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B20 Valve Spring Retainers - Alu vs Stahl?

fatcatbestcat

Professional Hack
Joined
Oct 1, 2019
Location
Mississauga, ON (Canada)
Hello again,

Here with a question somewhat relevant to my build... although probably a fairly simple one.

I'd like to rev my B20 past 6000 rpm at some point in the future, and I figure that I'm going to have to ditch the stock valve springs if I want even a hope of achieving that.

So that brings me to IPD double springs (which I think are from Iske?), and their retainers. The two choices seem to be the black steel ones, or the fancy gold aluminum (aluminium?) ones.

https://www.ipdusa.com/products/631...-valve-springs-b20-ipd-100819?crumbs=P0,P6312

https://www.ipdusa.com/products/847...-retainer-double-valve-springs-b18-ipd-100820

Does anyone have any experience with these? Which would be better for a regular street build?
 
You don't really have a choice. The aluminum retainers are for B18 heads with an 11/32" valve stems. The steel retainers are for B20's with 5/16" stems.
 
You don't really have a choice. The aluminum retainers are for B18 heads with an 11/32" valve stems. The steel retainers are for B20's with 5/16" stems.

Easy enough answer.

Partially asking because someone is trying to scare me away from aluminum parts...something something metal fatigue.

So... B18 and B20 valves use completely different valves? This is news to me.
 
We destroyed road race datsun engines due to aluminum retainers. After that i warned a coworker about using them in a TVR (triumph 6). That ended poorly, too.
 
Easy enough answer.

Partially asking because someone is trying to scare me away from aluminum parts...something something metal fatigue.

So... B18 and B20 valves use completely different valves? This is news to me.

Yeah. I'm not a fan of aluminum retainers unless they are getting inspected constantly.

You can also get conversion valve guides to that a 5/16" valve can be used on a b18 head.
 
Well, I suppose that settles it. Steel it is.

Any reason you would want the lighter retainers?

If you were building an all out race motor that gets inspected after each race, they might be worth it. I'd personally choose a different spring and retainer package.

Lighter retainers and valve train components are always a good idea. There are plenty of light weight steel retainer and spring packages out there. Of course you can also use titanium retainers, these are cheaper than most people think.

For the rev range that you are talking about, there is no need for anything but a slightly better valve spring setup. In my pushrod v8 car, I can rev to 7500rpm using hydraulic lifters with double springs and steel retainers. The car uses nothing fancy.
 
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