WIW X-Heads

Thanks Adam, Burch, Hollywood, 70Duster, MOPEkid and RRR......Obviously a lot of options out there. Lotta folks passionate about what they got or what they've used, I understand that. With all the leads you guys put out there, it sure gives me a lot of ammo moving forward.

One of the things that is very apparent..... Rebuilding the X-Heads will get me right up in price by the RHS & Eddy heads quickly, and depending on how much I want to spend, the RHS and Eddy heads seem to leave more room for further performance. The big stop sign in the road is unfortunately budget. That being said, I'll eat hot dogs and Mac n' Cheese for a month or two if it means $500-$600 bucks to meet my 400+ HP range.

Stepping back and looking at this conversation, it's very similar to one I had over at FBBO when building the 512 not too long ago (which RRR was a part of). Big difference is i'm not trying to build a 9-10K Stroker, but still want to get in that 400-430HP range. One part of the equation from that conversation that hasn't been brought up is quench. Are any of these heads closed chambered? I thought the X-Heads were, but could easily be mistaken.

So with that, here's a scenario....... Say I blow a grand total on the X-heads, and they happened to be closed chambered. I'm hampered by the limited lift, to say a tad under .500", but I can build a zero deck motor w/proper gasket to really take advantage of quench. Would I just be shooting myself in the foot, because with $500-$600 bucks more the better breathing, higher lift capable RHS or EDDY heads would outperform the X-heads right out of the box anyways? Are the RHS or Eddy heads closed chambered anyways? Would the budget heads get me there, or should I throw on my "you get what you pay for" T-Shirt?

Again, sorry for my ignorance guys. It's been several years since I had an A-Body. Right now my head is already spinning reading about small bolt pattern conversions, late model upper control arms with big ball joints, and mega priced 8 3/4 rear ends. So, I really do appreciate all your input. And if I start talking in circles, just tell me to can it. lol