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914World.com _ 914World Garage _ Where should I send my heads
Posted by: BenNC Jul 25 2006, 02:08 PM
After many,many,..., many moons of admiring the view perched from my jackstands, I'm finally getting around to doing something with my car.
I need to have the heads redone, and am pretty much stuck with shipping them somewhere. Where's the best place for a balance of price and quality.
Thanks for the help.
Ben
Posted by: Bleyseng Jul 25 2006, 02:12 PM
For 2.0L heads there is only one man IMHO close by to you too..Len Hoffman at HAM in Georgia..
Beautiful work and the effin valve seats don't come out!!!
A balance between quality and price??? 
You get what you pay for- excellent or crap.
Posted by: KenH Jul 25 2006, 03:15 PM
Len is good but way too expensive for basic head work.
Try: Audirac VW's Headflow Masters 2466 South Santa Fe Avenue Suite F Vista, CA (California) 92084-8008 Phone: (760) 727-1827
I have had 2 sets of heads done by him with no problems.
Jake used him before he and Len got together.
Ken
Posted by: quik914 Jul 25 2006, 03:18 PM
I have to give a vote to Len. He did mine and they are works of art. He really is not that expensive for what you get. Do you want to increase the valve sizes and do any port work? What type of induction are you looking to use? Motor size? If you are looking for high performance, you can't go wrong with Len.
Just my 2 cents...
Posted by: BenNC Jul 25 2006, 03:21 PM
I know, I know spell it por$che
Fortunately the "up on jackstands" interval has seen a dramatic improvement in my financial situation (thank you sugar momma), so Lens prices look pretty reasonable to me (verstus 6 months worth of 914 budget). Shipping to Georgia would also be convenient.
Any other suggestions?
Posted by: BenNC Jul 25 2006, 03:23 PM
Oops, got distracted mid-reply (dang that work). Thanks for the additional suggestions.
Posted by: Gint Jul 25 2006, 03:30 PM
I know, I know spell it por$che
Fortunately the "up on jackstands" interval has seen a dramatic improvement in my financial situation (thank you sugar momma), so Lens prices look pretty reasonable to me (verstus 6 months worth of 914 budget). Shipping to Georgia would also be convenient.
Any other suggestions?
How much more $$ are we talking about here?
Posted by: BenNC Jul 25 2006, 03:47 PM
Not to much past Len's prices. Mostly just looking to build a mostly stock (maybe slightly warmer 
) engine.
Got plenty of other places to sink $$
That said, I can be corrupted.
Any estimate on Audriac's pricing or a website.
Posted by: 2-OH! Jul 25 2006, 03:47 PM
I like and have used Jerry at Northwest Connecting Rod (Seattle)...Always done great work, very reasonably...Never had a return...
206-763-2487
2-OH!
Posted by: tat2dphreak Jul 25 2006, 03:58 PM
I would think even RIMCO could do a stock rebuild that would be fine, but that's the budget side of me...
Posted by: anthony Jul 25 2006, 04:18 PM
Jake's new 2L "LE190" heads cost $1540. How much does it cost to have a typical set of 2L heads refurbished by Len?
Posted by: KenH Jul 25 2006, 04:47 PM
Call Len and get a quote - he is easy to talk to.
http://www.haminc.biz/main.shtml
Ken
Posted by: KenH Jul 25 2006, 05:03 PM
http://www.audirac-vws.com/
Ken
Posted by: Krieger914 Jul 25 2006, 05:18 PM
RIMCO in Santa Ana CA did mine 10 years ago and I still beat the crap out of 2.3L. Prices were reasonable and they have benn doing aicooled work for probably 25 years.
Posted by: jk76.914 Jul 25 2006, 05:48 PM
EBS Racing did mine back in 2002. EBS advertises in every issue of Excellence- Engine Builders Supply. Nice work, and the heads haven't given any problems at all. EBS is in Sparks, Nevada.
Prices (November 2002):
3 angle valve job- $285 pair.
They recommended that I reuse my valves. Only 95k street miles. I always appreciate it when the tradesman tells me that I don't have to put money into parts... especially when we're talking about sodium-filled valves. Price included replacement of the guides, however.
resurface both heads- $65 pair.
plug and weld air injection ports- $40 for all 4 ports. These are '76 2.0 heads.
