How much can you shave a 2.4 head?
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How much can you shave a 2.4 head?
My nephew is building a 2.4 that is mostly stock bottom end, brand new and fresh but still basically stock. He was interested in shaving his head to bump the compression up and putting some crane 16s or 18s in it...How much could he mill it and be safe? How much would it bump his compression up too? What cam would you run in it? He is going to have all bolt on's..including long header and modified intake...he is having the head ported too...thanks guys
WANTED to buy, Performance parts for my stock 98 R/T
I would not recommend shaving the head just to gain compression. This should only be done if the heads surface is warped, and only the minimum amount should be shaved. This goes for all OHC engines. What people don't take into account is that when you mill the head, you are changing the distance between the cam and the crank. This affects valve timing. Even with the timing belt installed perfectly, the change in distance will cause the valve timing to be slightly retarded. If you still want to shave the head, it would be wise to invest in a set of cam gears to give you the ability to advance camshaft timing to compensate for the difference.
Personally, I would invest money on pistons that would yield a higher compression.
Personally, I would invest money on pistons that would yield a higher compression.
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There's nothing wrong with shaving a head for compression, lots of guys do it to gain some cheap power. I know plenty of people that have shaved heads for only this purpose. Head shaving + cam gears would be hella cheaper than buying pistons and rods. Plus you can still tune cam gears for more power. That's the route I'm going first...
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'96 black coupe- #4
'97 magenta coupe- #10 - 13.379 @ 101.07 mph
'04 SXT mtx - #45 - GF's DD
'96 ACR
'95 Astro Van
'11 Chevy Express
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'99 Intense Blue R/T - #51
52 and counting, when will it stop?
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I think you mean .030" Derrick
'97 black ACR coupe- #3 - Scrappy
'96 black coupe- #4
'97 magenta coupe- #10 - 13.379 @ 101.07 mph
'04 SXT mtx - #45 - GF's DD
'96 ACR
'95 Astro Van
'11 Chevy Express
'02 atx - #48
'98 Intense Blue R/T - #49
'04 SRT-4 - #50
'99 Intense Blue R/T - #51
52 and counting, when will it stop?
'96 black coupe- #4
'97 magenta coupe- #10 - 13.379 @ 101.07 mph
'04 SXT mtx - #45 - GF's DD
'96 ACR
'95 Astro Van
'11 Chevy Express
'02 atx - #48
'98 Intense Blue R/T - #49
'04 SRT-4 - #50
'99 Intense Blue R/T - #51
52 and counting, when will it stop?
I'm not saying you cant mill the head. The head can be milled to the maximum amount allowable by the manufacturer. There is a lot of engineering that goes into these designs and specifications. If you think you know more than the engineers who designed the head, then by all means do what you want. Other things besides maximum horsepower need to be considered when modifying an engine. Sure, you may gain some power, but what else have you affected? Just because other people do it, doesn't mean its good. I could go on about combustion efficiency and other things, but obviously nobody cares.
Bottom line is that you can mill the head as long as you keep it within tolerances and make other modifications to fine tune the valvetrain.
Bottom line is that you can mill the head as long as you keep it within tolerances and make other modifications to fine tune the valvetrain.
What you shouldn't do is mill a warped OHC head to make it flat again. When you bolt it back onto a block, the cam journals are no longer aligned unless you had the journals line honed AFTER shaving it.
Take a known warped head sitting on a bench and bolt a cam into it. Chances are that the cam will not turn. Now shave that head, bolt it down to a block and see if the cam turns. I betcha it won't. Ask your machinist.
Take a known warped head sitting on a bench and bolt a cam into it. Chances are that the cam will not turn. Now shave that head, bolt it down to a block and see if the cam turns. I betcha it won't. Ask your machinist.
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yup don't shave the head with out cam gears and bigger idler because it will change the timing and loosen the belt. when my race cars head was shaved 30" and the block was shaved 60" the belt loosened up and slipped on the first start and oops we need to build another motor.
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