Thanks so much for such an informative and well-organized video on 350 heads. The more a person knows; the more of an expert they are, the more humble they are (usually). When you said, "I don't know everything, but I know a lot", I knew right there that you know what the hell you're talking about. Other guys that don't know 1/10th of what you know will say, "I know everything about 350 Chevy heads!" I wish other KZfaqrs that do informational videos took the time to get organized and chock their videos with as much info as you do. Hopefully some of them will check out your videos, because they could learn a lot (and not just about how to film videos)! Thanks again for such great info and presenting it so well.

Man I love your videos. You are in my top 5 of sources for information and knowledge. Please keep up the excellent work educating us shade tree mechanics.

I am surprised that the 5.0L/5.7L Vortec heads weren't mentioned in this video. They are a Gen I small block. Those are also a very good choice port design in those heads were based off of the port design in the Gen II LT1's. 1.94/1.50 valve size with a unique multi angle valve seat from factory. Stock vs stock the Vortec's flow more than the camel hump heads, already have the hardened valve seats for use with unleaded. However they do need a little work if you want to run a higher lift cam. They also have a fast burn style combustion chamber.

This video is pure gold! So much knowledge, And we get to watch it for free! Thank you for this!

I had 993 heads on the 350 I rebuilt for my 87 1/2 ton Chevy, great heads for moderate power, I loved them.

Thanks for all your research and posting this. Coming from LS and small block Ford I am building my first gen 1 small block from all free parts that people have given me over the years. It's a little junker 355 and someone gave me a pair of 993 heads that have been ported and valve job with 2.02/1.60. The big chamber should put me at 9:1 but that's ok. 87 octane turd.

Excellent, Most accurate info about SBC heads I have watched in many years. Been building street engines since the mid 70's. Now with 49 Years experience (Now 2022). My pick has been 041 since I first found them at Pick-A-Part in the late 70's in the Valley (SFV). Were produced for only 2½ years. Very hard to find Then... I would assume almost impossible to find now. 186 Castings were easier to find. Well Done.

I enjoyed the video. Very informative. Appreciate how you broke down the casting numbers.

You know your stuff!!!! Thanks for letting the young guys know about this old school technology!!!!

Agreed Thats why I flow tested all of them and based the video on them

It's so funny that you bring those two things up because those are the exact thoughts I had when I previewed this, I uploaded it anyway because the Camel hump looks just like all the rest in the vid except for the end of the head but I hear you I am going to re-shoot this as soon as the weather cools off some right now it's way to hot here to shoot without the cooler on Thanks for the input it is always welcomed

FYI: TrickFlow is going into production with an aluminum version of the 461 head with a slightly larger intake runner(175 CC as opposed to 170 CC) already set up for high lift cams. It will be budget oriented so it will be competitively priced to factory SBC head with the machine work to support the same type of valve train.

I know this is old... But still very relevant info. I'm also a former Engine Builder and Machinist. YES - totally agree with you on the 624 Heads!! JUNK! There's enough of the others to not use them. Now I have "successfully" built a few 350s with 305 Heads.... Do I suggest that the average person do it - NO. I even used 58cc Chamber 305 Heads with Dish Pistons, giving 10.6-1 Compression.... THE DIFFERENCE - I explained to the Customer that these would NOT be high revving, high Performance Engines! What they were, with Port Matching and mild Polishing and a Comp Cams 268H, was a Truck Torque BEAST. Fantastic from IDLE to 3500, but pretty much ran out of poop by about 4400-4800, with significant Torque loss between 3800 to Redline. Guys even reported getting significantly better Fuel Economy when not getting into it!! THAT was the late 70's to early 90's.... After that, it became obvious that you could practically "have your cake and eat it too" with a 383 Stroker! Possibly the best Chevy Small Block that Chevy never made. I'm really enjoying your Channel. You really know your shit, and have even taught me a few new things!! None of us know everything - it's always good to gain knowledge from someone who has had different experiences. 😉 Carmine ✈🚂🚙

The 3987041 and 3987041X in particular were used as a warranty replacement heads in matched set for the 69 Z28 Camaro. My DZ Block cracked and the CE wedge piston replacement block came with 3987041X heads. I still own the Camaro today and wish you had noted the oversized intake and exhaust ports of the 041X heads. The X can be found on the bottom of the intake runner, if you've never seen one. If you want a Pic I have plenty.

