Indy LAX or J-heads?

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1Fast340

1Fast340

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Whats your opinion for a future build? im still weighing my options for where to go with whatever junk gets left when im done selling of things and what i can afford to buy at that point.
1 rebuild a set of very beat up J-heads that has 2.02intake valves that has a fair portjob done to them in the past (they ran high 11s in a 3300lb duster on a 340 with very worn bores) they have more than a few isues,a few valveseats are sunk bad enough that its clearly visible by just looking at the top of the valves.has a couple boltholes that has been redrilled and threaded in different sizes ,some of you probably know the drill of old racejunk.
or
2 buy a set of Indy LAX heads with 2.02 intake valves and more or less bolt them on out of the boxafter setting them up for the cam i have

340 about 10.5:1 compression
XR280R cam little baby solid roller 242 and 248 degrees at.050 lift and .570/.576 lift
3500RPM converter.
1 7/8" TTI headers.
3.91 gears
Whatever intake i end up with.
750 proform DP or 800 EdelbrockAVS
73Duster fun summer car for nice days and the occasional track visit.
I guess i may swap the gears for 4.10:1 or so and converter for a 4-4500rpm unit at some point in the future to better match this if this is the direction i end up going but nothing set in stone yet.
Yeah i know this thing is far from a well matched combination,its just going to end up being whatever it becomes when im done and whatever parts i end up having but i want some kind of bang for the buck here,and not sure if there is a point in saving those heads in this case thats why i ask.
 
My old 340 TRW flat tops .020 above deck had 202 Js ported by me and I installed IMM ported LAX heads setup for SFT cam XS274S with only .500 lift. Car picked up .4, I have not run in good air yet, and the cam needs to be upgraded lift wise to take advantage of the head flow. I was running 12.05s and ran back to back 11.77 in 1000 DA. I think it will run 11.5s this winter in good air without changing the cam. Save your money up and get with Brian when it's time to get some new heads.
 
Skip the J’s.
If you could do all the work yourself.... then the J’s would be worth something on a cost factor. Performance wise there a little behind the LA-X head by a fair margin when pushed.

A lot may depend on expected results and bang for the buck vs what is in your wallet.
 
Man I had a set of the Indy/RHS heads by Brian on my 318. It sure woke that sucker up. Man I regret I sold them to someone on here, I forgot who.
 
mopardude318 said:
Man I had a set of the Indy/RHS heads by Brian on my 318. It sure woke that sucker up. Man I regret I sold them to someone on here, I forgot who.
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Probably that guy right over there ducking his head with a very big smile.
:lol:
 
Lax heads! J heads as you mention are shot. And as other members say you will be far ahead with the new heads. IMM is the way to do this right!:steering:
 
I'm rocking the LAX heads with zero deck and .039 gasket. Had them tweaked and happy so far! No ET or Dyno #'s. But a great piece, as a side benefit the headers and valve covers seal perfect first time. Lots of meat on them too. So a bit heavier.
 
Agree that it's time to retire the J heads unless money is really tight and you can do the valve work yourself
Been through the drill of oversize valves to raise the seats etc but you are most likely looking at new guides and maybe ex seats (or not they are tougher than chevy)
If the J heads do need work and you have to use iron heads then score some junkyard late heads, better chamber by far - most likely will need less work or the EQ's
and save your money for the heads you really want
agree on the W2 but AL would be cheaper if they need work
 
I don’t think the W2 was really mentioned or a consideration but I agree with that one as well. While a bit off topic or list of heads for use, the W2 is the only high hp head in iron and still a worthy head. And the above statement of, there heavier, so what, works with those heads to a degree.
Are you racing for money? Do class rules require iron?

Final note, LA-X over any OEM production iron head.
 
Lots of replies so i will try to answer them all in one post.
Would love W2s but those are not realy in the budget for this unless i stumble upon a real good deal on a whole topend and actualy manage to buy it before someone else gets there,i have missed a few of those deals over the years,guess im not quick enough.

