What would be a fair price for 16 heads today. I have 48's but 16s should have been on it.

I bought a nice set locally over the winter for $350. That may have been a bit high. But no shipping was involved, so that helped.

Just make sure they are '68 16s.

Good point! The ones I bought were off of a '68 firebird to boot!

I believe GTO's and some other cars also came with 16's.

there are 4 different heads with 16 as the casting number

only 1 is right the others have date codes that should make it obvius that their wrong

Things to look for while shopping for heads..

Pits in chambers, pits in bowls, pits within deck surfaces and sharp casting numbers.

Also, make sure all threads for studs are good and bosses are not cracked.

You will spend a little more making certain all above are excellent condition, but will save you $$$ on milling and correcting in machine shop.

$500 is a great price if the heads are perfect and ready to run or need to be rebuilt. I dont like to spend any more than this if the heads are claimed to have been "recently rebuilt" unless the sale is accompanied with a detailed receipt with the head codes and/or the date codes of the heads.

More than likely, if you spend $350 on a set of cores or $800 for a set done by someone else, problems may arise. Too many times people have had to change springs for the cam they want to run (add $400 to total)

My opinion is to find a good set and have them done to your cam, your needs...You will spend more initially, but less in the long run.

I cannot see them in person but I have pictures. The date code is correct for my car. One is H197 and the other h87. Can any one tell by pics?

Were your's missing? Or what's the reason for replacement?

4 more.

It plan to go to the Pontiac POCI meet in Dayton Oh. Maybe it would be better to wait till I can see in person. These are 500 plus I would have to pay about 80 - 100 in shipping. These been setting on shelf for 25 years

Yes, They replaced my engine and everything else that is on it. My heads are 48 D which are equal to the 16's. They are suppose to be just as good. However they are not 16's

Maybe I should not worry about it. I don't have my WQ block anyway.

IMO, the heads look great. Came from a running engine recently and werent sitting in the weather.

The 48's are Ram Air III heads and flow the SAME as 16's. Difference between the 16 and 48 heads?

About $400 more for 48's with no appreciable difference in performance.

In other words, go with the 16s and sell the 48s to someone who needs them. Your 16s should be close to free...

just a quick question, weren't 48's also used on ho 350 with a 64 cc chamber? how do you tell them apart?

From HPP:

"...the '69 350 H.O. is essentially a small Ram Air III and used the same large-valve No. 48 heads and comparative camshaft duration."

Banshee

These 16s were taken off a engine about 25 years ago and placed on a shelf. Would that make a difference.

As long as they were out of the weather...no. I would at least pull them apart and check them...and clean them.

You dont want any dirt or corrosion binding anything up. Mark valves, disassemble, clean...

As far as the CC of heads from 65 to 72 cc (350 HO) you can generally eyeball if you have been around them for awhile. A simple CC check will tell you the difference. You can get a syringe and a piece of plexiglass and drill a hole. Use water and fill chamber through hole and determine CC's. Save you $$ at shop.

So as long as I'm going to have them rebuilt by an engine shop I will be fine you think?

What does this date code look like to every one? Why doe it look like H817?

If it was H187, that would be correct for a early build (August 67) for a 68 Firebird.

Those are some weird date castings right there.

The other head is dated H197

Maybe who ever cast it meant H187. I've seen some weird ones. I saw a 16 head and the 16 was together on the same side.

Here is the one I saw. Must have been a bad day in the cast shop.