Review on Enhance Performance with Edelbrock 50169 Assembled Cylinder Head by Darnell Nahabet

I've bought one back and forth. It's not cheap, and there are good "upgraded" cast heads available for cheaper. I lightened my TJ with aluminum plates and other lightweight parts, and when Jeep went on a diet I settled on a Edelbrock head. Torque, weight savings and reliability are all goals of my build. Jeep has a 4.88 speed transmission and 35 inch tires. The current engine setup is a K&N filter and a short intake manifold. Edelbrock head, Comp Cams Xtreme 4x4 cams with appropriate lifters, pushrods, etc. You will need a later intake ('98+ IIRC) for this head and an earlier exhaust manifold ('97- IIRC) or just run the manifold. Seems odd but when Edelbrock designed this they wanted it to work on any AMC/Block jeep but use the best replacement parts available so you can get the best out of it. Personally I would prefer to use stock headers but they do wouldn't work with my cats. Rather than risk ruining the check engine light with factory cats and oxygen sensors, I opted for a manifold. I may re-evaluate this later, but for now I'm happy with this setup. It's light, probably twice as light as the original I'm thinking 30-40 pounds lighter than the front axle and it makes it easier to install without dragging the motor. This is great compensation for the weight you add with the winch.2. You can switch all the lifts without jerking your head. It was possible with some old heads, but not with new ones. I like that Edelbrock edited it so you can swap cams without pulling your head out. (Flex head magnetic gripper and lifter puller make changing jaws much easier). Not that I saw any ads anywhere, but I think it's a great feature if you want to make changes later.3. Valves and springs are set for standard length tappets. That's fine as it uses stiffer LS springs that don't soar above 4500 rpm like stockers do when paired with a more aggressive cam. This is a single spring configuration so there is no need to remove the inner spring if the cam breaks. Another little thing that simplifies the installation and configuration.4. Excellent quality. Very good machining, perfect fit, all holes seem to have spiral inserts already installed which is nice. It won't turn your straight 6 into a fire-breathing monster. It will not repeat the LS swap (nor will your stroker). 6. I don't think you will get much by just installing this head yourself. It needs a cam to make the most of its combustion chambers. Exhaust and intake modifications, as well as a larger TB and heavier injectors should allow it to reach its full potential. I would end up buying it again and am very happy with the performance of my slow rig.