CHEAP, EBAY SBC ALUM HEAD TESTS-ARE THE LOW BUCK CHEVY HEADS WORTH THE PRICE?
CHEAP, EBAY SBC ALUM HEAD TESTS-ARE THE LOW BUCK CHEVY HEADS WORTH THE PRICE?
BACK TO BACK SBC TEST-FULL RESULTS. DO CHEAP SBC ALUM HEADS ACTUALLY PERFORM?
What happens when you compare no-name, cheap heads to brand-name, performance heads? Do the cheap heads actually make hp? if so, How much power do the cheap heads makes? Are the hp gains worth the price? How do the low buck heads compare to the brand name heads? What about the big-$, brand -name heads-are they worth the price? We ran them back-to-back to find out how they stack up! Check out the full results.
Hi richard holdener. Now you can test the as cast heads against the AFR enforcer As Cast heads 195cc probably need to cc the intake runner.
Not a good comparison. Do as cast. Taking the more expensive head, and cnc ported. If anything should’ve ported the pro comp.
AFR new Budget Enforcer heads are about $900 complete.
You literally cannot even get half of the heads you are talking about on these videos sold as individual or even sets they will only sell them as a complete top end kit now. You are going through old data and making comparisons but you are not comparing anything modern by at least a decade. PLEASE start testing the current market instead of what Westech has on their shelves. Good general info but there are a lot of flaws and it is showing hard.
Your videos are enlightening thank you and your crew for all you do!
Raised port runners
I love the low end torque of a SBC! Been debating on putting a cam/head SBC in my truck over a LS.
I’d put my old cast iron 1970’s Ford 351C 4V heads up against those cheap Procomp Chevy heads any day of the week.
Now, those AFR’s actually made that 383 into a cool little mouse motor.
The Pro-Comps are terrible.
for the difference in cost your car will go from running a 13 second quarter mile to a 12 second quarter mile.
I wonder if cheap Chinese 210cc heads could keep up with the AFR 195s? Also, I notice that Richard rarely tests heads from Dart, Brodix, RHS, or EQ. Is it because they won’t provide free ones? EDIT: Just saw the test of a full CNC Speedmaster 235cc head vs the Brodix Dragonslayers, and the Brodix destroyed em. So, like plastic surgery, not all CNC results are good! 😂
I am running that same “first combo” same style pistons same cam same heads and I’m not impressed with how bad it noses over at 5500. I would be curious how much hand porting would help the procomp head
AFR, just go in debt, build it perfect engine you’ve always wanted.
How can even think that’s a fair comparison
Hey Richard what sort of power do you think you would have got with the same setup but on a 355?
AFR Heads..
What program is that your using
How about using the trick flow heads vs afr heads .
Great video and to the point.
Get the as cast head and have it cnc’ed to the pro comp profile😎
Ya shoulda done the AFR as cast head. When r u gonna do a 350 Olds, Pontiac, and Buick comparison? I love watching your show. It’s extremely informative. It’s like a drug that I can’t get enough of. LOL!! Keep up da great work. From Chicago Matt Da Hippy.
I would love to see a shoot out with the skip white nkb200/proheader/assault heads against a dart 200 platinum head. These are copies of the dart heads. A CNC program will work on the the above China heads, and they are pretty nice castings.
Here’s what we need…
A small block Chevy, tested with everything made for a SBC, vs everything made for a SBC, then we can decide!!!
Then do it again for the BBC!!
Thanks Richard, you’re the best!!
This goes to show why the LS is so popular.
Thank you Richard for sharing your work. You truly are a Engine Master
At what point would you choose a 205-210cc port SBC head over a 190-195? .600 lift? A 500+ hp goal? 400cid?
Your comparing apples to bananas. What a waste of time this video was a joke cfm cc and porting all different! I want my watch time back!
Ban Chinese containers
I would like to see the AFR195 as cast heads in a comparison. They seem to be a lot cheaper than the CNC heads, but they might be a lot less power as well.
I wonder what would have happened if you would have just thrown a single plane intake on the first run.
Have you tested the Skip White NKB200 heads?
I would like to see a head porting competition from well known head porters. On same head and engine combo. And then dyno
What’s the exhaust port volume on each head?