I went to them because they have done literally hundreds of aluminum air-cooled heads. They prepared me for having to weld cracks near spark plugs, but then called and said they were clean.
Also, my rods. They reconditioned, balanced, installed new bushings, reamed the bushings to fit the four new pins I sent along. Total for the rods was $144.
Shipping was $24 back to Massachusetts. Turnaround was about 3 weeks, I think.
No basis of comparision, price wise. Didn't know this forum existed back then, so I went ahead without much guidance.
Good Luck!
Posted by: Dan (Almaden Valley) Jul 25 2006, 05:58 PM
I just checked RimcoVW website and was astonished.....
914 heads for a complete reconditioning (depending on valves used) $1205 per head. SAY WHAT? Is that a misprint or....?
Makes those brand new heads from Jake look pretty sweet 
for under $1600, 2 brand new heads....
Posted by: Randal Jul 25 2006, 06:07 PM
I just checked RimcoVW website and was astonished.....
914 heads for a complete reconditioning (depending on valves used) $1205 per head. SAY WHAT? Is that a misprint or....?
Makes those brand new heads from Jake look pretty sweet
for under $1600, 2 brand new heads....
Gee, I wonder what a really good set of heads would cost?
Say ones that flowed a maximum of 202.3 cfm at .500 (intake) and 144.9 at .500 (exhaust) totally refreshed and with a matching cam.
Posted by: nebreitling Jul 25 2006, 06:19 PM
you're awful, randal....
Posted by: Bleyseng Jul 25 2006, 06:21 PM
Sorry to say it but 95% of the 2.0 914 heads are cracked at the spark plug and need welding. Seats need to come out and usually the plug crack goes into the valve seat area. More welding.
New seats need to be installed properly so they don't fall out if the head temps hit 400F which shit happens.
Len has it down to repair these heads, Adrian does a good job too. Jerry stakes his seats in which I don't like.
Like I said Len is close and does beautiful work for a fair price.
You can buy new 914 2.0l heads now for only $1400 each bare.
Posted by: Jake Raby Jul 25 2006, 06:54 PM
NO ONE does heads like Len! I have used every other soul on the planet and on his worst day Len is better than his closest competitor on their best!
Generally rebuilding and upgrading a set of 2.0 heads costs 1K at minimum with updated hardware. Then you still have a 30 year old head thats been heat cycled millions of times.
Start from scratch and be done with it. Beware, we just bought every new head casting we could find due to the prices going up because of the Euro exchange rates. After August 1 all head prices will go up 160.00 per pair.
Skimp on heads and you'll end up on the side of the road, no one touches my heads but Len.
Posted by: Headrage Jul 25 2006, 06:59 PM
I just checked RimcoVW website and was astonished.....
914 heads for a complete reconditioning (depending on valves used) $1205 per head. SAY WHAT? Is that a misprint or....?
I had my heads rebuilt by Rimco and ended up paying $855.00 including welding up all the cracks. That was 2 years ago, but I can't see the prices going up THAT much...
Posted by: Joe Ricard Jul 25 2006, 08:06 PM
NO ONE does heads like Len! I have used every other soul on the planet and on his worst day Len is better than his closest competitor on their best!
Generally rebuilding and upgrading a set of 2.0 heads costs 1K at minimum with updated hardware. Then you still have a 30 year old head thats been heat cycled millions of times.
Start from scratch and be done with it. Beware, we just bought every new head casting we could find due to the prices going up because of the Euro exchange rates. After August 1 all head prices will go up 160.00 per pair.
Skimp on heads and you'll end up on the side of the road, no one touches my heads but Len.
Jake when your site came back up today I was gawcking at your cylinder heads. The description of the LE 180 through LE 200 are the same. Makes it tough to figure out what I need. I believe the 190 will be good for my intended 2098 with 86b +5 split duration cam and tangerine header 40 or 44 IDF's Yup nit picking because that's my real job. Reading shit all day.
Posted by: Dan (Almaden Valley) Jul 25 2006, 08:12 PM
I just checked RimcoVW website and was astonished.....
914 heads for a complete reconditioning (depending on valves used) $1205 per head. SAY WHAT? Is that a misprint or....?
Makes those brand new heads from Jake look pretty sweet
for under $1600, 2 brand new heads....
Gee, I wonder what a really good set of heads would cost?
