I have a chance to get some 516 heads (yes, I know-hardly the best choice) very cheaply, but the seller states that they have been profesasionally ported. After talking with him on the phone, he admitted that he had done the porting himself, following instructions from an un-named 'pro'.

Well, a beginner at porting can sometimes ruin a set of heads rather then helping them. I'll be looking at them tomorrow. What should I look for to tell if they are usable? Too much off the short side? Too much out of the bowls? Runners too big or possibly punched through? Any advice?

Well seeing as the seller lied about the heads to begin with I would steer clear of doing any business with him. Last thing I would do is buy heads ported by a diy'er with no flow sheet to see where they really are.

I may take a look anyway for the heck of it, as I suspect they may not be ported at all!
Who would go to the effort of porting that particular head, and then sell them cheap? I can tell if they are ported any. If stock, I may just buy them and throw them up on the parts shelf.

516 heads? Small exhaust valves and no hardened exhaust seats? Try and find a set of 346's or 452's. I wouldn't even bother with the 516's unless they were free.

Stan