Panhead valve seat eplacement

[thepigstye]

I'd like some ideas on who does QUALITY panhead valve seat replacement. I got a set of heads that the original bronze seats are REALLY sunk, so they need to be replaced. I know somesupposedly qualified machinists who have done this and the valve seats fell out. Not good. I'm looking for someone that is reliable, guarentees their work and doesn't take 3 months to install a set of seats and maybe flycut the head gasket surfaces. I reseached Dragonman in Colorado. Turned up nothing but negative (or worse) reviews. Anybosy have some seats replaced recently?

Mutt

[Huck]

I put oversized valves in mine and rolled it, I don’t want to make it easy on Don when its time for him to do his trick.

[socalrider]

Perry kime FLO HEADWORKS in Oceano california. I have never had any panheads worked on by him but he did do some shovel heads for me and did a beautiful job.
I have also heard TATRO MACHINE in SAN DIEGO CALIFORNIA is good with pans.i cant speak from personal experience though.
Suerte,
Arnulfo

[caschnd1]

Perry at Flo Headworks does all my head work. He did the valve seats on a set of heads for me back in 2003. I put over 100K miles on those heads before I sent them to him to be freshened up. He can get backed up some times since he's a one man operation.

-Craig

[amiabledave]

You are in between a rock and a hard place. If you have FLH heads, they have been ported from the factory. If the machinist isn't very, very, very careful when he presses the new seats in, he will crack the head. Usually it'll be pronounced once you install it and the head expands when operating. But usually it's the front intake seat that breaks.

Don't buy oversized seats. The meat on FLH heads will be thin.

[RUBONE]

Mutt,
Dragonman is the worst butcher on the face of the earth. Chances would be that they would be unusable when you got them back, if you got them back, and if they were the ones you sent him.
check with Don at Head Hog.
or, with Creekside, or the others as suggested,
just beware the Dragonman...

[58flh]

DON SULLIVAN at -(Headhog)--I have seen his work personaly & If you want a look go to his website!--Seats on panheads do not get pressed out!--The seats are cast in with the head!--So pressing in or out will crack the head in short!.--Don uses a spray-on overlay thats the same matieral as the oem seats I believe??-Anyway Its the correct way to preserve a good head!--& YES you will wait & Yes its MONEY!!!.But I have seen him shine some real shitty castings to NEW!.--You can go oversize on the valve & just lap a seat into the alum.!---LAME BUT it works!--I know of somebody that done this & ran for about 16-months before he found a set cheap That was Rebuildable.----If its your olny transport -I can understand that!-But if you have another set of wheels DO THE JOB CORRECTLY!----Respectfully---RICHIE

[panhandler]

I had a seat drop on a trip to LA from Canada right around Tahoe and finally took it into Shoeman's Custom Cycle in Reno. He does all his own work and as far as I'm concerned is a wizard. He also let me put the bike on one of his tables and do a lot of the work myself, charging me only for parts and his labour, which still wasn't cheap, but worth the coin. That was in '99 and he's still there, checkout his website http://www.shoemanscustomcycle.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; he knows his pans.

regards,
Keith

[Huck]

yep, they're right, oversized valves will never seal & you can't get the installed height correct either. Read it on the internet so it must be true. I'm just blowin smoke up your ass, I don't know anything about it.

[Cotten]

Huck!

I think AmiableDave warned against oversize seats, not valves.

And although I agree for his warnings for the most part, if you MUST go to inserts, then you must purchase really big inserts and cut them down for your holes.

The risks stand for themselves.

If you could cut a clean face for an oversized valve on even just one of the seats, it would be worth it.

.....Cotten

[thepigstye]

Thanks y'all. I got to doing some searching and found the guy's number in San Luis Obispo that did the seats on my 57 FLH heads 4 years ago. Super awesome work, I sent him the new guides and valves and he only charged $200 to install the guides, machine out the old seats, install 4 new seats 3 angle with blended radiuses. . He even offered to install new Shovel intake seats for me (which I surely said yes !!!! These guys do really nice work. Glad I found their niumber again.

http://www.4-lesco.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Bosheff]

Baisley in Portland, Oregon. They weren't cheap or fast. That was in 1986. Still runnin strong today....bosheff

[JR JOHNSON]

had seats come out one to many times middle of no were,oversize valve is the way to go,or fine somebody,other than the napa parts machine shop,that works on harleys,fit, make a valve to fit into oem seats. look in knowledge base to fine out the pros and cons on this ..........with respect......JR....