Machine Shop Repairs a BADLY Damaged Small Block Chevy AFR Cylinder Head

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If you would like to work with me, please email [e-mail]

[@JR-Rollin]

I hope more youngsters follow in those old timer's footsteps, as we are going to lose these amazingly talented people if not.

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Thanks

[@lollipop84858]

Why are you hoping..? Why not take it up on yourself to actively teach them?

[@JR-Rollin]

@lollipop84858 I'm old enough to retire...lol. Hence the youngster comment. Also, I'm not a machinist.

[@m4rvinmartian]

@@lollipop84858 That's what I was going to say.

[@custos3249]

@@lollipop84858 Exactly. There's plenty of interest, but no one is willing to train.

[@freechagosislandjohnpilger]

Now that's how's it done, beautiful workmanship there. From Australia. well done sir. You turned a customer's disaster to a dream

[@Komeuppance]

I was skeptical at first, but that turned out great. Wish I had a shop like yours years ago, would have saved a lot of trouble.

[@thomaspaiva4230]

I could watch this man do his magic all day every day

[@The_Impulse]

Absolutely amazing work. There is something good to be said about a person that knows what they do so well they make it look easy.

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Thanks

[@StuartBlake-iz6rf]

Gerald, you do such a great job. As you said before, almost anything can come back to life. Bet this guy is real happy.

[@ericwright5419]

Make a Silicon mold of the good chamber put transfer dye on it helps a lot to match it back to the original pattern Thanks for the videos 👍🏻

[@BenjySparky]

Gerald and Ruby, y'all rock! That's how you fix a head. Looks mint. Peace Thanks, Jackie ❤

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Jackie & chief are the best.😁

[@seancampbell4288]

Absolutely unreal work!

[@Hogiewan1]

Mr. Brand, that’s amazing. You are a true craftsman

[@littlecreekbowclub5288]

Great job Gerald, looking at it before you started I thought it was ready for the dumpster.

[@skipper6567]

Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

[@DragBoss351Cleveland]

Looking good Gerald, Love watching this reconstruction work. Great job

[@Timbo428CJ]

Very nice job Gerald ! Came out perfect !! Thanks for sharing.

[@rprice7670]

Hell yeah. Very nicely done. Thanks for sharing

[@ClimptonDiddlehopper]

Nice work, I've had shops tell me less damage wasn't repairable.

[@BrandRacingEngines]

LOL

[@jcnpresser]

Just depends on what it’s on. It may cost less to buy a new head if it’s some Chinese knock offs, my Promaxx pair cost the same as one trick flow!

[@mikemaccracken3112]

Excellent video Gerald. Thank you.

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Thanks

[@jdshaw2751]

You do amazing work, Mr Brand! I love watching your videos!

[@sherrystroh241]

Great job.

[@ronanderson5736]

Fantastic job! Very nice work!❤

[@jasonblack8639]

That is some skill!

[@V8velocityracing]

That is amazing how you brought that back to life I thought before that that would have been crash great skill and great video

[@cheechmagee8512]

Im in my early 40s now and kick myself anytime I watch this stuff. I shoulda learned from an old school machinist and got into the trade. I’m stuck in an office now. Keep this alive and keep on doing what you’re doing. Videos aren’t boring at all.

[@andrewdesormeaux33]

Small lathes and mills are pretty cheap and can fit in a 1 car garage. I got my first lathe 12 years ago at 29 self taught off youtube and books (youtube is way better now) and now I'm looking at opening a shop when I'm 40. Its never too late to get into it

[@MrVelocity111]

Thx Gerald

[@aarondwyer3746]

Very nice work

[@kevins5259]

Nice job.

[@Theoriginalmalcontentcorner]

Wow! That was a fun and amazing watch. True craftsmanship there.

[@POSminiracer]

That's quite the transformation

[@neilkirkes]

Amazing work

[@scottgeorge50]

Outstanding work!

[@roostingthe6520]

I enjoy your videos, thanks for taking the time to make them.

[@johnnyd6861]

As always great work.

