I agree 100% that all forum members don't have the luxury of deep pockets. I am one of those members. (retired) That's why it is so important to get it right the first time. Not sure where you bought your gears but MTI sales 3.42-3.73-3.90-4.10 gears $1199.00 -----3.73 same price 3.42 Frank

 

You can install yourself but if you don't get some of the finer technical issues correct like ptv clearances, you won't get the maximum performance out of your mod!! and my tuner spent over four hours going thru the range before the first dyno run

224/228 LSA114 .581/.588
and Tony with that cam set up the AFR's seem to really match up well with the LGPro's

savage1

 

 

Very interesting thread. I have been wondering about the same things. Great read. One question though.

What is PTV clearances?

Greg

 

PTV - Piston to Valve clearance.

When you start milling the heads, using thinner gaskets and then install a cam with more duration, the valves get closer to the piston as it reaches top dead center on the overlap stroke. Both valves are open at the same time and you should measure how close they get to the piston. The closest point may not actually be when the piston is at the top so I measure from 20 degrees before the piston reaches the top to 20 degrees after in 2 degree increments. The smallest measurement taken is the one you are looking for. There are what are considered acceptable limits of clearance, which if you drop below you need to consider fly cutting the pistons (putting a notch in them). Some people run them closer than these limits and get away with it, but it is a risk when you do.

 

I bought My Gears From Wcc,That was About 4yrs ago ,They wanted 1k for the 3;42 & 2k for the 3;73 ,i went with the 3;42 ,YA i would Definatley Put in the 3:73 If there were no Price Diffrence ,this would Be a No Brainer

 

Thanks for the info.

 

ok, so i got some etp heads off a guy who was building a 1000 hp car, and i jumped bc the price was really good on them. They are 240 bored to a 245, and they have a ported sheet metal 90 mm intake manifold to match. I was really just after the intake, but i figured what the hell, and bought both. The heads have the etp drag springs, which are good for 700 lift. They already have valves and spings, and are ready to bolt on to my motor.

I have a stroked ls6 383 in my 02 z06. I have a supercharger making 17 psi at 6500 rpm. I am currently running an aftermarket head, but it will only hold a 600 lift. Im running a 550 lift cam right now. I want to go up to a 630-650 lift cam.

Ive heard nightmares about valve issues with ls6 motors. I keep hearing the way to go is the afr mongoose heads... My etp's will need the rocker stands for my stock z06 rockers. I hear the stock rockers are actually better than most aftermarket ones.

I need someone who knows etp heads, and can vouch that im safe putting them on my car, otherwise, ill sell them and get the afr mongoose to be sure. Let me know, thanks, Brandon

 

If you sell your BBK intake you'll have the funds you'll need for a tune.

 

Pull the computer and send it up here. We can do a bench tune to make the car safe for the drive out to our shop. Then once you are done with the Head and Cam package, drive out and we will spin it on the dyno and make it perfect. We understand the will to mod the car in steps. We always treat 2nd time tune very well without the 550 charge. Depending on what you do in the future it's 100-300 bucks to retune the car.

Randy
763-477-9272
www.dougrippie.com

 

Can't go wrong with DRM.

 

Because of their shallower valve angle, the ETP heads will give you much more PTV clearence than the stock, or AFR (which are the same as stock) heads will. The TF heads are in between the two as far as clearence goes. Depending on your cam's overall specs, you can safely run more lift than the AFRs, and of course, the big ETP heads will easily outflow the AFRs, if you are building mostly a car to run in the higher rpm areas. I assume this is the case, because of your other mods you spoke of.

 

well, high rpms yes, but i dont want it to be a dog down low either. Will it have good power by 3000 rpm? Can i get a cam that is designed for lower end power, and try to offset the high rpm power that this head is going to give me? Or should i get a cam that matches the high rpm power, and just forget about low end power. Im scared to think how much power will be made if i go for all high end. Seems like my power currently is peaking at 630rwhp, and falling off at exactly 6000 rpm, and slopes back down. Thats with my restrictive stock exhaust. Like i said, im going to get exhaust cutouts, which should make my current setup continue to climb bc my current cam is peak rated at 6800 rpm. Its a 116lsa 224 227 with a 550ish lift. Im going to go to something like a 112 lsa 237 240 with a 630ish lift. I know 2 guys running that setup, and saw crazy power gains 3000 rpm and up (150+hp) and thats with with blower setup of course. Some people have said there will be no power gain between a 610 and a 630 lift? Is this true? Bc ill stay with the 610 if thats the case. The 2 guys i menationed are running a 610 lift, so maybe i should stay down there? Thanks, Brandon

 

Hi Brandon,

Ed Curtis may tailor you a camshaft for your application, with your ETP Heads, isn't it what you are requesting???

