Cracked Cylinder Head

[AngelMac]

Hi All,
Was hoping for some advice please, the FE is at the mechanic and he has just discovered a crack in the cylinder head.  :(
The motor has been sitting for over 10 years, so I'm thinking there are going to be other issues also. What is the best way forward? Are these hard to source and how much would I expect to pay?
Thanks in advance,
Ange

[mcl1959]

Ange, well the good thing about having the head off is that bores can be checked for wear and corrosion.
So assuming the bores are not to bad then the other thing to check is the water channels. Your mechanic should pull out all the welsh plugs and flush the block through thoroughly.
I have a few spare grey heads here which would be $100 each. They should be crack tested anyway to ensure there are no tiny cracks.

Regards.  Ken

[AngelMac]

Thanks for that Ken, I will pm you re: the heads.
Cheers
Ange

[Harv]

I agree with Ken. The cracks in a standard grey motor head can be repaired. However, it is still (relatively) easy to buy another head. The labour involved with repairing the crack will probably cost more than the replacement head. I'd only repair the standard grey cylinder head if it had had extensive work done to it previsously (ported, polished, relieved, shaved, hardened inserts, large valves) or was a one-off piece (had always been on the car etc).

Cheers,
Harv

[AngelMac]

Thanks for the feedback Harv, I will take all that on board when I go in today and chat to the mechanic and see what sort of shape it's in.
Cheers