I remember some discussion about reproducing new heads... Has there been any development on the idea? I'd dearly love a cylinderhead with all fins intact.

Hi LJ..The late (of this forum) Grahamy Boy was going to make these heads..he indicated he thought it was a simple enough job.
I don't think it happened. Top my knowledge no one has 'picked up the gauntlet' yet. The problem of the investment, small potential market and the question of achieving a reasonable market price is still there in my opinion.
When I was considering the job myself, and I had a pattern maker ready to go, the response from owners to the possibility of buying a new head didn't inspire me with confidence.
No doubt that will change as time goes on and good original heads become impossible to find..they are already difficult....Ian

email (option): julie@wright52.plus.com

Hi Ian, thanks for that. I did not know Grahamy and was unaware of his parting... Hopefully this new thread might just arouse interest once again for ideas to be thought up on the subject. I know I'll always have my M bikes and as you say the good stuff is drying up... and rather quickly so it seems. Cheers! LJ.

LJ, You only want a new one so that you can cook your bacon properly without loosing it, You've aready found out it burns a Chinese takaway after twenty minutes.

i though that someone on this site could repair fins was it for alloy heads only

I checked out the head that Nick missed on e bay. It was in the States which might have put some bidders off (shipping). Never the less, it was a very good head in a condition that is not seen so much now.
However, selling price was only $81 (£51)...I think that may confirm that demand (and prices) have not yet reached the level to warrant remanufacture...it would cost more than that to make..Ian

email (option): julie@wright52.plus.com

Considering the amount of these machines manufactured,including stationary versions, i'm surprised you lads have trouble fiding these heads.Down here in Oz they're virtually valueless. We use them as doorstops!

Yebbut Ian... How many M20's are there in the States? Now if the almost brand new head had been sold in the UK (no, sorry, Holland!) Then we would get a better indication of demand.

John... Bacon fat is a good preserver of Iron!

Douglas: Worthless doorstops? Can you ship about 10 of them to New York? How much for the shipping costs do you think?

email (option): jonny.rudge@verizon.net

OK..let's look at this the other way round...what would the forum contributors think would be a fair price for a newly produced iron M20/21 head? ...Ian

email (option): julie@wright52.plus.com

A tough call but the previously-mentioned $80 would certainly be very fair. At any price up to $110(US) I would be up for three of them, iron, assuming they are fully machined.

email (option): jonny.rudge@verizon.net

Thats about the price I was thinking! (£80 ish)

email (option): davmax@ntlworld.com

Ian, I'm not sure if there's any practical value in it, but the idea of a brass/bronze head is appealing. Won't appeal to the purists, but it might find favour with the WD Philistines. Also, with one of those up top, I could pretend I've got the sporting "Ulster" model or something.

email (option): dannydefazio@sumpmagazine

I like the idea of bronze heads..far better cooling, though not quite as good as aluminium. No corrosion worth mentioning and with a coat of black paint you couldn't tell the difference (except the paint would stay on longer.) The problem is bronze is bloody expensive! ...Ian

email (option): julie@wright52.plus.com

I guess I'll just have to nip down to Halfords then and buy a can of gold spray paint then for my BSA M20 Ulster project.

email (option): dannydefazio@sumpmagazine

You'll need to find somewhere for the two extra valves as well Danny..they should fit in the toolbox ..Ian

email (option): julie@wright52.plus.com

It's an awful thought, and not one I'd necessarily recommend, but you'd get the heads cast at less than half price on the Indian sub-continent - leaving the machining to be done in the UK. It's hard sometimes to fight against market forces.

email (option): dannydefazio@sumpmagazine

Cast (caste?) in India?! Take me off the list!

email (option): jonny.rudge@verizon.net

as you say cast and fully machined the cost of the machining would depend on how good the casting is talking to a friend who runs a small engineering firm he say it could cost up to £90 to machine the head and more if it a bad casting there is the head gasket surface headbolt/plughole/timing hole and seats all got to be within certain tolarances