Christian

 

Many times having the highest flow heads are not a good thing. You want good flow above .400 lift, but also at .200 and .300 which will help you with the down low ( below 3000 rpms). Why is this a good thing? SOTP, off the line out of corners, though you deep into your seat feeling.

This is also part of you cam selection.

 

This has really been an interesting and informative thread Here is a link to an article on racing heads I posted a while back that might help you out.

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show....php?t=1800404

 

well, eventually i will need a camshaft yes.... but my first concern is are these heads the best availible, and i want to make sure i dont float a valve, crack a piston, blow up my motor etc. So im looking for some expert advice from an unbiased source that will tell me these heads are or arent the best.... and why. id really love to find someone with the same heads, valves, springs, etc who can say... yeah, heres what it does, and heres how many rpms in running, and they havent failed me yet.

I have 3 people with the afr mongoose heads on the identical engine build as mine, saying to jsut use the ones they have bc they saw big power gains, and their motors are still on one piece.

Every company is going to say their heads are the best, its the question of "where are all the cars with this particular head, and do they work?" Thats what im after

 

What does "best available heads" mean...at least for you???

Do you know to what parameter "valve float" is linked???

Again, the heads are by far not the unique reason to the consequences you mention here!!!


I am really curious to see if you are going to find "experts" that have proceeded to back to back in controlled environements with enough management on all the parameters influencing on the overall performance to finally deliver a clear radical technical analyzis vs. your demand...


Here again, ETP Factory members or an engine builders like Ed Curtis have certainly seen those kind of combo...and if they have not...you have the answer to your question, I guess.


Those quotes (legit & obvious from each parts concerned owner) doesn't qualify at all any other product...or you have a strange approach of the engine technic!!!

Results are speaking for themselves, drag racing charts will be your indicator...and if this rank is not good enough...I don't understand how to help much.
Regards
Christian

PS:did you receive my answers to your questions by PM???

 

yes, i think you assume i dont want to contact ed, and ive already shot him an email. In the meantime, i like to gather as much information as possible. Ed hs not gotten back to me yet, which is understandable, its a holiday weekend.

Your right, theres lots of reasons for engine failure... but one of the big thigns i have heard from several engine builders is that the ls6 has a very unique valve train. I have talked to engine builders and drag racers who swear that the stock rockers on mongoose heads are the "only" thing and the first combination that they have found that dont have valve train failure when pushed to the limit.

Corvette connection owner Rich has a car with the identical motor to mine.... he built them both. He says that a ls6 stroked to a 383 with a forged lunati bottom end is a tricky motor to find heads that are compatible with the stock rockers. He had tried literally 4 other high dollar brands and had issues with every single one, and swears by the stock rockers. He was concerned with using a rocker stand that the etp heads require bc he said this geometry of the valve train has to be so precice, and even the person i talked to at etp admitted that the rocker stand allows for some flex vs rockers that are the correct size for the head and the motor. Obviously I would buy aftermarket rockrs, but since several people have mentioned that the ls6 is the one motor you dont want to mess with the rockers, im hesitant.

I do things by numbers, its nothing personal, but right now its 3 people saying watch out, vs you and one other person saying go for it. Those arent good enough odds in my mind, so i will continue to ask questions until i bump into the person that has an ls6, blowing 17psi at 6500 rpm, has the rocker stands with the stock rockers, or has an aftermarket rocker... and has not encountered any valve train failure.

My definition of a good head is first and formost... one that does not cause rocker or valve failure with my stoked 383 at higher rpms. I can always take the head off if it doesnt produce power. But if somethign fails, im out an engine.

Again, hopefully this makes sense to you, and me gathering information from other people than yourself and ed makes sense to you, its not meant to be offensive.

Im eager to talk to Ed, and hope that i can figure out why others have had valve train issues on stroked 383 ls6's and what the common denominator is between their failures so that i can avoid it.

Thanks for hooking me up with ed, and let me know if you have anymore questions for me. Thanks, Brandon

 

Do you think my heads are too big? You can find them on the etp site, and they are under the ls1 category, and are actually listead as 240's, but mine are 245 bc of being bored out i believe. Thats the other reason im considering the mongoose bc they are smaller if these etp's are too big. I drive the car on the street a lot, but im after power as well, and i dont mind powerbands, corvettes and v8s in general have more low end torque than most cars can wish for.