[@edsmachine93]

This is a very nice repair Gerald. 👍👍 Doesn't get any better than this. I know how much time work like this takes. Thanks for sharing. Have a great day.

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Thanks Ed.

[@rolliefoster2837]

WOW -awesome talent. Great repair video & thanks for sharing !

[@scottnusser6232]

Very nice job! That's some serious art work ❤

[@FadetoBlack1463]

That's a craftsman !

[@jg6142]

You made that repair look easy and I know it’s not! Nice job

[@rayowens4355]

Nice work!

[@loafbred]

You never disappoint.

[@Joe.G]

Another great video 👍🏻.

[@Joe.G]

Thank you for the video 👍🏻👍🏻

[@808vws8]

Bad ass craftsmanship by a great American!! Aloha🤙🏽

[@keithk2926]

Beautiful job sir👍

[@cuttnhorse2013]

Very impressive young man! Couldn’t wait to hit the start to see what goodies you was sharing today! Another great video!❤ Ronnie East Tennessee

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Thanks

[@nickkiofetzis5667]

brilliant work jerald your an artist, jerald davinci

[@yattaran1484]

Amazing repatr work as always !. So nice to know Ruby seems always staying around you.

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Ruby is a good dog

[@yattaran1484]

@@BrandRacingEngines No doubt ! 👍

[@dbriggs1689]

Nice repair

[@toddclark332]

Gerald does amazing work❤

[@Formerlywarmer]

Very nice

[@user-xb1yt9jg9v]

This man is a true artist

[@shadowbaurr5029]

love your videos keep it up.

[@markwray3905]

Saved another one 😊

[@captainbuttnuggets4786]

I never thought that was possible, incredible job sir, it’s nice when you have the right tools and skills for the job 👏👏👍🏼🤘🏼

[@tallyman15]

Nice work.

[@FABRIC8TIONUNLIMITE1]

I like your work.

[@jimmyhou6806]

Honestly I get another head great job

[@adammorgan9060]

The weld repair is quicker than getting a new head to match the other good head. I've done this repair in a few hours, so it's way cheaper also.

[@scottlambeth5478]

Since you milled down the top of the valve guides, I was expecting to see you take them out and press in new guides.

[@alexandrsherbakov9878]

Perfect.

[@otisbailey5455]

Impressive

[@Christoph_NTX]

I really like these videos!! The way your machine can self-center itself is awesome could you explain that in a future video?

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Yes

[@ovalwingnut]

A true "Labor of Love" Like I tell my GF... Guys just love dat AFR HEaD Thank you for the video. It's true what people are saying; You do RoCk!

[@MrPnew1]

14:27 shot peening 😂 nice work guys and greetings from Australia

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Thanks

[@ronmedenwaldt]

🤔 You related to Jeff Lutz Sr.? 🤷 😁. Looks awesome! It's real satisfying work to bring something back to good working condition! TY for sharing!

[@BrandRacingEngines]

No But I know from the 405 show. good guy

[@jimzivny1554]

I think what you did is becoming a lost art.

[@oikkuoek]

There was still some work left to do.. The fire ring grooves and valve seats, with a tiny burr on the spark plug thread. Why these were left undone? The video itself was top notch, although the time lapse is kinda sea sicky.. Music score fits like a glove. For a moment there I thought it was mine who made that whine.. :D :D Scratches for Ruby! And the rest of the gang too. :)

[@jrosek1]

awesome!!!

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Thanks!!

[@wallacejeffery5786]

My experience with welding aluminum has been poor. So much work involved.

[@davidsmith-ee8cb]

After watching your videos on repairs, beleive the ony thing you can't repair is broken hearts....

[@BrandRacingEngines]

💔

[@Smokey72013]

Very nice job on that head. Every head ive ever had welded usually cracked or had other issues. I wonder if it wouldn't make sense to deck the orher head to match the repaired head? Is this a nitrous motor? Chambers look clean like methanol tho

[@wmcruzcarrollsr.5727]

OMG WOW!

[@jarnosaarinen4583]

Aced that!