You should have said something about the 441 heads, lingenfelter wrote in his book. Them 1969 heads with the 2.02 intake and 1.60 exhaust valves are the true LT1 heads they experimented the year before they released them onto the 350 LT1 motor. Every one else also has a bad habit of calling fuelly heads as 2.02 intake and 1.60 exhaust valves, but actually the first Fulie motor was in the Corvette with the 327 motor in 1963 I think? But these heads had actually 1.94 intake valves and 1.50 exhaust, they named these heads the Fulie because of the fuel injection, great article, maybe you can do a special on the Fulie heads, LT1, and the 441 heads to educate people better on these heads. Have a good night my friend.

So glad I found this vid. I'm looking for heads for my truck and about a week ago almost picked up a set of" early vortec"from craigslist. Lol thanks for saving me a head ache

Great information. Wish I had known this 30 years ago! Thanks for posting. Take care, be safe!

For a 383 tbi stroker aftermarket heads work the best the tbi heads were not very good performers

best and easy to understand you video i have ever watched. you are straight to the point and explaining all options and why. very well said and not a bunch of riff raff and so slow like others i seen. could not have been more perfect . I know exactly what heads to get for my 70 c-10 truck that is stock other than edelbrock manifold and carb. thank you, your video is all i needed to know. great info thnx again

I have a 1973 Corvette C3 L48 195 HP 350 engine with "882 smog crap" (76cc chamber) heads, but to keep the car number matched I reworked and gasket match the crappy stock iron heads, installed screw fit rocker studs, kept the small 1.94 stock valve size but changed to new Manley stainless valves and bronce guides, gave the seats a rework too...enlarged the intake runners a little... Chevy V8 Engine block got TRW made forged new old stock 0.30 oversized LT1 copy domed pistons on pink LT1 forged rods giving 10.5:1 static CR with the L48 76cc heads, pistons and rods weight matched, original cast crank in 2 bolt block remained only got a cleaning and ballancing, Camshaft is a LS46 GM cam copy by Elgin (E921p Duration At .050" Lift 224/224, Intake Valve Lift:.450" Exhaust Valve Lift:.460" ) ...intake manifold is a Edelbrock performer with 750 Edelbrock quad carb...engine runs like a champ giving German 350 DIN HP (Not SAE) on rolling road, pretty much like the original 1970 LT1 and L46. It does not need lots of expensive trick stuff to get a decent street performance engine.

Great info. I have a 72 Chevy 350 Camper Special for towing. Need to check what type of heads I have? I know it is a 4 bolt main, long stroke, high compression, mild Crane RV cam. Thinking of putting 062 Vortec heads on it for more power?

Great video man gave a lot of great information!! Keep them coming

love the videos, I'm new to a machine shop and it's great to watch your videos and learn

You just saved me from spending a lot of money on redoing my 991 heads, I have a good set of 882 heads lying around as well. Thank you!

There is another machinist on here that talked about date codes on heads. He stated he found over the years that you could tell by the day of the week differences in quality of the heads... He said he noticed that Monday and Friday heads took the most work to shape them up. That Tuesday-Thursday heads were of better quality workmanship... Nobody wants to be at work on Monday or Friday...

I hope my combination runs decent. I went with a 355 running flat tops with a xe268 with a set of 186 1.94/1.50 valves. Basic porting to clean up the casting flash. Edelbrock rpm intake, Edelbrock 600, 2400 stall 350 turbo and a set of 3.42's All of this is going in a 79 cutlass. Hopefully it'll run hard for a street car and pull lower 13's, should be very streetable. Might step up to some RHS Vortecs one day.

