During my rebuild, I'm puttting in oversized valves. The head is a '78, and the original seats were still in great shape. Rather than replace what I thought was a perfectly good hardened seat, I just had them cut larger so that the new valves (1.44, 1.70) would fit. Since then I've had a couple people tell me that "hardened" seats are actually only surface hardened, and after cutting, these are no longer adequate. If this is true, where can I find the seats I need?

They are a little more then surface hardened, but, in general, that is true. The machine shop that does the work, should have the seats available.

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Charrlie_S
65 Valiant 100 2dr post 170 turbo
66 Valiant Signet 170 nitrous
64 Valiant Signet
64 Valiant 4dr 170
64 Valiant 4dr 225

My first good head that Mike and Blaine did just had the hardened seats ground out for the big valves. I beat the snot out of that head and never hurt a seat. It was always run on unleaded gas too.

I have been told that you are in greater danger of losing an insert than burning the ground out seat anyway. By the time you put in a standard insert and grind it out for the big valves there is not much left.

My new real race car head just has the stock seats ground out too.

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Official Cookie and Mater Tormentor.