I posted this in the midwest section also but thought i might find help here. Hey everyone, I'm new on here and thought i would introduce myself, My name is Tanner, I currently drive a 1982 Pontiac Trans Am, originally the car had a 305, but it was far too slow for my needs. So far I've swapped in a mild 350, and have another 4 Bolt main bare block that I'm currently building. Plans for the bare block are, Fully Forged rotating ready for 400 rwhp N/A, and up too a 250 shot on top. Would like Mid 10's in the quarter, and be able to drive it back and forth to work. I'm debating on using Vortec or Camel back heads, i'm leaning more towards the Camel backs because i've heard the vortecs won't spin much past 6200 rpm's, And i would like to redline around 7200. So any idea's or suggestions are welcome.

 

The formerly famed "Camel Hump," Double-Hump," or "Fulie" heads were once among the best factory castings. That was 40 years ago. They are still very effective if you have a door that won't stay open in the wind, or have an old truck which would roll away if you didn't put something under the tires. Even early 1980's castings were superior. The aftermarket has them completely blown out of the water, for both flow and port velocity.

Move on, and let those past ghosts rest in peace. I'm constantly amazed at how many salvage yards still try to sell those heads for big dollars to those who are still stuck in a 1970's mentality. Some short track stock car classes still list them as allowed heads, which is one of the reasons they are still used. Everyone else has long since moved along to far better heads.

If you want to not only spin up to 7,200 RPM, but actually make power at those levels, you'll need to forget about almost all factory castings and start looking toward 18º heads or something with much larger ports and valves, and a much more direct path into the chamber.