You know your stuff, thanks for taking the time to help guys like me. Mark

I had a 350 in a truck years ago. The heads were 53cc. It made a rediculous amount of power. 68 GMC that could pull the front end. I didn't build the engine, but did add some aftermarket parts. I was putting down low 11's on slicks.

We picked up camel hump heads for my sons 350 for 400$. They were machined for bigger valves 2.02 Intake and 1.6 exhaust. Even had the springs and rocker stud girdles. Sounds like a beast.

Thanks for the great Info Going to build a 383 stroker here shortly

great explanation. thanks! at a swap meet, i found a set of 461 heads with 1.94" intake valves i'm about to put on my '65 elcamino (gotta deadline of 5 weeks to complete at this point for a work related car show). it's a 283 with flat top pistons. i'm running an electric fan, and power nothing, manual steering, no ac etc, so only the alternator is run off a belt, and the alternator bracket is bolted to the exhaust bolts on cyl 1, so i lucked out there since these 461's have no accessory mounts. what do you think my comp ratio is going to be? general numbers are ok, just hoping to get close to the 10 range or above hopefully. going to run and edelbrock airgap dual plane, edelbrock 600 cfm carb and long tube headers. not going to be a beast, just a good little motor with decent spunk in my 3200 lb '65. going to watch some of your other vids now. thanks! sub'd!

Awesome video great info!!! I've just subscribed, so got a lot of videos to watch. Couple questions? Where do I find the casting numbers? I'm interested in getting my heads done (if they have good numbers)? In this process what can I expect to be done, and what does it usually cost to have heads redone? Thanks in advance!!!!!

Love the videos, I have a question, I have a vortec headed 355 with flat top pistons, and a stock (1995) lt1 cam and I’m looking for suggestions as far as timing both initial and total. The car is an 86 Camaro with a 700r trans, 3.27 rear, dual plane intake and a 600 cfm Holley street warrior carb

Nice video, thanks for uploading. I have had good luck with 882's that I put on mild stroker motors with low valve overlap cams, I do match the ports however but I don't think it makes that much of a difference as everything I build rarely sees 5k RPM. I look forward to more of your videos.

back in the day i rebuilt several 350's but one stood out. Dont recall casting numbers but i had them shaved as much as possible then added the higher compression pistons. Talking about compression and horsepower wow but did have one problem very hard to turn over to start and was hard on starters. Installed it on a heavy haul truck it haf so much power rarely had to shift plus it was incredibly fuel effiecient.

I built a 350 about 15 years ago and after tossing around tracking down a good set of well used heads and the cost of a valve job and possible P&P, I just bought some aftermarket heads...

I find that the info in your video to be very knowledgeable and accurate...I have been a SBC builder for over 30 years and back in the day when everyone wanted the 461's I always preferred the 041 heads..

991's work fine put in a good rv cam to go with them

THANKS for all your very informative videos. I've enjoyed MANY of them. I think I have three good questions. Here's a little background before I ask them. I recently bought a 1991 (last year square body) 1/2 ton Chevy Suburban.with an amazingly straight body and good frame and suspension, etc., for what I think was a terrific price ($600)... I bought it KNOWINGLY with an apparent bad valve guide in the cylinder head for the #8 cylinder. It's leaking oil and fouls plugs often. The others all seem okay. This is an ANEMIC engine, especially in such a heavy truck on 32" tires with 3.08 gears, but it has (documented) approx 15k miles on a rebuild of the 700R4 trans AND transfer case. My plan fro the get-go has been to build something RELIABLE, with maybe 100 h.p more, and do some axle swaps (1-tons) with a front to rear spring swap, true dual exhausts (Flowmaster 40's), and 3.73 gears with at least a posi in the rear. I'm planning to rework an OEM engine harness. Within a month of buying the truck, I bought a VERY LOW MILEAGE (68k mi) 5.7 PORT INJECTION/throttle body engine from a parted out presumably 1995 Cadillac limousine. My research has led me to believe it's a 1st Gen LT1... 265 h.p. I saw a video of iyt running before pulled and saw the digital odometer confirming the mileage. It ran very smoothly and there was no check engine light on in the dash instrument video. I basically bought this engine actually sight unseen. The price sounded right for such a low-mileage engine. The downside- the guy who pulled the engine butchered the wiring harness and failed to get the ECM from the car before it went to the crusher. Question 1) How do I determine that what I have (engine going in) is indeed a Gen 1 LT1? "Sawtooth pattern on the heads? Existence of the Optispark system? Ansence of the middle two intake bolts on each side of the intake? Any cast numbers I should look for? Question 2) What/which ECM should I use? Question 3) Is there a cam you could recommend for good low to midrange HP and torque that would give a LITTLE lope but retain good streetability and off road torque/power? (I'm NOT looking for a beast- NOT a high revving engine)... Maybe a stage 2 RV cam? Thanks again for your great videos!!!

