Is porting a head something a person can do themselves or do you have to have specialized equipment? I called one place and they wanted 1500.00 just for a stage 2 port job that seems high but what do I know. I got a price from someone else and it was just a few hundred dollars so now Im confused as to quality. I know thats not the quickest way to make power but I would like to get the engine breathing as good as possible before installing a bigger turbo. any advice would be helpfull

 

Just about all the costs associated with porting is labour costs. Gonna get what you pay for. Piers' website has some info on porting a 12v head.

 

I'm going to have to agree head porting is something that takes a long time and is VERY detailed, I think for a St. II porting job it will/would probably take 1-2 weeks on average. I got a few quotes from different places and I am going to just annie-up and purchase a new head and have it ported and polished so I can avoid the most down time... But that means an extra waud of cash to be paid upfront sooo, I am SAVING! lol, I am going to have PureDieselPower do mine, Garrett is a awesome dude and very good to work with...

 

Yeah evidently it takes a looong time to port these suckers as there is a lot of material that can be removed. I had a local machine shop do all my work. It was $1530 for everything, that includes a 3 angle valve job, pressure check, decking, and o-ringing. It turned out really nice.

 

I was wondering about doing it myself it doesnt matter if the truck is down for a few weeks, oh and thanks for that information on pdr I will read up on that. Is there a way to flow test the head without expensive equipment and is there a way to tell when I have ground enough without going to deep and puncturing a water jacket. this is my hobby truck and I enjoy tinkering with it, I would like to do as much work on the engine as possible myself. thanks for the replies

 

it's not so much the amount of the material as the hardness of the material. these heads are like porting a block of stainless steel! Also remember, part of a good porting job is a quality valve job. We pay extra for set-up time on machines... these are big heavy heads, and setting up a mill for one of these big long edited by admin (lol... "fatherless child") is a pain.

you may get a killer deal on a porting job if it's the first time the shop has done a Cummins head, but after that, the price will go up, I promise you.

these heads are so horrible in flow, you can make some very nice gains at home in the garage... just blending the bowls at the throat, smoothing the guide a little, and radiusing the valve to the face will pick up a nice amount.

 

can you PM me a name and number for that shop thats a really good price compared to what i have been quoted.

 

I port my own heads - like Forrest said, the basics are pretty straightforward.

Knowing head-specific techniques is a BIG plus.

Cast-iron heads need carbide cutters, strong fingers, a serious compressor, and lots of patience!

 

bobcat698 should jump in here both of his trucks have ported heads.


Cast-iron heads need carbide cutters, strong fingers, a serious compressor, and lots of patience![/QUOTE]

you hit the nail right on the head, patience, patience, and a little more patience.

 

I used to port cast heads back when I was younger for $$$ to work on my car.

Dont do it unless you enjoy cramped fingers an have no life.

 

don't forget the black boogers!!!

 

Ya an the sick smell in your nose for days.

 

Yeah, but I love the smell of ferrous metal in the morning!

 

Aluminum is a lot easier to cut on (be careful! ) if you don't mind the water or kerosene spraying around...

 

I've been told by a couple of places that they take off so much material that the head actually comes in around 30lbs lighter once they are done. That's a lot of material to remove by hand.