@FordDoctor @TooManyToys
@Corey@CNCFAB

These lines tell me they are not made in the USA

These are Brand New DK Engine Parts' Cylinder Heads machined and assembled in Georgia. The complete assembly process is done in house and gone through numerous quality control checks before they leave our facility. This particular set comes with a Set of 8 New Injectors from PurePower. PurePower Technologies is the leader in engineering and remanufacturing of diesel fuel injectors, turbos and fuel management components for OEMs and the aftermarket, having produced more than 30 million precision diesel fuel injectors since 1999. With the capability to custom-design any diesel fuel injector and turbo for the reman market, we also have the flexibility to scale to any size production program - from small lots to full OE launches. PurePower is TS 16949 quality certified. DIESEL FUEL INJECTORS ✓ Less than 0.2% warranty rate. ✓ Improved end-cap assemblies with cold start fix. ✓ Precision-matched control valve and spool to minimize oil leakage and maximize horsepower. ✓ Nozzle flow testing process to like-new performance. ✓ Intensifier body and plunger matched to eliminate fuel dilution. ✓ New connectors, O-rings, hardware and springs. ✓ OE design and development expertise.

About Us - DK Engine Parts LLC

With over 35 years of combined experience in the automotive and diesel industry, DK Engine Parts, a veteran owned and operated company, is your trusted supplier for internal engine parts. Whether you are looking for nuts and bolts or a complete engine, DK Engine Parts can ship what you need...

dkengineparts.com

 

Hartwig and I have been talking about this on FTE. It's unbelievable all the issues he has gone through trying to repair this customer's engine. Parts quality, shipping issues. And if that is not bad enough, being in Germany, he has to pay a high shipping rate and taxes. Finding a problem when you open the box is quite frustrating and expensive.

While I've worked on vehicles and engines since I was 12, 56 years now, and have a career in automotive engineering, I come from the experience of 1 6.0L. I don't have direct experience with DK. For myself, it's not a company I would have bought from, especially heads. But he has confidence in a supplier that I don't.

I thought DK heads were Chinese bare castings assembled in the USA.

I think his option will be to work the heads as best he can, clearing up the issues. Considering his ability, I always thought he should have worked the heads from his customer's truck. They had fewer miles than mine.

 

Jack, in fact I had thought about rebuilding the original heads myself.
But the truck is permamnent hooked up to a heavy 5th wheeler. Therefore I wanted o-ringed heads. I didn't have measurements for the size and position of the o-ring in the heads, so I had decided to buy new heads. Financially it would have been the same result.
Only now I have paid a lot of money for bungling, which of course annoys me.
I paid 13K to the seller, for this I would have expected some effort.
Except for a short statement until today, neither he, nor DK has responded.

 

Dang...that sucks! I wouldn't be happy with that either!

-jokester

 

Hartwig, I did realize you did it for the o-rings, and I totally understand. The one good thing, now you can take measurements of them and their placement. There is a company that makes a bolt-on tool to make the grooves, which is not inexpensive.

It would have been great if someone could have given you the dimensions, either a vendor or someone about to install the heads.

A sale of $13k for parts; I would expect them to jump through hoops too.

For those wondering what it costs to buy a 6.0L head out of China:

Ford 6.0 Heads - Durable Diesel Cylinder Solutions

Discover ford 6.0 heads for 2003-2007 F-250, F-350 with 18mm/20mm dowel pins. Cast iron, 32-valve V8, ISO/TS16949 certified. Perfect fit for 6.0L Powerstroke engines.

www.alibaba.com

There are several sellers from there, all with about the same pricing. All with ZERO trust from me.


You are not alone, Hartwig. A review from a Powerstroke Products head.

 

I believe if I were in the same situation I may consider trying to get a complete refund and stay away from their product all together due to total dissatisfaction with their product and service. I hope you get a resolution that makes you whole.

