Hammertime, thats what I figured, for that $500, you were getting their best work. It would be like my partner, he can port heads, and is a very skilled machiniest, and one of the most mechanicaly inclined guys I have ever met, but, he just doesn;t get into porting.
As far as flow numbers being advertised, I agree with Ed, most are very happy. Sometimes by a lot. Flow benches do vary, and some guys just don;t get that. Mine, from what I have seen localy, is the most conservative. Probably because I am the most honest, lol. Lets be honest, flow numbers sell your work, and heads, always has, probably always will. Although, some of the good from these forumns, is that some guys, are starting to understand how the other dynamics play into it, and, that flow benches do vary. And to be truthful, It really doesn;t matter what the number that the head modifiers bench reads, if he is using the bench for its intended purpose, which is to measure a change of the actual head he is working on. Thats all its for. To measure a change accurately. Not to use as a marketing tool to sell heads. Its also used to measure velocity profiles, stick little flow devices into the port, to find turbulence, and other problems. But, it has gotten so competitive, that, we will just say sharp individuals, have recognized the fact guys buy heads based on flow numbers, and, will maybe "exagerate" them, to make their heads look better. If they are ever called on it, they say something like, well, on our bench it did that, which could be totaly true, or, that was with the prototype port, and, in production, some may be lost, so, some varience could be there. Or, they could use weather differences etc. Or, they say, just bolt it on, and run it. It will run. And in a lot of cases, it does. But, they used dishonesty, to sell you the head. Anyhow, I am rambling.
Velocity was mentioned above. And, that is a very important, key to having the right head. It is also the most confused dynamic in heads. To much is probably worse, than slighty to slow. It absolutely is worst, if your trying to make higher rpm horsepower. Its also something that has to be comprimised, and is used to tune a port to a given combination of engine size, and the desired power band. There is no one correct velocity, for every engine or head. How that correlates, is expierience, from testing, and trial and error. There are some formulas out there, that help you get in the ball park, but, its still an application thing. No easy, cut in stone answer.
As far as the eliminator heads, I have yet to see any, but, from what I have heard and read, from some sharp guys, they have "issues". And its velocity related. Lots of guys sending them back, to be "fixed". But, the problem there is, for a generic port, its hard to match it for every application. SO, there has to be a comprimise. It will work on a lot of application,s and, more than likely, isn;t perfect for any of them. Although, from what I have read as the issues, they are leaving power on the table. One thing you have to realize, with velocity, the more air, thru a given port, the higher the velocity will be. In a lot of cases, guys shoot for the most flow thru the smallest port. In many cases, that theory, doesn;t work. You end up with smoking fast velocity, which, in theory is good, but, doesn;t always work. Its back to that balancing act, and comprimise, and understanding, what the correct airspeed is for the application. Its hard to explain. But, like is always said, velocity is key. But, how you take that, is where the difference comes. Is it, the most possible velocity? No, its the correct velocity for the given application. And, then, figuring out, what that velocity is for what your trying to do. Flow numbers, because of the wide range of varience from bench to bench, aren;t the asnwer. Anyhow, sorry to ramble
Frank
Advanced Performance
www.get-ap.com