[mr55/56]

Why is that head a boat anchor?

My 74 Z28 has the 882s with factory 2.02/1.60 screw in studs & Guideplates. My 78 Corvette has them with 1.94/1.50s and I have a set off a pickup on shelf with 1.72/1.50s.

 

[mr55/56]

882 heads have a reputation for being thin castings that run hot, and are prone to cracking. I'd not remove them if they're OK, but wouldn't put any money into them for sure.

Really I have ran them for almost 50 years and have two good friends in cylinder head business and never heard this of the 882. Not a super great head but hardly on the level of the 624 that replaced it,

 

[mr55/56]

As I said, if they're working for your engine leave them on it. But if they give you any issues, don't spend any money on them.
I had a pair on the 4 bolt main 350 I built for my Austin, and the engine shop didn't want to rebuild them, and didn't even want them as cores. I threw them in a scrap run since they didn't want them.
It's not secret about their history, and if you do a Google search of the head number you'll bring up a huge amount of negative results for the 882 heads.

Too much first hand info available to me on this subject to waste time on internet.

 

[mr55/56]

OK using your logic 906 casting Vortecs is nuts because they have pleanty of cracking issues these days. All SBC factory castings after about 1970 are known to have an issue here and there.

 

[mr55/56]

The same markings were also used on some 305 heads that had 58 CC combustion chambers. They will boost the CR on a 350, and be OK for low end torque. You may even get the 1.84 intake valves as opposed to the 1.72 size. The only real way to know exactly what they are, is to remove a valve cover to get to the casting numbers. I am Butch/56sedandelivery.

Even then 882s were offered with 3 different valve size configurations.

 

[mr55/56]

My buddy who owns a automotive machine shop has seen an alarming number of cracked 350 Vortec heads all casting numbers. He says this was not true a few years ago, but as they age problems are becoming more prevelant. Just relaying what the guys in the business tell me. Bottom line no casting is perfect in the past 50 years or there about. Yes I have seen cracked 882, 993,487, 906, and the worst offender of all the 624 and and any other number you can bring up in that era.

 

[mr55/56]

Rejecting Vortec heads for lack of lift capability in favor of an 882 head is counterproductive. At least a Vortec has a bigger and better shaped port which might take advantage of more lift. I wouldn't spend a dime on an 882 to increase the lift capability.

 

[mr55/56]

The Vortec heads coming into machine shops today are not in the shape they were 10 or 15 years ago. My friend tell me today have a very high crack rate and a pressure test is now mandatory.