440 Source Head Opinions?

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You sure seem to have a pretty strong opinion on Stealth heads....... especially considering you haven’t bought or used them yourself.

Multiple people on this thread, who have had actual hands on experience with them, don’t seem to be unhappy with their purchase.
 
And another year or so I'm considering buying the stealth heads for my 440 stroker build and probably will. I seen the title of the thread and was hoping to get some information on them..
Instead it seems like we have an internet hero here just calling people dumb...
 
PRH said:
You sure seem to have a pretty strong opinion on Stealth heads....... especially considering you haven’t bought or used them yourself.

Multiple people on this thread, who have had actual hands on experience with them, don’t seem to be unhappy with their purchase.
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Thats because most people that buy them keep them in their garage and idle them down to the local car show once a month.
 
j par said:
And another year or so I'm considering buying the stealth heads for my 440 stroker build and probably will. I seen the title of the thread and was hoping to get some information on them..
Instead it seems like we have an internet hero here just calling people dumb...
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Yes, there is some good and positive info. You kinda have to start at the beginning to find it. Swingn’
 
Swingn’71 said:
Yes, there is some good and positive info. You kinda have to start at the beginning to find it. Swingn’
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Yes I remember reading something at the beginning I'm going to have to go back through and get to the good stuff....
You know he could just say I don't like them because they were cast in China even though I've never tried them but being cast in China is all I need to know.
End of story...
 
ultimatejay said:
Thats because most people that buy them keep them in their garage and idle them down to the local car show once a month.
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Maybe you should stick to the Mazda forums?

Plenty of cars that have the Stealth heads are driven regularly and raced without issue. Good luck in your quest to prove yourself right, but it won't happen. Too many Cheap Bastards have had success with these heads, and many more will in the future. I could post links to threads that show this, but it's pointless as your mind is made up solely on where they are produced. It's not 2003, when everything from China sucked, companies have had to answer for those mistakes, or they've long since gone out of business.
 
Just google "Problems with Stealth heads" and go through the endless amount of problems with cracking and retainers, etc. You get what you pay for as the saying goes. China metal is junk guys common. Use your heads. How do you think they can make them so cheap? Yeah because they use cheap parts, cheap labor and cheap crap metal! I'm done here
 
ultimatejay said:
Just google "Problems with Stealth heads" and go through the endless amount of problems with cracking and retainers, etc. You get what you pay for as the saying goes. China metal is junk guys common. Use your heads. How do you think they can make them so cheap? Yeah because they use cheap parts, cheap labor and cheap crap metal! I'm done here
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I’m done here.

Thank God.
 
fishmens67 said:
So you think I'm off base ?
Take a set of old iron heads to your favorite professional shop.
Shop labor at $ 100 or so an hour and parts.
Do the math, it's going to add up quick
Don't forget pressure testing and flow bench time.
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I took a pair of iron heads to a noted Mopar specialist machine shop, along with a set of new stainless intake valves, and a half set of exhausts (all the exhausts i could find). He did a valve job, honed the new bronze guides that were already installed, to size, supplied springs and retainers for a .600 lift sft cam, and assembled.
The parts and labor was $900. I did NOT complain.
Was i stupid? Yes, and no. To do that work to a 452/906 is stupid.... mine were professionally ported maxwedge heads that flowed 300 plus.
Its up to the customer to decide what he wants, and his research to do to find out what to expect.
 
We don't have a lot of people we can rely on for first-hand information and it's a shame people drive them off..
Not that I haven't had my discussions with said people LOL but driving them off..
 
ultimatejay said:
Thats because most people that buy them keep them in their garage and idle them down to the local car show once a month.
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Gosh, that in my opinion is kinda what they were designed to do. Except maybe scoot down to the local car show just a little bit faster than a stock head. And nothing says a savvy person couldn't do a considerable bit more with them.

Then in an attempt at a higher performance head they came out with the big port Super Stealth for some more oomph. But after we tested the Super Stealth it was obvious you could get as much flow from the standard Stealth and the Super Stealth became superfluous.

Now, God bless them, 440 Source will sell you the 240 & 270 Trick Flow heads for some 700+ horsepower potential.
 
man, I remember when a 350 hp small block was rip'n, and a 450 hp big block was a deal (long before a ton of these aftermarket heads/etc came along). Now, it's 600-700 hp or stay home. And soon, a 1000 hp will be the standard and if you only want a wimpy 700 hp, then go cheap .... LOL. Fast is fast till it's slow. I remember when a 12 second car on the street was a deal. Now with big turbos and new gen swaps, 9 seconds is the new 12 seconds on the street.
 
is it ironic that these know it all type's have these forum names like ultimate, and the man, and there's more those are just two the come to mind, maybe
 
ultimatejay said:
Maybe its just me but the whole point to installing aluminum cylinder heads is to get a big performance gain over the stock cast iron set up with horsepower and weight savings. In order to do that you would most likely have to change carb, intake, cam and lifters and exhaust system. Why would one buy stock style aluminum cylinder heads like the stealth heads if your only going to gain 15-17 horsepower? If I just want a cheap daily driver then I would buy a good set of used cast iron heads for a fraction of the cost. Heres an example. You can find really good deals out there.
View attachment 1715902570
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Why would I waste $800-$1,000 on heavy cast iron?
 
BTW my 413 has a 4.217 bore so Trickflow wouldn't work and I'm not spending $2,400+ on heads when my cam is only .480" and 230@.050".
 
Makes perfect sense. Ya gotta do what ya gotta/wanna do.
 
There are people who R&D heads and those who copy them.. Take your pick..
 
So there are lots of opinions on the Stealth heads. For their intended purpose they are hard to beat. The majority are happy with them. Wether you buy them are not it is sure nice to have that option. Just summarizing the obvious.
Wish there was a new cast b block a little better than OEM that would serve the same purpose.
 
Well, ill throw my opinion in on the stealth heads. Take it for what its worth as I'm no expert.

I bought a pair, checked ABSOLUTELY nothing on them. Bolted them on, and every single time the car has run i beat it like a rental car. High gear burnouts, valve float a couple times (read above, rental car). Never had a single issue with them. Now the car went through some small upgrades and ill be forcing air through them soon and see how long they live. For the money, and not an all out race deal you can't really go wrong but like with all aftermarket stuff, have them checked by a competent machine shop if you can't do it yourself.
 
Oldiron440 said:
Hey to each his own but you guys that buy cheap Chinese junk and criticize our government for making a deal with them are just hypocrites, all the cranks, rods, intakes, ignitions and heads you buy are buying jobs from American workers and strength from our country but you don’t care about that.
My original point was the value in paying the difference is real and larger that you realize…
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So, where was the device you posted this on manufactured?
 
ultimatejay said:
Thats fair, all I know for me when it comes to high stress components like engine parts, transmission parts, fuel lines and anything safety related, I dont skimp out on cheap China crap. Their metal is terrible. I would rather save up the money and do it right. If you dont have enough money to put quality parts in your engine then you should look into a cheaper brand/build. Theres a reason some people drive Ferraris and others drive Corollas. Live within your means.
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So...you must have some EVIDENCE that the Chinese stroker cranks are bad...right?
 
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