• Hello Guest, welcome to the initial stages of our new platform!
    You can find some additional information about where we are in the process of migrating the board and setting up our new software here

    Thank you for being a part of our community!

Just ordered a reman'd penta 531 head with cam, should I run the cam or ditch it?

The sleeve was in there from the factory on the marine heads, not on the auto heads. Had to do with corrosion control since that runner was most likely to see water exposure due to exhausting into the water, manifold design, yadda yadda, because marine application.
 
I'm going to get a $75 refund. I'm not sure how much the final repair will cost, but if I shipped the head back I'd have to pay the shipping.

Other than that one port the head looks great. I'm also curious to see how much different the V cam is compared to the T cam.
 
Damn, putty, really? Normally they have a steel insert in there with a round port that needs to get hogged out to match the auto manifold. Looks like that was hogged out on yours, but there should be no form of putty or filler in there unless it was properly done and welded. Definitely not right for sure! If they can credit you back a good bit so you can get it professionally fixed, that might be an option as well, so they don't have to cover shipping or restocking, and you still get the head you want.

I'd be more irritated that they tried to hide it with paint than anything else, that should be grounds for a pp/ebay case right there...
 
^ agreed even if it's commonplace it should be disclosed in the ad.

Mine had a messy repair job that really did the port no favors. Put a straight edge across the ports, my repaired port was ~.050" in from the others.
 
The v-cam gives a very peak torque curve suited for marine applications where you need peak efficiency in a narrow rpm band where you spend most of your cruising time. I didn't like it in my car but then I had no way to adjust the spark timing to really maximize the benefit. Give it a try, cam swap is easy and won't require re shimming.
 
Well a head needing some repair sounded like a good excuse to pick up a cheap TIG welder and start learning :-)

<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/134314521@N02/21259224600/in/album-72157658647184192/" title="Untitled"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5727/21259224600_dddcaf1eca_n.jpg" width="240" height="320" alt="Untitled"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/134314521@N02/21421058556/in/album-72157658647184192/" title="Untitled"><img src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/663/21421058556_48a548645d_n.jpg" width="240" height="320" alt="Untitled"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/134314521@N02/21436329502/in/album-72157658647184192/" title="Untitled"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5656/21436329502_c60d22ebff_n.jpg" width="240" height="320" alt="Untitled"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

And my welds need some help, but it's my first try :-)

This thing has some serious power. I didn't really know where to start and I just blew through the piece the first time I tried.

<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/134314521@N02/21421052676/in/album-72157658647184192/" title="Untitled"><img src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/710/21421052676_1058e178a0_n.jpg" width="240" height="320" alt="Untitled"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

It has the water cooling solenoid but the previous owner didn't have the pump. I've got it running an air cooled torch right now.

This thing is insanely heavy. We rented a low trailer and used an engine lift to get it on and off of the trailer. It weighs more than a small bock chevy, I'm sure of it. It's pretty damn fun!!!

The tiny argon tank is a 40 cf. I bought an 80 but the welding supply was out of them. The manager lives on the street behind me so he said I could have the 40 and he'd drop off an 80 for me when they arrive. Yay local support!
 
Last edited:
Damn, saw that thing on CL, figured it was 3-phase. Should be a beast to weld with, hell of a 'starter' rig. lol

What part of town are you in? May need to keep that thing in mind if you're local and can do aluminum. :)
 
It's common to use in weld putty in two strokes to reshape the ports. It sticks well to aluminum.the cases will see 400*f+ temps at the spark plug (more in the case)and hold up.

The issue I see is paint was used to cover this up. They probably did a crap job prepping the area for filler.
 
Back
Top