 

Shipping from Germany to US is too expensive. In addition, there is a risk that they will be damaged during transport back to the US, so I would still have to take out insurance.
Actually, it wouldn't matter if they were damaged, but the seller would say the heads didn't leave his store that way back then.
This knows both, DK and the seller from which I had the heads.
Here are the shipping cost of the wooden box the heads were in within the USA.
In addition the transport to Germany (Bremerhafen) + the transport within Germany to me (South Germany). On top of all this the customs duties and import fees.

 

thats the route id take, if they were/are non-responsive then i'd file a dispute with my cc company and let them handle it (if you paid with a cc)

 

I think I know which vendor you are referring to. That is sad.

 

I think I know, too, and I had the same bad experience a long time ago despite the popularity.

Obviously, he does not want to reveal it, and I understand.

It's not as simple for Hartwig, guys. These were shipped to Germany and paid the customs fees, which are hefty.

 

Assuming you get no help from them, I would post on all of the forums and social media sites, and contact as many "big" name sources as I could and let them know about DK heads. Starting with folks that endorsed them like enginebuildermag.com. It is articles like theirs that gets companies like DKEngineParts their reputation.

\\Jarvis Kustoms’ 6.0L Powerstroke

Best 6.0 Powerstroke Heads – Expert Review and Guide - Paperblog

Today, we’re talking about the Powerstroke — an engine that has, over the years, gained a loyal fan following. Its use in popular Ford trucks is largely responsible for it.

en.paperblog.com

Best Reviews - We Analyzed

Find The Best In Everything Data-Driven Shopping Technology Finding the right product is always a challenge. The market is full of products that are not good enough to be used and those that are too

bestreviews.tips

 

There is always a chance Hartwig got the runt of the litter.

Mag articles are kind of weird, IMO. I typically go by the writer rather than the mag. At work, we used to get many trade magazines; Brake and Front End comes to mind. Good, truthful stories and others with many issues seemed to be written to get ads. If you run across a Larry Carly article, it has a good foundation. I also met him and had discussions. Much in his brake articles came from industry brake engineers, not salesmen.

One of the best writers I used to follow in my early motorcycle days was Joe Milton. I still have copies of his articles from 50 years ago. When he evaluated a product, he gave an honest assessment. He was primarily an instructor at a trade school; he eventually "retired" from writing when mag advertisers got PO'd too much.

Neither of those articles I would have much faith in. Reading several of Greg Jone's storied from there, fluff writer. And as we know, I'm jaded about the aftermarket side of the business.

 

From the same seller from which I have these bad DK heads, I also ordered a few months ago the ICON heads from KDD and especially already paid (!) .
On the one hand, I want to test them, on the other hand, they seem to be of a quality that I want.
The DK heads had not arrived at that time when I ordered and paid for the KDD heads from the same seller.

Due to the long lead time of several months, I finally decided to buy the heads from the seller. That these are from DK, I did not know and I was not told. I was only assured that the heads are good and they have never had problems with them, and above all they were immediately available.
This statement was decisive for me to buy the "problem" heads.

 

I suspect they will delete it on their Facebook page.

 

A machined head should have been protected with cosmoline thoroughly before shipping and obviously these were not. Looks like they got wet during shipping. Hopefully you get some sort of dialogue going with the seller to make this right.

 

I don't think they got wet. If they had, there would have been more rust. And that would not account for the metal debris left in the fuel passages.

 

Yes that would not account for debris. The springs sure look like they got wet though.

 

You might be mistaking the yellow ink. You can find valve springs color coated for their spring rate by the spring manufacturer or by the rebuilder at delivery, so the assembly crew does not mix them, i.e., 100lb, 120lb, 140lb.

My Ford factory 20mm service heads have a white mark on all springs and other marks for inspection of the keepers and installation - from the factory. I've seen the same on many engines.