You always compare stuf that don’t compare et you don’t show your dyno run
It looks like the procomp had bad shrouding around the intake valve (no relief cut)
The AFR has the spark plug way closer to the chamber roof and probably improves propagation direction.
The AFR intake runner roof has a step in it to toss air towards the valve before bending in the bowl.
Now I see how to port like AFR😉 THANKS for the view!
….not to mention the loss of throttle response between the 216cc Pro-Comp and the 195cc AFR…..
Velocity is critical. Spend the money if you can !!
Compatibility is the game. One can throw 10k or 3k into a motor and have the same reliability and performance numbers. When I build motors I figure out budget, performance requirements, and planned drivetrain. Then go from there. Many times I end up getting a Chevrolet Performance create motor and adding a few items to keep the budget below 3-4k for a new motor with a few speed parts sitting between 300 – 350hp and should get 100,000 miles. That power level is usually enough to get you in trouble but not enough you have to spend 10k in drivetrain upgrades.
Most cases anything more then that is lost/never used power. But as mentioned you will start having to drop money into the driveline to handle the power and don’t forget about suspension, brakes, and tires. Point is it can snow ball quickly into not just 10k for the motor but another 10-20k for everything needed to put the power to the road reliably.
Hey I was wondering I have a 95 Tahoe .. can I swap a pair of 210 cc afr heads on a stock bottom end 350 ?
I’m a auto machinest with 37 yrs experience. It’s to unfair a test. Those things aren’t even deburred yet. The AFR s are totally ported. The bowls have been blended. I have done a few Chinese heads. The cheaper 200CFM with Chinese heads given a nice cleanup and blend job flows with oversized 2.055 intakes like the AFRS unfair advantage. The Chinese heads I’m playing with do infact, outperform your 383. I had the same 2 cams with 10.5 cr. Powerwise, the smart thing to do is use Rhoades lifters and knock back your low speed duration back. Basically my 284 cam runs with the low end of the 274. I hopped up the lift by installing 1.6 rockers for what comes out. To 204.5 cc after the match port, deburing and bowblend. There are 2 types of Chinese heads and you better check out yours. You may need a vortech intake. In using the 383 with the quick ramps of the XE cams like we both used, you need something like an rpm. 6500rpm. Thing is the 383s cubes eat up all that duration.
I also have that engineering background too. You should do what is a weekend warrior version on the matchup in my opinion. We can do that in a few hours. At home, it would be a weekend problem. It is also interesting to note, the 76cc exhaust ports crushed the AFRs. I only deburred and blended. Nothing special.
My advise is, you have a weekend project to save a grand. To anyone who is reading and you have the vortec v version ports, you need to add a few bolt holes and use vortec gaskets. Love your vids! You are a good teacher. Peace out
It would seem from these results, that comparing heads based on port volume alone is like comparing women based on weight alone! They might both be 150 lbs, but one is 5’10" and perfect, the other is 4’11 with warts! 😂
I believe the key to AFR’s making power is their exhaust flow numbers and port shape and velocity. I was watching one show and they had a short interview with Kaase and he was saying a lot of guys chase the biggest flow numbers but without proper shape and velocity it doesn’t matter. I can’t remember which head he was talking about but he said that they could change the port and pick up airflow but when they did that they lost something like 50-100hp and that’s what he was contributing it to. All I know is when Kaase starts talking about heads I listen.
Can the cheap head be ported and cleaned up to get close to the same results??
Just get your cheap heads CNC ported as long as it’s still cheaper than the expensive heads.
I would save up and buy the AFR
I’d like to see how mild hand porting helps these.
haha Richard holder. I’ve been known to hold my Richard from time to time.
Wanting to put an 02 sensor in my caminos header collector
Dont have access to a welder….are those clamp in kits ok meaning do they read properly?
On sbc cams always liked the 280 (isky or Elgin)mega cams
No comparison, procomp has a as cast finish compared to the Afr head had a cnc finish big fail.
Trick FlowTwisted Wedge heads vs Any so called high output…Which is better ?
It would have been nice with a $ pr hp to see what is cheap, and not :- )