[@shoominati23]

Are they the Comp Ported heads? I'm looking at a set of Comp Ported AFR 195s for my 550hp 327 build

[@samjohnson4014]

How much did you charge for the repair?

[@BrandRacingEngines]

I thing it was 500.00 to 600.00

[@bradleycrenshaw6778]

awesome work. Would someone need to change the thickness of their gasket after a procedure such as this?

[@jondahl3173]

Probably not. Depends on a lot of factors. The other head will probably get cut also. You can get a variety of head gasket thicknesses, usually the MLS will go from.030 up to .100-ish, depending on make. As usual, looks good Gerald!

[@TOONMAN200]

Nice video, good repair. Only thing, If this my cylinder head, I would start looking for a replacement. Did you mention the labor charge for this repair, a new or used head would have been cheaper.

[@BrandRacingEngines]

It was cheaper to repair it AFR did not have a replacement it was a older head

[@TOONMAN200]

@@BrandRacingEngines OK I thought that head could not be replaced. So your repair was a life saver, good job.

[@johnlasyone8876]

Is your burr grinder a double cut and is that cutting oil you are using in the video. Thanks 🙏 for sharing

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Double cut and yes cutting oil.

[@rickchowsr2532]

That was a great repair Question did you run a tap down the spark plug hole?

[@BrandRacingEngines]

yes

[@tomthompson7400]

well done , Im impressed the head will stand that much localised heat and still stay true ,, what rods do you use for heads

[@BrandRacingEngines]

4043

[@tomthompson7400]

@@BrandRacingEngines many thanks ,, great results

[@kevinpalmer2975]

Amazing work as always. Question, you didn't clean up spark plug hole? Looked like you got some weld in it.

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Yes I run a tap through the plug hole I just didn't get a video of it I got beat up a little bit on one of the shorts over running a tap the plug hole😂

[@kevinpalmer2975]

@BrandRacingEngines I saw the one where you showed all the crud that gets into them. I figured you did, just wondering. Keep up the great work my friend, don't let the haters get you down. There is no right or wrong way, just the way you do things.

[@scottvantassel2212]

what alloy filler do you use? nice job Gerald.

[@BrandRacingEngines]

4043

[@SonnyHoood]

What type welding are you using? Is it TIG welding for aluminium, and which gas/temps to make those welds?

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Tig 4043 rod100% argon

[@michaelraddish7898]

Sent mine back to brodix,so so repair in my opinion. Going to take them to a profession head machinist for their opinion on the valve seat.im not taking any chances. Any suggestions for a different opinion would be good

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Without seeing the heads it's hard to say.

[@disolejunk]

Is it cost effective for the customer? Or would a new head be cheaper? Damn good work though. 👍👍

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Yes

[@zmotorsports62]

Awesome repair. Couple questions please. I'm assuming the hammering while welding is for stress relief/reduction. Is that correct? What fluid are you using on your rotary cutters to keep the flutes from clogging? Also, what fluid when machining the seats? WD-40 or something else? Thank you Mike

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Yes no the weld

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Unist coolube 2210 AL

[@zmotorsports62]

@@BrandRacingEngines thank you for the quick response.

[@jayb2617]

do you preheat the head before welding? with that much heat in one spot does it warp the head ?

[@BrandRacingEngines]

No I don't preheat the head

[@arneminderman3770]

Wooow ❤❤

[@mikehess8116]

Something wanted the hell out.

[@Trains-With-Shane]

Basically scratch building the whole chamber! That's pretty darn impressive! Was it was more cost effective to put all of that labor into it rather than the customer picking up a new casting from AFR? Only reason I'm asking is because I could see this type of work being used on a very rare vintage piece or something that is very specific and custom. But on a standard SBC head? Either way it made for a VERY good video so that in itself is good justification! You've got serious skills!

[@BrandRacingEngines]

AFR would not sell one head

[@Trains-With-Shane]

@@BrandRacingEngines That's pretty lame of them. But more business for you! And another excellent video for us!

[@eddiebarrera-ws8vu]

Not being an ass here,but wouldn't it be more feasible to get a good used head,this is extreme work going into this head.