I just bought a set of 041 heads that was reworked bit never ran with new 2.02 valves with screw in studs and guide plates for $300. Had the checked and theyre way good. Cant wait to put them on.

hey, great video. keep 'em coming!

Thank you Sir! Learned a lot from your lesson on heads. I have a 72 Corvette (K model). I was thinking of pulling the engine and doing the 383 stroker thing to it. Are the stock heads worth keeping?

Great video, my wife has a 71 chevelle that we plan on fixing up this year, only difference is we have a bare bone untouched 400 sbc block that we plan on building up. im not even sure where to start for a good set of heads..

I actually ran 040's on my chevelle and it flowed big time had a .510 lift cam with a 1.6 I ended up selling the car but I did keep the 040's because theyre so modified. I definitely would recommend the 040 or the 041 if you need the accessories.

I realize u can use 305 head's it will run even better with a 350 head if everything is equal

Have always had good luck withe 041.

I'm glad to see that the 993 made the list of decent heads. I just picked up a set for next to nothing for small block that is going in my 79 camaro. Question though. You say 8.5 to 9:1 compression max. Is that with stock pistons? I can achieve a 10:1 with higher comp pistons correct? I'm new to the small block scene but I've always loved them lol

Raced several yrs. running Hobbystocks, ran Double humps then those were outlawed and ran a lot off 993s, 882, But the best heads we found were the 441 and the 441X. These heads were what everyone wanted back in the day. Now everyone who doesn't run Crate motors run the EQ heads.

Hey man thanks for the great info.

Can't find your FB page, do you have a link? Great video and loved the big/small block video also. Thanks!

I built a stock 350 and used 1977 305 truck heads (small valves) and it was the smoothest running Chevy motor I ever built.

Its funny that I had the 624's on the engine I'm rebuilding. And before I started getting my self educated on these stock heads I bought a $150 pair of paper weights of craigslist. I think they were 920's or something. Great video by the way. I will definitely subscribe!

Yes 487 is a good casting

Yes its true ford and Chevy firing orders are the same if u number the cylinders the same way they are different because of the way each numbers the cylinders but the order of firing is the same

I have a set of 882s have a port and polish job on them with a set of flat tops and a moderate cam they work really well its around 380-420 crank hp and the things scream for what they are. I think they are excellent for a hot street mild strip engine on the cracking issue they really don't like to get hot but if your lucky they might not crack so just don't overheat them. just my 2 cents

great vid...about the 624 heads. they (in TBI engine) flow GREAT but they DO CRACK. and sometimes crack on the outside bolts when torque down.

GREAT VIDEO! Thank you for your valuable info.. You really helped me. I hit sub.

appreciate ya taking the time to make this. good poop!

Thanks for the advice, after watching all your chevy videos, I went the vortec route, I used 906 with edelbrock eps mani and summit carb, dude thank you thank thank you! Wow the truck pulls so hard even with a stock cam, but weird question, why would someone mismatch a 126 head one side and 441 head other side? Haha I was like hmmm these heads look different, haha maybe one was cracked and needed another and had that head? Thanks again man appreciate all your time and effort making videos!