Had a set of Edelbrocks,they where nice but sold them since i descided that im going in a different direction,may have been stupid,should realy have taken a look into those boxes with the old j-heads before doing that,i had totaly forgoten how beat up they realy where over the years..

Feel free to call med stupid you will not be the first or last:D
What im after with the iron heads is the look,i want things to look more oldsschool and sure those LAX heads does not look stock for those that know but they are not as obvious as the flatmachined ends of most aluminum heads.

Wouldnt mind buying things from IMM engines but whenever possible i try to buy from a local speedshop,i belive its important to keep them alive and they are quite good at alot of things.

I want to build the car to fullfill the dream i had back when i bought it many years ago and it was not a very spectacular dream at all,just want the thing to be right from that slightly dated perspective and prefereably be quick aswell,i realised the whole thing as i where flipping thru the pages of a old photoalbum and once again saw alot of things that influenced me alot back before i even owned a car.
Actualy owned a chevelle for a while that fitted that dream perfectly from alot of perspectives but it was not the right car.
In this era of aluminum headed strokers(that are obviously the smart thing to build) it would be very cool to get a 11second timeslip with a stockstroke ironheaded 340 that is driven to the track and home.
 
rumblefish360 said:
I don’t think the W2 was really mentioned or a consideration
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Correct.. just stating they're the ONLY iron head I'd use..with the aluminum options out there now why bother with iron heads except to use as "doorstops"..
 
stroked340 said:
Correct.. just stating they're the ONLY iron head I'd use..with the aluminum options out there now why bother with iron heads except to use as "doorstops"..
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Because of the retarded idea that those flat ends dont look right except for that i agree with you and would love to build a W2 but thats going to be alitle to far outside of budget for this time but maybe at a later point.
 
And also i doubt i have enough of everything else for a W2 headed engine to realy come alive,i believe that would take a bunch more camshaft,converter and gear,but i may be wrong there.
 
1Fast340 said:
Lots of replies so i will try to answer them all in one post.
Would love W2s but those are not realy in the budget for this unless i stumble upon a real good deal on a whole topend and actualy manage to buy it before someone else gets there,i have missed a few of those deals over the years,guess im not quick enough.

Had a set of Edelbrocks,they where nice but sold them since i descided that im going in a different direction,may have been stupid,should realy have taken a look into those boxes with the old j-heads before doing that,i had totaly forgoten how beat up they realy where over the years..

Feel free to call med stupid you will not be the first or last:D
What im after with the iron heads is the look,i want things to look more oldsschool and sure those LAX heads does not look stock for those that know but they are not as obvious as the flatmachined ends of most aluminum heads.

Wouldnt mind buying things from IMM engines but whenever possible i try to buy from a local speedshop,i belive its important to keep them alive and they are quite good at alot of things.

I want to build the car to fullfill the dream i had back when i bought it many years ago and it was not a very spectacular dream at all,just want the thing to be right from that slightly dated perspective and prefereably be quick aswell,i realised the whole thing as i where flipping thru the pages of a old photoalbum and once again saw alot of things that influenced me alot back before i even owned a car.
Actualy owned a chevelle for a while that fitted that dream perfectly from alot of perspectives but it was not the right car.
In this era of aluminum headed strokers(that are obviously the smart thing to build) it would be very cool to get a 11second timeslip with a stockstroke ironheaded 340 that is driven to the track and home.
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Well I drive mine 100 miles round trip to run at the track. You could always grind the Indy logo off an leave the X for a stock appearance.
 
1Fast340 said:
And also i doubt i have enough of everything else for a W2 headed engine to realy come alive,i believe that would take a bunch more camshaft,converter and gear,but i may be wrong there.
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To take advantage of a W2 head is really the only way to run one IMO. It doesn’t have to be a maximum undertaking ether. Just a serious build.
Falling short of doing so, a regular stock head would do and not going the distance becomes a why did you bother question. Only reason not use a W2 is cost.

