Reusing Type 1 Heads

[jeromeaircooled]

I have 5 used cylinder heads hanging around and I had a couple of questions on whether or not I should keep them around. I'll give a little history on them

2 are from the bus engine that seized 20 miles after I bought it

2 are from a beetle engine that someone gave me that was also seized

1 was a spare that the P.O. had in the bus, my guess is in case he got into trouble.

Is there a way to tell when a head is toast? Are used heads on a type 1 automatically tossed? Should I just automatically toss the heads off of the seized engines.

I am interested because I may need heads for my beetle (the heads currently on the engine seem a little banged up) but I also live in a fairly small apartment and have no desire to store something if it is useless.

Thanks

Wes

[Amskeptic]

I have 5 used cylinder heads
Is there a way to tell when a head is toast?

Consider them all as gold. . . BUT!

Your finest forensic inspection capabilities are needed here.
They are as good as your inspection. If they have no cracks,
no weird seat recessions, nice spark plug threads,
decent rocker/intake/exhaust studs, good sealing surfaces,
intact fins, and firmly seated guides, what is not to like about them?
You WILL want to replace guides and fix up eroded studs and perform a good 3-angle grind on the seats or replace them, and ensure that the spigots are square, yada, yada, yada, but that is within your decision-making-monetary investment-machine shop quality realm.
Even cracked aluminum heads can be brought up to snuff, you just need cash and quality work.
Colin

[jeromeaircooled]

Hmmm. Firmly seated guides? How do I inspect this? What do I look for?

[Amskeptic]

Hmmm. Firmly seated guides? How do I inspect this? What do I look for?

You look for guides that fall out when you push them. There are oversize outer diameter guides available, but guides that fall out are just a little warning that you might have to procure them. In any event, new guides are a must.
Colin