Thank you for sharing what you know. Very helpful.

looking for a set of heads for my 77 Chevy K10 350 comp cam hooker headers wanting power and durability what set do you recommend

The 882 arent so bad IMO, back in the mid to late 90s, i had a built .030 over 350cid 4bolt main, 4valve relief flat top piston engine, along with a combination of other performance enhancers(all motor, no spray) in a street/strip driven '75 chevelle and it helped produce consistant 14.40s @ 96mph in the 1/4mile. Now granted, for what im about to tell you would be considered a waste in yours as well as everyone elses oppinion and i am inclined to agree, but i had these same heads thoroughly checked, then ported and polished, rocker stud bosses milled for screw in studs, SS 1.94int/1.60exh valves along with new springs/locks/retainers and valve seals to use with a hydraulic flat tappet camshaft. Now dont be too harsh on me, it was my very 1st high performance engine build, so i experimented some with what i had atm and it appeared to have worked out for me in the end. But i did upgrade to much better aftermarket heads later on for a better performance to price ratio... rumor has it, even when using all the wrong parts, chevy engines still make great power. lol

Great Video lots of great info I am checking my heads now looking for my best.

Outstanding information! Thank you so much, good job!

Thanks Man .. lots of useful info

I have a set of 14096217 heads 64cc chambers intake 1.94 valves. came in a 285-300HP GM crate crate 350. are these worth porting and using on a 350?

I had good success with 305 4 barrel heads on 350's. But I've found most if not all factory chev heads were mass produced with no attention to casting detail. Without a flow bench leave the runner alone but hog out the valve pocket and smooth out the pocket (think water flowing) the larger volume in the pocket helps draw air down the runner and is helped by the removal of sharp edges. All you need is a die grinders and a steady hand. Take a junk head and see how much can be removed first if uncertain.

I agree on the 624 being junk . I also am an engine machinist . Recently I built a 1980 Corvette engine that had 624s on it they came from GM with 2.02 / 1.6 valves and studs and guide plates . This was one of the few sets that I have seen that wasn't cracked .

We've built about a dozen IMCA modified SBC and I can tell you the 041 angled milled and ported has performed as good as any of the 061, 062 or 882. David Visser wrote a book on SBC and head work that explains how to get the most out of these heads. As David says in his book "I don't have an opinion, I have a dyno." The Dyno don't lie.

You should do a another vid covering the "292" turbo and the Phase 1 "034" and Phase 2 "034" heads

Seen a 396 bbc build you did. You talked about how wd40 is recommended for ring seating. I built a 40 over large journal 327 with true forged ft pistons, moly coated top ring and iron for 2nd. I used assembly lube on my rist pin area and ofcourse the r&b bearings but i only sprayed wd40 on my cylinders and the pistons and rings during assembly. No oil coating of the the cylinder or pistons and rings. That was maybe 4000 miles ago. 81 Malibu 410 posi, built turbo 350 and i run it hard. It does not smoke ever and it does not use oil. I know of some builds that didn't seat in as good as mine and i believe it's because the wd40 isn't as slick or oily and allows for proper seating. I think you said that's actually what it does and i can confirm it most definitely does. Just did a 60 over steoker same way but haven't had time to drive it yet, only break in the old Elgin 3030 solid that i put in it with a shaved set of 041x haeds. Should've bought name brand aluminum heads because i ended up with probably 850.00 in setting up mine.

Your spot on with your information! Good job! 👍

hey man. i have a 89 camaro iroc 5.7 l98 n was wondering if those heads come out to be good?

fixing to remove cylinder head on a 94 5.7 chey trk. if i do find casting no624 which othe rnumber should i look for like your vedios

Thanks for a great video. Appears I'm a bit late to the game as this was made a few years ago. Question. You suggested the 3987(041), but I can't seem to find that casting in any cross reference. I could find a 3947(041). Is that casting still considered one of the "best" in your opinion? I'm building an 85 K10 for a daily driver and light towing.

I dont know how i end up in this video. But i find it very informative. Thums up.

487X is a pretty good head same as 993

462 was also a “ camel hump” head. 2.02 intake 1.50 exhaust and screw in studs.

