heads porting question.

[98maro]

whatz up ls1 members, so i have a question regarding to porting heads,
i called a machine shop to find out how much does that usually cost, the guy said its around $150 for intake porting and another $150 for exhaust ports on the head, depending on what gaskets i used, that way he will know how much time he has to spend doing the job..
what gaskets do i use? he gave me that price if i use stock gasket, if i use aftermarket, he will probably spend more time, and cutting more..
im getting some LTs and a 228r cam or a bit bigger as well, he also recommended to get some . heads, but i dont want to spend $400-$600 on used heads,
i have also heard that 5.3 , heads are better than ls1 heads.. i have seen them for around $150 bucks on my area.
is it true those flow better? if so, what are the casting numbers?

[BrownsMillsAntz]

Maybe you can learn a little from the mistakes I made...Most guys will tell you to just go pick up some new cnc ported 243's (Z06,LS2 heads) for $1200-1500 from a vendor. It didnt sound fun to me and I swore I could do it cheaper another route..In the end I wish i would have listened, but atleast I learned something..I was first going to run some ported 241's, like you I wasnt trying to break any horsepower records and I didnt feel like paying 4-5 hundred bucks for a set of used 243's so I picked up a set for 140 bucks w/ some 650 lift springs and manley valves so killer deal, found a local porter who was going to do a full port for 400 bucks (great price)...anyway after disassembly my porter noticed somebody did a butcher job on them trying to do a home port so i had to go out and get new heads...I had a few extra bucks so i said screw it and went out and picked up some low miled/cleaned 01 z06 heads for 425.00....so right there were about a grand in, then I paid another 175 bucks to get them flowed after the port...So when is all said and done I should have just went w/ a cnc'd set from a vendor. You can have your 241's ported and get some good gains but then again cnc work your looking at 600-800 bucks. Whatever route you go you have to pay to play. The 5.3L heads are slightly a thicker casting and can be ported a bit more. Though they will raise your compression from the smaller combustion chambers.

[tatertot91]

On a tight budget my advice would be to pick up a set of used 243s/799s, have them checked out and maybe cleaned up at a machine shop, and bolt em on. They will be an upgrade for you and will leave you room for improvement later on if you ever want them cncd.

[BrownsMillsAntz]

You could do that but I would reccomend atleast some bowl blending and valve job...seems like a lot of work to me for 10-15 hp...I would say the best bet for you is if your doing your own work send your stock heads out for porting...I was watching a video on tech the other day and the dude put down 470ish rwhp w/ AI 241's and a custom AI cam. If that machine shops any good you might be surprised on what power you pick up w/ the stock heads

[WICKEDLS1]

not worth it to port the stock 241 heads when you can buy the 243's for the cost of doing all the work to yours and make more power. look at my sig and the mods on my previous camaro with the 228r and 243's on a conservative tune. the 5.3 heads will bump compression but will hurt you on the top end so dont go that route unless there an aftermarket set that have been worked.

[WICKEDLS1]

You could do that but I would reccomend atleast some bowl blending and valve job...seems like a lot of work to me for 10-15 hp...I would say the best bet for you is if your doing your own work send your stock heads out for porting...I was watching a video on tech the other day and the dude put down 470ish rwhp w/ AI 241's and a custom AI cam. If that machine shops any good you might be surprised on what power you pick up w/ the stock heads

i would love to see this vid and inspect this dyno because i highly doubt he is actually putting down 470's on those heads and cam but who knows i could be wrong

[tatertot91]

If everything goes to plan my 243s will be headed to AI, but you can add me to the list of non believers. Thats high, even for ported 243s let alone 241s. Dyno could have been calibrated in his favor.

[BrownsMillsAntz]

i would love to see this vid and inspect this dyno because i highly doubt he is actually putting down 470's on those heads and cam but who knows i could be wrong

I take that back after looking on my phone he hit 267, still high if you ask me...Tech is blocked at work but ill try to put up the link later. Its in the for sale section
Advanced Induction - LSX Heads & Cam Kits
Its the second package down

[BrownsMillsAntz]

Advanced Induction AI Ported 241's and Custom Cam - LS1TECH

There it is

[2002ssslp]

whatz up ls1 members, so i have a question regarding to porting heads,
i called a machine shop to find out how much does that usually cost, the guy said its around $150 for intake porting and another $150 for exhaust ports on the head, depending on what gaskets i used, that way he will know how much time he has to spend doing the job..
what gaskets do i use? he gave me that price if i use stock gasket, if i use aftermarket, he will probably spend more time, and cutting more..
im getting some LTs and a 228r cam or a bit bigger as well, he also recommended to get some . heads, but i dont want to spend $400-$600 on used heads,
i have also heard that 5.3 , heads are better than ls1 heads.. i have seen them for around $150 bucks on my area.
is it true those flow better? if so, what are the casting numbers?

Just remember that what you are getting is a gasket matching job not a real porting. They are going to paint the port area's and put the gasket on and trace the outline then use a cutter and cartridge roll to match and blend the outside of the ports. If you want to gain flow and HP you need to get a full port job done with a flowbench. They will take your car and put it on a dyno to get a baseline. Then they use the mods and specs from your ride and come up with a optimum flow level. They they pull the heads and rework the entire head to meet the flow level numbers from the computer. Placed back on the car and back on the dyno you should see 100 hp gain or more. cost 2k plus.

[WICKEDLS1]

Advanced Induction AI Ported 241's and Custom Cam - LS1TECH

There it is

could be the truth but idk i wouldnt put too much faith into it only to most likely be disappointed in the long run. just my .02

[BrownsMillsAntz]

AI is the Micheal Jordan of head porting I doubt there bs'in, plus that dyno backs up the numbers they say you should see...the few extra hp is probably attributed to his ported intake.

[35th-ANV-SS]

That set-up also had a FAST intake which added to the power level...and probably another 1K to the cost.