[justcallmefred]

Mid way through a restoration only to discover the head is N.G. Fully realizing how scarce they are would never the less appreciate any leads, thanks, Fred. Autostrada 360-588-8311.

 

[sfalfa]

Contact Merritt Cardin: (510) 396-7893. I don't know if he has a head, but he advertised a bunch of other GTA bits for sale (like the magnesium cam cover) in the latest "Overheard Cams"

If that phone number doesn't work - let me know - I pulled it off a search on this site, but I can double check with his ad at home if for some reason that # is wrong...

 

[dan farmer]

I've got Merritt's phone number listed as 510-797-2446. That worked last year.....

-df

 

[gta776126]

Mid way through a restoration only to discover the head is N.G. Fully realizing how scarce they are would never the less appreciate any leads, thanks, Fred. Autostrada 360-588-8311.

..Hi, look at: OKP GmbH - Die Ersatzteilspezialisten für Alfa Romeo Fahrzeuge
it`s in germany.
if it is interesting for you in the states, please let me know. I know this company very well. [email protected]
Saluti da germania
Ralph

 

[George Willet]

Fred, If I remember correctly, Ken McBride knew of a head for sale earlier this summer, and he was thinking of buying it as a spare.

 

[sfalfa]

I've got Merritt's phone number listed as 510-797-2446. That worked last year.....

-df

the original number I posted is the same as currently listed in the 12/07 Cams.

 

[alfa2go]

How about the complete engine on the Classic Alfas site?

 

[Seinista]

AFRA S.a.s. - Benvenuto / Welcome

new heads available.

 

[Alex]

AFRA S.a.s. - Benvenuto / Welcome

new heads available.

And the word is that they're rubbish ...

 

[Seinista]

Is it?
Didn't know that. How so? I thought they were remanufactured normal heads, welded and redrilled, but what seems to be wrong with them?
Anyone know?

 

[Alex]

I heard that they are fresh castings, but the quality was sufficiently poor to make a well-known racer here in the UK commission his own castings. I guess that it can get misleading when too many second-hand stories are passed around, so maybe someone with genuine experience of these heads should comment.

Jim Evans (also in the UK) makes those welded-up GTA heads, but he's a very difficult man to contact. I'm not sure he even has an email address! A shame, because he'd have a lot to contribute to this forum ...

Alex.

 

[alfatwincam]

Hi there.
Can you explain why the head needs replacing? There are alot of clever engineering companies about that can work their magic and rescue so called junk heads.

Mel.

 

[alfazagato]

A jolly good question, I can only suppose that after numerous machinings the thickness of the head falls below a certain threshold. At that point the compression ratio gets alarmingly high and the valves start to become a little too intimate with the pistons. Why thicker gaskets can't be used is, again, another good question and perhaps someone could explain both to me and Mel. Thanks.

 

[Alex]

I've seen extra-thick copper gaskets to remedy this problem but I seem to recall someone saying that this is not a viable long-term solution because of electolysis issues between the copper and the aluminium, unless you're only going to build up the engine when you plan on using it ...

 

[justcallmefred]

Deadheads-

This particular head had the valve spring pockets machined down then epoxied when the H20 area was breached. Over-porting may have also compromised this area. I've seen cars running double washers under the head nuts when planed "too much". That particular car ran special pistons w/ deeper valve pockets. Thanks everyone for the leads- have not confirmed anything yet but am pursuing a couple of things, Fred.