Ok so I have a extreme budget build 5.7black block remanufactured .040 over that was given to me running had head gasket go bad or head not sure .purchased a pair 882 head date code 73&74 $100 have no idea of cam or stroke had to replace flex plate and found it to be the small crank with no external counter balance. pulls good runs ok .

Thanks for the great info. Have a 64 Chevelle with a 350. I'll know what to look for when checking my heads.

350! Good Motor !

Thanks a lot for this info! Very helpful! What are your thoughts on stock vortec heads off a 96-00 5.7 liter truck engine? I have a tbi 5.7 converted to carburetor in my 87 Monte. I wanted to change to vortec heads and a L82 corvette cam, and keep it carbureted. I'm running a spreadbore holley 650 dp on a quadrajet intake. It does great up to 3500rpms then after 35k rpms it just kinda runs out of power. HELP!!

I finally found what I was looking for, my 350 has 993 heads so this tutorial is very helpful...THANK YOU

041 was from 68-70 350 300 HP engine and were fitted with 1.94 in valves, 186 was specific to 302/350 LT1 and generally featured screw in studs and guide plates and 2.02 in valves. Both heads used 1.6 ex valves. As with everything in this era there were random variations that I can only attribute to using what was on hand to fill small gaps in production runs. We saw 041 heads machined for screw in studs and guide plates and 186 heads that were not. 186 for the most part had 2.02 intakes, 041 were again for the most part 1.94s Machining the 1.94 seat can quickly and easily be opened up to accept 2.02s. The 882 was the first real attempt at a lighter weight head and is also prone to cracking. I enjoyed your video. Good work.

I realize there are alot of other castings I wanted to deal with some of the common stock heads

Hey, I'm building up a 327 sbc with 416 heads, comp cams 1800-5800 camshaft, flat top 4valve relief hypereutectic pistons. I had another 327 with 601 heads and had to run 95 octane gas with it. Had good torque on the bottom end though. I'll check out the cc's ohf the 416's and let you know.

you were my teacher years ago. I am know in the oil field building v16 Detroit engines (MTU) making great money.

I have a time proven trick for putting accessory holes in camel humps ,built mine at western parts in 92 and they still run strong got modern alternate on my 72 chevelle . 310 stroker ,10.35 to one . Way over cammed her but, now sheS well worn and just PERRRRRFECT . Deck plate bore is a must !if you want her to last .

THANKS ALOT

Thanks for posting this video

Love your channel! Always very informative. I have a 327 that based on the casting marks looks like it has 041 heads on it. Why would the previous owner have done this?

i have a set of camel humps one set is the 202 angle plug ported to 204 water and oil ports ported and intake and exhaust were ported other is stock 194 heads got both for free but we give stuff to each other all the time on his birthday i give him a perfect body 57 pu it took 3 years collecting the perfect parts 55 grill with the 57 hood his dream truck when i give it to him all he could do is smile watching him try to talk was well worth it he watched me build it the hole time drooling over it never new it was for him

I currently purchased a 67 El Camino with a Mexican Target master engine. CR is 7:1 on a good day. What do you think of the fastburn heads as a replacement along with a .015 head gasket to get my CR to possibly 9:1. Pistons are dished but I didn't measure. Suggestions.

What about the 883 heads? The racers around here used to look high and low for those.

Thanks a lot brother...very informative. looking forward to more research into your videos.

Another set of heads that are in the 041/186 type are the 3891492 - "492" head. These are basically the same as the 462 heads (camel hump) with the bolt holes on the end. They also still have the camel hump mark. I ran a set of those on a built 350 from 1993 to 2012. Fantastic heads.

Thats in part 2

Oddly enough I have the 624s on my 86 trans am and I have overheated that engine to the end of the thermostat muuuultiple times, I flog the hell out of it and it seems to flow pretty well with 2.02/1.94 valves and they're perfectly fine with at least 200k on em. I must be infinitely lucky

Thank you very much for this video. I really appreciate it. God bless you and your family. Duane.

We'll done, enjoyed it, I have not viewed a more informative video about casting nopumbers