After re reading your first post, if anything, with ported W2 heads in place of the LA-X’s you could use more lift with 1.6-1.65 rockers since the W2 tends to breath very well at high lifts.

Well done (ported) LA-X heads do perform really well and a move to a W2 would probably not be cost effective or show any large gains with the build parts and cam.

*I Think* & IMO, your going to have a really nice engine when your done.

I am in the process of doing something similar with a few 340 blocks I have. They need to be sonic checked for there health and I want to swing in a 3.58 stroke crank for 373 or + cubes. I have a set of W2’s for this job that will be in the street.
I’m looking at slightly bigger solid rollers.
 
rumblefish360 said:
I am in the process of doing something similar with a few 340 blocks I have. They need to be sonic checked for there health and I want to swing in a 3.58 stroke crank for 373 or + cubes. I have a set of W2’s for this job that will be in the street.
I’m looking at slightly bigger solid rollers.
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Thinking of doing the same with the 340 block I have already bored 30 over,sonic checked and magnaflexed came out excellent,going with my Edelbrocks that were already cnc'd and had 2.10 intakes installed with springs that'll handle the Howards .680 roller cam I'm going with 13 to 1 comp.should be a screamer:eek::eek::eek:
 
Whoa! LOL!

The actual “Racing engines” I have slated in a few years will be like that since it is a dedicated drag car it will go in. One W2 & a W5 engine.

I have a “milder” W2 in mind for the street/strip car.
 
Yes. There all set and ready for use. Well, almost, LOL!
Need rockers and the short block. I have everything else except the above and pushrods which of course are last.

The wife side tracked me with her ‘67 Cuda.
Had a health issue that put me work and run time on hold for a good spell. Playing catch up now and thankfully making very good headway. So much I purchased a few “other toy parts” unrelated to the W5 heads for later.

The heads ported out well but did give up before the maximum others have gone.
 
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The wife’s ‘67 next to my buddies ‘66 Skylark.
C48BFC12-DE9A-4B64-9CC6-A74452438F89.jpeg

The top end package that will use TTI headers.
A1FF3C6C-DC7C-4794-9417-375E6E6E886D.jpeg

Where it gave up with epoxy
4E9A013B-9348-4FD2-9329-2A1D8A4025DB.jpeg

TI valves, retainers, stupid duty springs etc....
6F755A5D-E59E-4F3B-B596-92A2C11F4153.jpeg
 
rumblefish360 said:
Yes. There all set and ready for use. Well, almost, LOL!
Need rockers and the short block. I have everything else except the above and pushrods which of course are last.

The wife side tracked me with her ‘67 Cuda.
Had a health issue that put me work and run time on hold for a good spell. Playing catch up now and thankfully making very good headway. So much I purchased a few “other toy parts” unrelated to the W5 heads for later.

The heads ported out well but did give up before the maximum others have gone.
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Nice! I am glad to see them go to a good home. My wife's stroked 3g hemi for her 70 4 door satellite took all my money back then, so I had to sell some stuff!
 
I can see that. Lots to do on a conversion. A stroker 3G ought to be pretty bad ***.

In keeping with the threads theme, LOL, this is a little off topic. However, a good aluminum head will toast a iron head on the big end. Pound for pound, no pun intended, a head like these exceed there iron counter parts.

Something like these heads can be used in the street very easily and with the OP’s first post combo as well with what I think would be a little help, more lift. Since they moved air REALLY WELL to .650 on a 4.125 bore, where the flow curve flattened a little and went turbulent. Not that it is a big bummer or anything horrible.

For everyone else that may not know, a W5 is basically a aluminum W2 with rectangular ports. These two heads are still in the replacement head category meaning no extra head bolts or exotic valve gear. But still expensive vs OE replacement material.

Semi exotic? LOL
 
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