 

Unfortunately, I am still being kept in the dark by KDD. Both for the ICONs, as well as for the iron cast heads.
I now have another set of 20mm DK heads here.
This time these seem to are pretty good as far as I can tell so far, I unpacked one head and checked if there is any dirt in the channels.
I will measure the valve recession and check the flatness in the next days.
There are small chips/residues in the intake ports of all places, probably from manufacturing.
I would also like 100% clean sleeves for the injectors.
Probably the small particles would not cause any damage, but I personally do not want to install something like this uncleaned.
The frost plugs are 28mm, not 32mm like the current original heads.

 

Hartwig, we might be thinking alike; I would disassemble the valves and clean the heads with solvents and blow them dry if your air has a drier on it. I built a simple holder that I keep around so everything stays in order. I'm a woodhead, but you'll probably build the Panzer version if you haven't already.

 

Hartwig, we might be thinking alike; I would disassemble the valves and clean the heads with solvents and blow them dry if your air has a drier on it. I built a simple holder that I keep around so everything stays in order. I'm a woodhead, but you'll probably build the Panzer version if you haven't already.

View attachment 790183

 

I have checked the flatness of the DK heads and have not found any issues in this aspect.

the surface roughness is also ok.

what bothers me about the DK heads are the dirt particles I find everywhere, mostly magnetic, small cast particles. If you don't want to work as cleanly as I do, these particles are pulled through the combustion chamber during the first engine starts, and I personally want to avoid this.

The casting in the channels is quite rough

DK sends Mahle HGs with its heads, at least that was written by hand on the packaging. I think they are Victor Reinz HGs.
I have installed them, whether they hold, time will tell.
On me, the Felpros I had installed on the last engine, make a better impression, I think the Felpros are processed higher quality.

With the DK heads, the o-ring diameter is 115mm. The groove on the gasket has a larger diameter, the o-ring presses therefore inside the groove on the gasket.

If I get the opportunity to install o-rings myself, I will definitely NOT install the o-rings as they are installed on these heads. The ring gap points in the direction of the adjacent cylinder. Personally, I don't think it's an optimal solution to have the ring gap point into the most sensitive part of the seal.

 

Good job pointing out issues, Hartwig. I concur on gap placement and gap diameter. My understanding is the o-ring should be outside of the spring fold ideally. That keeps the gasket in the weakest area, between the cylinders, from moving side to side and abrading the sealant and eventually compromising the seal at the highest pressures.

For those who live imperial, the Ra is 14.527 µin, and the Rz is 379.6 µin.

Hartwig, while I agree the Ra (roughness average over the entire surface) is in an excellent range, the Rz says the surface does have a broader peak to valley consistent in the surface. The rule of thumb I was taught was the standard differential should be no more than 6 to 8 times the Ra value. It's a bit "grippier", but it also is more abrasive should the gasket more sideways.

The abrasiveness is why I think Ford went to state not to have heads machined, as the normal aftermarket shops can get in the 50+µin Ra and 360+µin Rz range.

Both the Mahle and Fel-Pro gaskets state they use a sealant that is good up to the aftermarket 60 µin Ra / 360 µin Rz roughness. Victor-Reinz is the aftermarket of DANA, not part of Mahle. But since the part number on the gaskets is a Mahle part number, they might private label the gasket and have Mahle or themselves stamp the VR insignia on it. VRs part number when ordering is different.

Supporting screenshots that I had in some of my videos - maybe additional; I didn't put everything in the videos.

 

If I had installed the rings, the gap would be at the blue location. Further away from cooling passages and nearby sources of heat and pressure.

 

If I had installed the rings, the gap would be at the blue location. Further away from cooling passages and nearby sources of heat and pressure.





View attachment 790345

You can see it in the film. The guy starts at the point where I would start using the steel wire. Jack and I have posted about this video elsewhere. The equipment in the video is very expensive and not profitable for the few vehicles I have here. If I had the exact parameters, I would mill the grooves on the CNC milling machine.
To tap in the wire I would use a copper hammer or nylon hammer, not as seen in the video with a steel hammer.

 

I was editing the post above.

 

I like the placement of the wire like these guys who sell the grooving jig use

 

I would have preferred to see them using a plastic hammer.