Heads, who did yours?, And how did they come out. Options

[newto914s]

I am going to be sending my 2.0 liter heads out to be rebuilt and I’m looking for recommendations as to who to send them to. I’m budgeting a $1000 when all is said and done, and to spend less than that would be great, but for however much I send I want to get the best heads back I can.

I’ve already inquired with Len Hoffman, who I’d love to have them done by. All new everything, basically a super stock set-up for a little more than I have budgeted, but I can’t wait 2 months to get them back.

I spoke with the people at RIMCO and they basically told me nothing over the phone. Their price is cheap compared to Len but their quote does not account for any welding needed (2.0 will need welding) and the only new parts would be new valve seats and guides.

Lastly I spoke to Steve at Type 4 parts. Super nice guy on the phone, and very informative as to what they do. Quote was cheaper than RIMCO and that includes some welding and new seats and guides.
At this point I’m leaning towards Type 4, but was wondering if anyone has gotten head work from them, and what to expect. Also, are their other places I should be looking into?

Thanks guys
Samson

[ArtechnikA]

this is gonna be interesting :-) ...

[phantom914]

Do not go to Type4parts. Steve is a ripoff artist. Do a search here for Steve Stromberg or type4parts. Or wait, I'm sure others will chime in.


Andrew

[tat2dphreak]

QUOTE (ArtechnikA @ Jul 27 2005, 11:17 AM)

this is gonna be interesting :-) ...

I know... hold on, I'm popping popcorn!

[tat2dphreak]

on the serious side:

do a search for "stromberg" or "onion" here and you will find out a LOT about type4parts... you'd be better off sending the money to me... your heads won't get fixed, but at least I'm not lying about it... (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/biggrin.gif)

[Allan]

Gotta get comfortable for this. Gonna be fun. (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/cool.gif)

[Jake Raby]

DAMN!

Hey man do some searches here and on theSTF and even the 912 registry BBS.

All I ca say is the reason the Mr. Hoffman takes 2 months to complete your heads is because he is absolutely slammed with ALL of my head work- Thats because he is the best-- No question. As a team he and I have made it a sole objective to work out TIV issues and update these heads/engines for the 21st century- not just slap stuff together and out the door quick and nasty.

For years Adrian at Headflow Masters 888 340 8979 did a lot of my headwork and did an excellent job.As my development goals changed Adrian was not willing to change his program so we ventured apart. He still does a good job on stockish heads and I would recommend him.

Your first mistake is being on a timeline- DON"T! Even if it means buying a spare set of 2.0 heads and sending them to Len while you continue driving the car I would do so and then sell your cores later.

Many say that "Any machinist" can work on these heads but I could not disagree more. The TIV head has problem areas that people that do not deal with these heads exclusively would never comprehend.

If you want your heads done right- Call Len and wait. if you want to take risks and at a worst case lose your cylinder heads because the person you send them to is a thief, liar and cheater..... Get on the 912 registyr BBS and look for Tony... He sent heads to someone mentioned in your post and can give you first hand experience of the screwed up job he receoved and how someone else had to remedy it- at added cost.

These heads may not be rocket science, but Len treats them like they are- Don't settle for less.

Hell when I walk into Len's shop I see more heads chopped up into cross sectional views and more silicone molds of ports than I do anything else. To correctly work with something (anything) the best you can you must fully understand it and become so involved with it that it basically controls your life- thats exactly what Len Hoffman is, a walking TIV cylinder head- and the best.

[ClayPerrine]

I have my 914 /4 heads done locally by Lyle Cherry. He has been working on VW's since 1963, and knows how to fix them right. He isn't cheap, and he isn't fast. And he's not on the internet. But if you want to wait for Lyle, he can fix them.

Call him at 817-498-0565.

Lyle is a one man operation, so leave a message if he doesn't answer. He is a crusty old bastard, but he really knows his shit.