[@BrandRacingEngines]

If you could get one. AFR would not sell 1 head.

[@diegosilang4823]

Similar to what I had seen in Pakistan, repairing cast iron heads and machining them.

[@pavil58yt]

How do you get the chamber contours and displacement to match? Just by eye? Do you use a template of some type?

[@BrandRacingEngines]

A little by eye, template and cc the chamber

[@johndevries8759]

Nice work Gerald, I just have one question. Does the aluminum need to have some sort of heat treat done to it after that much welding? I would think the factory heat treat process would be drawn back to an annealed state from the welding process.

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Most of the aluminum heads

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Sorry I didn't get to finish most of the aluminum heads are not heat treated from the factory they have what they call a hip process.

[@johndevries8759]

@@BrandRacingEngines Could you define that a little bit more? What is the hip process they use?

[@BrandRacingEngines]

@@johndevries8759 HIP stands for Hot Isostatic Pressing, and it originated in the aerospace industry as a way of increasing strength and eliminating defects in metal castings. HIP will take a good casting and make it great by eliminating trapped gases and internal porosity in the casting. Every casting has trapped gases, or internal porosity; it’s the amount of trapped gas or porosity that determines the castings quality and structural integrity. Basically, the HIP process takes raw castings up to 970° F in a pressurized chamber with inert gas (up to 30,000 psi) and compresses the casting to reduce and eliminate any trapped gases. The result is an incredibly strong and dense sand casting that has three times the fatigue life and nearly the consistency of billet aluminum.

[@johndevries8759]

@@BrandRacingEngines So then as long as the weld is done correctly there's no need to do any process to insure the strength of the repair is what you're saying? Thanks for taking the time to answer, not many people will share their knowledge the way you do.

[@robinglockner4631]

Amazing. How many hours of work did you put into this?

[@BrandRacingEngines]

4 hour

[@rodstrong01]

Question for you .picked up a gen v l8t engine that was in a fire ,#7 got so hot it dropped the intake seat .do you think the head is worth fixing .? I've been watching. People welding aluminum.just wondering if it's worth it?

[@BrandRacingEngines]

First thing I would do would check the hardness on the head. If the hardness is okay. It may be worth fixing. I would have to see a picture to determine a price

[@rodstrong01]

@@BrandRacingEngines is there somewhere I can send the picture?

[@BrandRacingEngines]

[e-mail]

[@michaeltristan]

can you explain why you hammer the welds? sorry if I missed the explanation.

[@scottsmith5623]

I believe it “compacts” the aluminum, tamping it down after every few passes ensures a uniform, quality and dense weld with little to no porosity.

[@michaeltristan]

@@scottsmith5623 Very interesting... I've done a little arc welding, and have hammered slag- but didn't really understand why the hammering was happening on tig welds. Thanks for taking the time out to explain- much appreciated.

[@ronmedenwaldt]

​@@michaeltristanIf I remember correctly the vibration also helps with the crystalization of the material as it cools! 🤷

[@88jhoyle]

"peening" is usually done to relieve some of the internal stress created by welding, to me it makes sense to think of it almost like tempering. Maybe @BrandRacingEngines Gerald can weigh in on why he does it personally?

[@clintonsmith9931]

Be aware, the welds must be perfect. A imperfection in the weld could cause a hot spot under load And cause a blow torch in the cyl that makes a bad day. Ask me how I know. Cost me!

[@markrenton1093]

How do you replicate the original combustion chamber shape?

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Just year of doing this type of work.

[@71blazerc10]

Did you not need to tap the sparkplug threads?

[@BrandRacingEngines]

Yes

[@puppygadget3189]

❤Ruby❤

[@jasonbell5905]

Is that head completely finished?

[@BrandRacingEngines]

I forgot to get the video after i did the valve job on it.

[@jeffmckc2081]

Ruby must be semi retired

[@BrandRacingEngines]

May be i will give her a raise.

[@jeffmckc2081]

@@BrandRacingEnginesshe shows up which is better than most help!