'84 325e 2.7i swap questions

[2mAn]

Also, what possible gains in CR can be had by shaving the head or using a thinner HG?

ive also wondered this myself. the small drop in the CR can be easily offset by shaving the head. a half point in CR is a normal shave on a head.

[ForcedFirebird]

Hmmm, is that a super eta block or an early eta?? I hear so many "dude the car will barely run" claims that it would be nice to know it will work using an early eta with an 885 head. I have a choice right now between a 200 casting 323i head and an 885. The 323i setup would cost roughly $100 more than using the 885. I'm going to be picking up a complete 87 325i motor as a starting point

Early block and rotating assembly.

ive also wondered this myself. the small drop in the CR can be easily offset by shaving the head. a half point in CR is a normal shave on a head.

.050" gasket gives almost 8.7:1, I never broke out the buret to CC the chambers after the head got shaved, but the indication dots on the bottom of the head are almost gone. Guess one could measure the head thickness and calc it close. My cam timing is probably pretty retarded at this point though lol. The dyno numbers were taken with an un-shaved head and stock gasket.

[Varinn]

Early block and rotating assembly.



.050" gasket gives almost 8.7:1, I never broke out the buret to CC the chambers after the head got shaved, but the indication dots on the bottom of the head are almost gone. Guess one could measure the head thickness and calc it close. My cam timing is probably pretty retarded at this point though lol. The dyno numbers were taken with an un-shaved head and stock gasket.

I've heard rumors of valve-piston clearance issues with too much head shave or gasket thinning, did you see any of these issues? Also, I guess you're running an adjustable cam pulley?

[bmwstudent]

Forced firebird is no dummy, i would not take what he says as "a load of crap."

[Varinn]

Decisions have been made! After difficulty dealing with the source of my potential m20b25 motor I managed to find a basically free 1987 325i that I intend to pillage all parts from. The car has a blown head, so I'll be using it to grab every other piece of the puzzle. Intake, exhaust, electronics, water pump etc, rad, etc.

The head is coming from my friends e21 323i and will be having a SLIGHT shave before install to give it a tiny nudge up in compression. The head is a low mileage (~150KM) unit and well maintained with frequent valve adjustments. I may have a regrind done, but I doubt I will get that far into it. I understand the 731 head is better and the 885 is best with custom pistons but that is far over my budget. As it stands, with all fresh gaskets, fluids, and timing belt I will be sitting at $300 for the conversion not including selling my current engine parts (including an 027 DME w/Mark D chip)

I'm in the process of reading through this thread

http://www.r3vlimited.com/board/showthread.php?t=100939&highlight=eta+89+head

I have two new questions:
1: What is the difference between the flywheels on an '84 eta and an '87 i?
2: What are my limits for removing material from the head before I risk running into valve-piston clearance issues?