Say ones that flowed a maximum of 202.3 cfm at .500 (intake) and 144.9 at .500 (exhaust) totally refreshed and with a matching cam.
Gee Randal,
what would a really good pair cost? Know where I could get some?
Only problem is, they won't work with the engine combination I want to build, unless someone can convince me otherwise.
Posted by: Jake Raby Jul 25 2006, 08:26 PM
They are not the same on my end..
Anything more than a 180 is overkill for a 2056, it would LOSE power more than likely..
Site has been weird all day, they upgraded the server for another expansion I have planned in September!
Posted by: Jake Raby Jul 25 2006, 08:32 PM
OOps, I meant to say anything more than a 190 would be overkill for a 2056...
Posted by: Al Meredith Jul 25 2006, 08:48 PM
I must add my $.02 ! Len is the Man. I've used his services for a couple of years. A more knowledgeable craftsman would be hard to find. His is in the shop and does the work. Great guy too! Al
Posted by: BenNC Jul 25 2006, 09:29 PM
Now I remember why this site is so great. 25 replies in 6 hours.
Got some calling to do tomorrow.
Posted by: Racer Chris Jul 25 2006, 09:49 PM
what would a really good pair cost?
Labor on a set of race heads will cost between 2-3K. Parts can go from $600 up to $1200 or so. Then you can add coatings $2-500
The carbs and manifolds will need massaging to keep up with the heads $500-$1000
Once you spend that much on headwork and intake the next thing needed to keep things flowing is a proper exhaust system $1700-$2200
Nickies cylinders with JE Pistons $3000?
Billet CrMo rods $1000
Casework $1000
Ground and balanced crank & lightened flywheel $1000
I'm up to 13K so far and haven't included a lot of stuff yet.
Posted by: Brett W Jul 26 2006, 01:43 AM
You will have a hard time understanding Adrian and he doesn't do what you tell him to do. You better check his work when you get the parts back.
I have never had him do heads for me, but Len has a good attitude and he knows his stuff.
Posted by: Randal Jul 26 2006, 08:26 PM
NO ONE does heads like Len! I have used every other soul on the planet and on his worst day Len is better than his closest competitor on their best!
Generally rebuilding and upgrading a set of 2.0 heads costs 1K at minimum with updated hardware. Then you still have a 30 year old head thats been heat cycled millions of times.
Start from scratch and be done with it. Beware, we just bought every new head casting we could find due to the prices going up because of the Euro exchange rates. After August 1 all head prices will go up 160.00 per pair.
Skimp on heads and you'll end up on the side of the road, no one touches my heads but Len.
I love
Len's heads as well, but I can even show a picture of the ones Jake had him do for my 2.4; of course unless it taken from 1000 feet. So I guess you can't see them, but you'll shortly be hearing them as soon as J&E re-do my pistons for the third time.... Posted by: Jake Raby Jul 26 2006, 09:02 PM
Thats mainly due to the proprietary valvetrain they incorporate, especially the springs and retainers (retainers weigh LESS than 3 grams) that Len worked on like a maniac for our production engines..
Don't feel bad, at the runoffs we couldn't even pop the valve covers off the engines without Len going insane... every racer has the specific instructions that those springs and retainers are not to be seen by ANYONE!
Len takes the stuff even more seriously than I do.
Posted by: Randal Jul 26 2006, 09:26 PM
Thats mainly due to the proprietary valvetrain they incorporate, especially the springs and retainers (retainers weigh LESS than 3 grams) that Len worked on like a maniac for our production engines..
Don't feel bad, at the runoffs we couldn't even pop the valve covers off the engines without Len going insane... every racer has the specific instructions that those springs and retainers are not to be seen by ANYONE!
Len takes the stuff even more seriously than I do.
I will be posting the dyno runs from Link, so that is going to be fun.
Posted by: Brando Jul 27 2006, 01:51 PM
I just checked RimcoVW website and was astonished.....
914 heads for a complete reconditioning (depending on valves used) $1205 per head. SAY WHAT? Is that a misprint or....?
Makes those brand new heads from Jake look pretty sweet
for under $1600, 2 brand new heads....
Must be a misprint... I've got mine down there... complete valve job (with new guides and stainless valves) and a complete machine job on the case and bottom end... without the 96mm P&Cs i'm lookin at about $700 and change...
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