Repairing heads

C

cadillacoffin

Senior Member
Just picked up a set of Navarro 8Ba heads that are from the 50s 60s and are in pretty good shape. The water passages have some corrosion, but the gasket surface is a little pitted around a couple passages.

Any trips, tricks, things to look for in fixing these up?
 
I picked up a set of aluminum heads years ago, they were pitted pretty bad around the water holes, but the gasket surface was good. I glass beaded the heads and smeared J-B weld around the pitted places, the next day I filed the surface installed the heads. Worked fine for years. Walt
 
Don't want to hi-jack this thread but I just put heads on an 8BA and measuring with a precision Starret straight edge showed a .014 feeler gauge belly (low area) across the length of the head surfaces. I figured "close enough" the torque will pull them flat. Am I OK Walt?
John
 
oldford2 said:
Don't want to hi-jack this thread but I just put heads on an 8BA and measuring with a precision Starret straight edge showed a .014 feeler gauge belly (low area) across the length of the head surfaces. I figured "close enough" the torque will pull them flat. Am I OK Walt?
John
Click to expand...

Way too much. Are you feeling lucky?
 
Yes, alittle too much. However, If you were to use a copper head gasket, coated with Hi tec. and torqued to 45 ft lbs for three heat cycles. I'll bet you a nickel it will work. Been there , done that.
 
oldford2 said:
Don't want to hi-jack this thread but I just put heads on an 8BA and measuring with a precision Starret straight edge showed a .014 feeler gauge belly (low area) across the length of the head surfaces. I figured "close enough" the torque will pull them flat. Am I OK Walt?
John
Click to expand...

I wouldn't use them with out milling, are they aluminum or original 8BA heads ? Walt
 
Original cast iron 8ba. Guess I will pull them off. Oh well, just another $50 for gaskets and milling ($?)
John
Walt , Why didn't you tell me this when I was at your shop last week?;)
 
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