[newto914s]

QUOTE (Jake Raby @ Jul 27 2005, 08:32 AM)

These heads may not be rocket science, but Len treats them like they are- Don't settle for less.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/agree.gif)

Dude, I know! Type 4 heads are tricky, that's why I'm not going to bring them to my locale Machine shop. But I figured their must be at least one more person in the world that can do the job right.
If not, then I'll be sending them off to Len and getting a core for the mean time. Anybody got an extra set to 2 liter heads I can barrow (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/rolleyes.gif)

[Brett W]

Here is wher Jake and I part ways. I had a set of heads done by Adrian and was not impressed. Had to send them back to have them re-done. He can't speak English worth a shit and doesn't follow directions either.

I was going to have Len do the basic work and I was going to do the welding and porting but since I am through with the T4 I won't get the chance. Talked with him on several occasion and was impressed with what I heard.

You might check with Jerry up and Northwest Connecting rod and see who does his heads. You might also look at Engine Machine Service out at LAX. Captain Krusty knows where to get ahold of them.

I am hearing good things from Memphis Motorworks. No personal experience.

Had MSHP do a set of heads for my engine and they did good work. The guides didn't last very long but I was not easy on it either.

[Jake Raby]

Bret,
I don't think we differ at all..

As more time goes by I think that Adrian was doing better work for me than individuals because he KNEW it was going to be disassembled and checked before install...

The language barrier with Adrian does complicate things- I agree 100%.

For a stock rebuild on a timeline Adrian is competent enough- But results may vary.

[Brett W]

OTAY. Maybe we are in agreement.

[Cap'n Krusty]

I use Engine Machine Service, in Los Angeles. 8416 Osage Avenue, LA, CA 90045, 310 641 7019. I've used them for 20 years, and like both their work and their timeliness. Pricing is consistent and reasonable. I've used CE (VERY good and VERY slammed), Rimco (least expensive, but a production line sorta place, requiring a lot of VERY specific instructions, which they sometimes follow), Ollies (spotty results, poor packing on return shipping), Kelly's Block Welding (good, a bit slow, innovative, doing some work no one else seems to want to do) and a couple of locals (looooosers) near me.

As a word of warning, these heads are 30-35 years old. Many have deteriorated to a point where repairs are either nearly impossible or cost prohibitive. Some have been "reapired" to the point they're unusable. EMS has hinted they're not real excited about doing them for much longer, but they've grumbled about this for several years. IF they tell you your heads aren't really worth fixing, BELIEVE them! 1.7 cores, good, unmolested ones, are approaching 500 bux APIECE! Nice original 2 litre cores are even harder to find, and will remain so.

That all said, I think a grand is in the ball park, IF your hreads are in pretty good shape. However, I just spent 1400 bucks on a pair of 1.7 heads, and it took 2 tries to come up with a good pair to rebuild. HTH, The Cap'n

[MarkV]

Hoffman just finished my 2 litre heads.

He has been a no nonsense guy to deal with & didn't try to sell me anything that I didn't need. The last guy that worked on the heads was a butcher so I opted to replace all of the seats even though they only had 5,000 miles on them. He welded the spark plug holes and changed to 12mm, new seats, new ss valves, replaced all of the exhaust studs & rocker studs, HD springs & chromoly retainers. .010 step cut.

He does them in batches to save time. As it turns out he was getting ready to start a batch when I called him. I get them back next week and will post some pictures.

The price was around $1,100.00. Len said to absolutely not run head gaskets. (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/laugh.gif)

[Jake Raby]

Yep, The Capn' is absolutely correct....

In fact, the ONLY heads we'll rebuild are the 2.0 914s.... All the others are sold as cores on EBAY most of the time because they are unknown in origin and not worth the hassle when we already have new AMC castings that are clean and easy to work with and flawless castings....

Their hardware sucks as do the seats, guides and valves but we toss it all away anyway...

Len and I have even created a 100% replica of the 2.0 head from the AMC 1.8L head. It can even incorporate the 3 stud intake if you desire. Its ports are matched to 2.0 standards, valves are 42X36 and the plug is relocated to the 2 liter position.

This allows a stealth set of 2L 914 heads based on brand new castings with out using heads that have been heat cycled for the past 30+ years like The Capn' pronounced so loudly and accurately! The heads were flow bench designed and backed up on the dyno- as always.

There is nothing worse than doing a ton of work to a head to find some issue with a screwey repair from the past or a weird casting flaw- it can remove dollars from our pockets very quick and sucks!

