Cheap heads or "Cheap Heads"??

[smokedchevy]

What do you guys think of this company?

http://www.tristatecylinderhead.com/

They have the Pro Topline logo...you know the one with the little bird...I remember seeing them in Summit or Jegs. I emailed Jim, I think he's the owner, he said they're assembled for $798.00, and he sells to the public. Anybody runnin these. Thanks.

[Dark_5.0]

Specs:

60cc Combustion Chamber
200cc Intake Runners
3/8" Screw-in Studs & Guide Plates
Phosphor Bronze Valve Guides
Stainless 2.055" Intake Valves
Stainless 1.600" Exhaust Valves
Performace Springs Good To .600" Hyd. Flat Tappet
*140 psi @ 1.800" (closed)
*340 psi @ 1.258" (open)

$798.00 Per Set


They seem like a good deal to me but here is a word of caution. My Canfields have 192cc intake runners and 2.02 1.60 valves. My car is fast but i lost alot of low end grunt below 3500rpms and the runners and the Intake valve on these heads are bigger than mine.

They seem like bad ass heads to me but I wouldnt put them on an all motor 302.

[~The Jester~]

I learned this A LOOOONG time ago:

"Speed costs money, how fast do you want to go?"

Ya get what ya pay for bro. Plain and simple. Checked out his site, mainly shop pictures, and I was NOT impressed. I was in Canfield's shop today, and I gotta tell ya. HOLY $***!!!

Ya get what ya pay for.............

[bmxmon]

At least they are made in the US, so you can yell at somebody that actually speaks english. Maybe their price is lower because they spend less money making their shop look good. Just trying to offer up other reasons, but cutting costs that way can only go so far. Unless other brands have a huge mark-up (probably to cover R&D that Tri-State doesnt do) I would imagine the core is made of lower grade materials.

[~The Jester~]

Cam/Heads/Intake are where you make the power. That's NO place to "cheap out".

I understand saving a buck here or there, and those heads are WAY better than stock.

Those heads are gonna be an improvement, for sure. It all depends on what your up to with your Stang. Spending $800 now, or saving it waitining a bit and then spending $1500 on Canfields/AFRS/TFS might be worth the wait. Just my $.02 dude.

Look into Canfields, you get to talk to the owner there too. (John Fenton, owner good guy SMARTER than all of us. Personal friend of mine.) Yeah, I'm biased, running a set of prototype Canfields, but man...... Cheap stuff is just that. CHEAP STUFF.

If you want to play with the big dawgs, you gotta spend the $$$$ like the big dawgs. "Speed Cost Money, How Fast Do You Want To Go?"

[smokedchevy]

Well, I'm running ported 70' 351W castings with .190 160. valves. Anything I get will be better. I was just curious if anyone was using them. For $800, they're cheaper than World Products. Just going for 400 horses with a .030 over 351W block. It's either that or Ebay. I feel safer purchasing these than from a Seller on Ebay. Believe me, if I had the money to buy a super sweet set of heads I would. Just seeing if I could save a few bucks on the heads if other people had good feedback about them. Thanks!!

[fiveohpatrol]

Those "Tri-Pro" heads are NOT pro topline heads. They do however carry PTL's, just click on their performance heads link and look at the Pro Cyclone heads, THOSE are the pro topline heads, and are what I have on my car. You can tell the difference because the PTL's have a dual exhaust header bolt pattern (narrow and wide).
I got my 200cc PTL's from summit when they were still carrying them, and I love them. track times in the sig...

I wouldn't suggest going with those other heads, they're just too "big" for a 302. There is a thread on the corral about them, and they seemed to take a bunch of work and some major headache to make them work. I'd call up tri-state and ask them about an assembled price (with good hydro-roller valve springs) on the 180cc PTL cyclone heads, if it is more than your $800, then sit on your cash for a few months and save up some more, you'll thank yourself in the end.

good luck

[smokedchevy]

I found this company in the back of 5.0 magazine. He's runnin an ad with the Pro Topline logo. I assumed he was Pro Topline, but maybe he just carries them. Well I guess when something is too good to be true, it is.

Here's the scoop. I got a 351W block free! Crank,rods, pistons, everything. It's still together. I was trying to build a junkyard 351 with 400+horses for under $1,500. The only thing I'm doing to the short block is stabbing a cheap cam in it. If the heads are there, it'll make the power with swap meet parts. 200cc heads assembled for $800 seemed like a good risk. This is not a prize motor going into a killer street car. It's gonna be an expendable drag strip motor going into a 4spd, 5:13 spooled 65 falcon. If I could get the heads for around $900 or under, that'll leave me $600 to get used parts. I guess we'll see. I've got a bid on some World Seniors on Ebay ending in 3 days.