i was just wondering if anyone has ever made there own pair of tall valve covers. i started mine yesterday. tpday i got all of the pieces cut. ive got a guy going to weld them on sat. for $60. im using 1/8 inch alum..

 

What's your time worth? You could have bought a set of these for $70 from Skip White on Ebay. Lots of us have his fabricated valve covers.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/SBC-C...spagenameZWDVW

 

Those are GORGEOUS!!!! 21000 sales and 100% feedback? What the heck, something about this must be too good to be true...
Unfortunately I can't justify buying those since they won't add anything to the speed of the car, but holy cow those are beautiful, and cheap!!!

 

And those are for older style, perimeter bolt valve covers.

I checked all of White's items, and he has no center bolt valve covers for sale. Whether that is just right now, or never does, I dunno.

Gorgeous welds though! Something tells me, those are machine welded, not hand welded. Nice.

 

I never thought about center bolt style. I have his covers on my BBC. They're 100% better than the Moroso fabricated covers I used to have. The only downside is that you need to drill holes for breather, PCV etc if you want to use them. That at least gives you the option to position the holes wherever you want.

When I ordered them, they arrived with most of the hold down bolts missing. I contact Skip and replacement bolts arrived in less than a week.

You can always Email Skip and ask if he can get the center bolt style.

The welding is all done by TIG with the valve cover in a jig.

 

i have skips white performance center bolt valve covers, polished fabricated aluminum, tall of course. got em for 80$ shipped and they have the billet rail. look in fabrication forum and i posted a thread of cutting holes in my fabricated valve covers. they are great peices and are well worth the $ and they come with hardware. welds are nice as well.

 

There are people who like the "I made it myself" way of doing things but when it's more cost effective to purchase something that's cheaper or better than you can build, that would be the way to go. Custom made should be used for something that's going to be unique and can't be purchased to do the job. Lets say you wanted fabricated covers like that for a 2.8L V6 or something that just doesn't have any performance or dress up stuff for it. You could use the same design idea and make a fabricated oil pan also.

A good example of stuff like that is in Comp Eliminator racing. Those guys make the weirdest stuff because what they want/need just isn't available.

 

With that nice thick rail on the bottom they must torque down evenly too, I wish I didnt have centerbolt valve covers so I could get those!

 

You could get the center bolt to perimeter bolt adapters, and run those fabbed valve covers on your center bolt heads.

Just a thought.

 

Looks like Skip White makes center bolt covers that are equal quality. I saw this post first and posted here. That is an option , but I think the centerbolt adapters leak from what I have read.

 

Skip makes them? I can't find any. I haven't sent Skip a message to ask, because I can't buy them right now anyways, so I'm not gonna bother him until I can.

 

This is awesome, I just recieved some of skip whites valve covers the other day, I ordered them off ebay without any previous research, they are truly nice peices of work.

 

this makes me angry i bought ones just like those for like 190 out of summit catalog GRRRRRR

 

Found these center bolt ones.

 

In this post the person said that he got Skip White CB valve covers, you posted in the thread too. Maybe you did not read carefully?

 

I read that...Post #6 in THIS thread, the poster says he bought some. Maybe YOU didn't read carefully? Why else would you reference another thread?

But that doesn't mean he still sells them. He didn't say how LONG AGO he bought them.

 

He posted in 12-07 in the other thread but you are correct I didnt read THIS thread carefully I completely missed that he posted in this thread

 

lol THAT WAS ME!!! thats my thread.(i stated above 6 posts from the top of this thread... look at my name and the name who started the threar duh lol.) i bought them a few months ago. id say october/november. they are the centerbolt polished valve covers with billet rail/tall style with hardware. cost me like 90$ and 10$ shipping or something. i just cut the holes in them for the oil breathers about 2 months ago or so. the valve covers are great quality. i can see with my eye that the valve covers/billet rail are slightly warped but they will even out when bolted down. and i'll be using the thickest and best valve cover gaskets by MRgasket, which i got already so im sure sealing wont be an issue.

yes they are from SKips white. same place i bought my patriot 195cc heads. and i believe there wherent that many pairs maybe the i got one of the last 3 sets. they look mean on a bad lookin motor. i bought them recently as well, i would call them and ask to see when they might have them in again. def worth the 90$... i woulda been pissed if i bought them for 190$ from summit lol

 

yeah i got them like 2 years ago from summit when i first started seeing the fabricated looking ones

 

My BBC ones from Skips. The hardest part about putting the holes in them was my stud girdle. It made it hard to put a normal breather through so I installed screw on Moroso breathers. I also run a thick cork gasket for slightly more clearance. Tall covers just barely clear the stud girdle.