As Mark mentioned, Len normally runs individuals' heads in batches along with my heads to help us all out. He is finishing up a set of FP heads this week for Tom Burdge's run offs engine and he will be starting a new batch for me really soon- like a week and a half...... So you better call him FAST

[IronHillRestorations]

Leo Goff at Memphis Motorwerks is a wizard with air cooled heads. That would be my recommendation, but they aren't cheap.

[Type 4 Unleashed]

QUOTE (newto914s @ Jul 27 2005, 08:47 AM)

QUOTE (Jake Raby @ Jul 27 2005, 08:32 AM) These heads may not be rocket science, but Len treats them like they are- Don't settle for less. (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/agree.gif) Dude, I know! Type 4 heads are tricky, that's why I'm not going to bring them to my locale Machine shop. But I figured their must be at least one more person in the world that can do the job right. If not, then I'll be sending them off to Len and getting a core for the mean time. Anybody got an extra set to 2 liter heads I can barrow (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/rolleyes.gif)

[QUOTE]But I figured their must be at least one more person in the world that can do the job right.


Samson, there is, his name is George, at European Motorworks # 1-800-722-8678.

He's doing a set of heads for me now, big titanium valves, around 50mm & 40mm, 12mm plugs, Berillium Copper seats, and some really big ports, but I'am doing it as funds allow.

Does good work, reasonably priced, can do your heads well under your budget.

[Type 4 Unleashed]

[QUOTE=V6914,Jul 27 2005, 10:18 AM] [QUOTE=newto914s,Jul 27 2005, 08:47 AM] [QUOTE=Jake Raby,Jul 27 2005, 08:32 AM] These heads may not be rocket science, but Len treats them like they are- Don't settle for less.
[/QUOTE]
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/agree.gif)

Dude, I know! Type 4 heads are tricky, that's why I'm not going to bring them to my locale Machine shop. But I figured their must be at least one more person in the world that can do the job right.
If not, then I'll be sending them off to Len and getting a core for the mean time. Anybody got an extra set to 2 liter heads I can barrow (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/rolleyes.gif) [/QUOTE]
[QUOTE]But I figured their must be at least one more person in the world that can do the job right.


Samson, there is, his name is George, at European Motorworks # 1-800-722-8678.

He's doing a set of heads for me now, big titanium valves, around 50mm & 40mm, 12mm plugs, Berillium Copper seats, and some really big ports, but I'am doing it as funds allow.

Does good work, reasonably priced, can do your heads well under your budget. [/QUOTE]
Here's a pic

[Mueller]

QUOTE (V6914 @ Jul 27 2005, 11:22 AM)

Samson, there is, his name is George, at European Motorworks # 1-800-722-8678. He's doing a set of heads for me now, big titanium valves, around 50mm & 40mm, 12mm plugs, Berillium Copper seats, and some really big ports, but I'am doing it as funds allow. Does good work, reasonably priced, can do your heads well under your budget. Here's a pic

and I bet after spending all that money, you won't have them flowed to know the numbers/ratios (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/headbang.gif)


my latest 2.0 heads have been done by "Jay" in Santa Clara, (forgot his last name)....recommended by a few different respected Bay Area shops......

another 1 man operation, good work, takes forever (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/smash.gif)

[lapuwali]

QUOTE (Mueller @ Jul 27 2005, 10:29 AM)

QUOTE (V6914 @ Jul 27 2005, 11:22 AM) Samson, there is, his name is George, at European Motorworks # 1-800-722-8678. He's doing a set of heads for me now, big titanium valves, around 50mm & 40mm, 12mm  plugs, Berillium Copper seats, and some really big ports, but I'am doing it as funds allow. Does good work, reasonably priced, can do your heads well under your budget. Here's a pic and I bet after spending all that money, you won't have them flowed to know the numbers/ratios (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/headbang.gif) my latest 2.0 heads have been done by "Jay" in Santa Clara, (forgot his last name)....recommended by a few different respected Bay Area shops...... another 1 man operation, good work, takes forever (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/smash.gif)

Isn't this the same guy that used to do heads for Harry Pellow (aka The Maestro)? I knew his shop was just around the corner from Harry's, which was in Santa Clara.