ok my heads are aluminum, i have heard storys of porting and rebuilding the springs and push rods, and some just say to buy a set of trick flows and your good. what do you think is the best and cheapest way to make good hp out of your heads whether they are stock or aftermarket? and what is the typical HP gain???

 

Im looking into this right now. I have the 5.3 I am going to get the stocks PP and 5 angle valve job done maybe mill the head not sure yet

 

I would focus on the other mods and save head work to the last. Long tube headers will increase head efficiency by scavenging exhaust gasses better.

 

the VMAX trucks come with L92 style heads which flow very well out of the box. A big cam would take advantage of the big flow they provide out of the box. If you're serious then down the road you could just have them ported.

 

Very well put!

That's why the LS1 style motors make so much power is the fact of just how well the head design is in general and how much they flow even being stock.

They did some dyno testing in an issue of Chevy Hi Peformance awhile ago with just trying out some different cams on an LS1 with stock heads and the horsepower gains were crazy.

 

Are the LS1 heads better that the 5.3?

 

no but the LS6/LS2 and LQ4/9 heads are. The 243/799/317/and I forget the other 6.0 head...then there's the L92 heads which flow better than some aftermarket

 

Vmax, what heads do you have on ur truck ?

 

The stock L76 heads, which is a form of the L92 heads, just a smaller bore but like he said a truly badass head. i just want to get the most out of them

 

Air in, air out. To lower the restictions on both sides of the pump.