This is why you install tall valve covers and yes I painted my lifter valley gloss white.

 

i wanna paint the lifter valley as well and the underneath side of my intake with white paint.... wat paint did u use?

 

Tremclad rust paint and a 1" brush. I think there was 3 or 4 coats before it finally got a good covering coat. I painted the underside of the block as much as I could. Behind the timing chain cover is also painted. I never did paint the underside of the intake but that would be a good idea.

I started with a new, clean block. If you're doing it to a used block, the block should be washed with soap and water to remove all the oil residue in the metal.

 

ive never heard of tremclad... where do u get it from? and what kind of paint would or could be used? im painting the entire block with por15 black engine enamel, i love por15. what kind of paint has to be used so it doesnt flake off?

yea i kno about washing the block with soap and water... dont u have to do that anyway before installation or engine assembly?

 

Tremclad may be a Canadian only brand. My block is painted with a few coats of an aerosol rust paint. Painted that a semigloss black. Sides of the block, around the back above the bellhousing and the area above the timing chain. Not much else to paint. With the large tube headers and front motor plate, you don't see much of my block.

I've had my intake off a couple of times since I painted the lifter valley and never had any paint flake off yet. Same with the outside of the block. My engine doesn't get hot enough to melt the paint and my heads are aluminum so they're not painted.

 

the alum. was free and im a machinist so my labor was free. im just having someone welt them on sat for 60. ill post pics when i get them back.

 

I hope they're being TIG welded.

 

Why? They certainly LOOK TIG'd, but there is nothing wrong with MIG. I've been able to crank out some some good looking MIG beads on aluminum. They aren't structural, so that can't be an argument for TIG over MIG.

 

yea i'll be painting my block completely with black POR15 engine paint, that stuff is amazing. my heads are aluminum as well so they wont be but i def wanted to do the lifter vallley and underside of the intake and i would rather use a brush paint since they usually hold up better and can be laid on thicker.

i didnt think he meant that tig welds are better than mig welds.... its just that mig welds are alot harder with a soft metal like aluminum not to mention they look a hole SHlT load better lol... unless he can crank out one sexy *** mig weld then wat the hell. SHlT 60$ for a set of fabbed alum valve covers is a deal. but well see pics to see if the quality is up 2 par with the 90$ skips covers

 

Just ordered a set of skips covers for my 383 build. I am glad I saw this thread as I was searching around for covers for a wile. There not exactly what I wanted as I don't like the peaked look that much to match my stealth ram intake but they aren't terrible and price is right. I am going to powder coat them black as well as the stealth ram and what not so it should look pretty nice.

Brad the Superlative!

 

Tremclad is Canadian Rust-Oleum...I just got done reading more than I ever wanted to know about it

Rust-Oleum

Those valve covers look great, I might have to get a set when I do my engine. I want to see the ones Tyler is making too,

 

here's a link to come centerbolt covers that skip was selling a few weeks ago.....
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/SBC-C...mZ250204357729

 

yea i just read about the tremclad too from that site... lol looks like a good paint... but where do i get it from lol. the store locator doesnt seem to work lol homedepot maybe?

yea those are the valve covers i got from skips white
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/SBC-C...mZ250204357729

 

I would assume it would be best to go to a knowledgeable Rust-Oleum dealer and inquire there about either the same stuff under the R-O brand name or getting some of the actual Tremclad.

http://www.rustoleum.com/CBGCorporate.asp?sn=lr

Here is the thread where I started to read about it - some of the guys in it might be able to tell you more.

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/body...-50-paint.html

 

Because he's getting charged $60. To mig up a pair of valve covers and charge his buddy $60 is a rip off. If he's doing a quality TIG job, its worth $60+

 

I understand that. But why not offer them MIG'd, with TIG just as an option?