is a bowtie head?

Vortec Bowtie cylinder heads are the most powerful cast-iron heads offered by Chevrolet Performance. … The heads provide outstanding low-lift flow numbers (the more air you flow, the more potential power) and Fast Burn performance all in an affordable, cast-iron head.

What are Chevy bowtie heads?

Vortec Bowtie cylinder heads are the most powerful cast-iron heads offered by Chevrolet Performance. These upgraded production cylinder heads are ideal for 400-450 horsepower street and racing (great for circle track applications) engines.

What did 461 heads come on?

The 461 head is more popularly referred to as the “Fuelie” head, because it was introduced as standard equipment on the 1962 327ci Corvette engine that was fed by a mechanical Rochester fuel-injection system. In some bench-racing circles, all double-hump heads are classified as Fuelie heads.

What does CC mean on cylinder heads?

One of these checks is cc’ing the heads (cc = cubic centimeters). This is a process whereby we physically measure the volume of the combustion chamber. It’s important to do this because it ensures consistency among all the cylinders.

What is the compression ratio for 93 octane with aluminum heads?

Because aluminum conducts (dissipates to the cooling system) heat much faster than cast iron does, you can run 10.5:1 with aluminum heads on 93 octane.

What's the highest compression you can run on pump gas?

You can run 11:1 or even 12:1 compression on your pump-gas street motor, but you’ll need this simple advie to make it happen. A four-stroke (or four-cycle) engine is so called because in the process of producing power, the piston passes up and down the bore four times.

What is a good dynamic compression ratio?

As a general rule, the best available pump gas will work with an 8.0:1 dynamic compression ratio. To get 8.0:1 with the preceding rod, stroke, and cam intake closing event, you would need about a 13.2:1 static ratio.” Erb’s 8.0:1 dynamic guideline is for classic, old-school, all-iron engines.

What is the best combustion chamber?

The hemispherical combustion chamber offers the best surface-to-volume ratio and tests conducted by Chrysler in 1950 showed that to match the thermal efficiency of a 7.00:1 compression ratio Hemi engine, its previous combustion chamber would need 10.0:1 at 1200 rpm, 9.4:1 at 2000 rpm, 8.9:1 at 2800 rpm and 8.5:1 at …

Can cylinder heads be too big?

“Super-sizing” may be a bit of an exaggeration, but cylinder head buyers have been known to opt for valves that are too large. That can result in cylinder heads that don’t fit an engine’s performance needs—or the actual engine itself!

Do aluminum heads make more power?

Aluminum heads will dissipate heat faster. This allows for higher Compression Ratios with less risk of Detonation. The cooler head also delivers a cooler air/fuel mixture to the combustion chamber. Cooler air is denser and can make more power.

How much does a SBC weigh with aluminum heads?

Compared to the standard iron block, the alloy version weighs only about half as much. “With this block and aluminum heads, you get an engine that weighs only about 435 pounds,” says World’s Bill Mitchell.