I know it's a panhead lower-end with "shovel" heads, but why is that considered good? The motors look cool as hell, but aren't shovel bottom-ends better than pans? Is the popularity really just about how cool they look?

Z

 

Shovelheads flow better than pans in stock vs stock.More easily found if looking for heads as well as cheaper to buy.Better valves,cooling fins dont crack off as easily,leaks are controlled better etc.Shovelhead botom is stronger than pans esp when compared to early cases.

 

Lessee, '66-69 shovels had the same bottom end as '58/9-65 pans. Some changes but not enough to worry about. As he stated above it was just a performance upgrade. A Panhead is a way prettier motor. Just as a knuckle has the most masculine look.

 

In reality the pan head ended in 1965 shovel started 1966 It's got to be shovel till 1984 am I right?

 

You could buy a shovel or Evo in '84. Rumor has it a very few shovels were made in '85.

 

When looking at shovel heads be careful as many at swap meets will cost you more to repair correctly then a new set. They are prone to cracking inthe guide area some cracks can be seen , others you will not se until you take apart the head. Welding the head up can be costly to the point of not worth the money, as well the seats are good for a few cuts if the seats have been cut too much you end up replacing seats, add that to welding the head..... Look at the inserts as well to ensure the head has not been cut toof far or that the inserts are loose. The insert should be counter bored in the head, often they get cut and the insert is flush that is ok but you may find that there is little left in the insert for holding power.

The pan is a good engine if built correctly, and care taken when the build is done but many are tossed together with mis matched parts only to sell them off to someone who is not aware that the engine is junk. If you cannot hear it run better to pass on it, if at a swap meet. Also check for paper on the engine and that all numbers match. Tons of shovels for salw with no paper. We just built a 103 stroker shovel that runs great but would not be my first choice for longveity.

Power wise a good running shov is no sluch set up correctly they make great engines for custom builds as they have a cool factor about them. I am a knuck fan but they get spendy very fast. Hard to beat a soild running 80 inch evo for a build. Dont over look the sporty engines for builds as wel. I know off topic but we do sporty bobbers and they run like stink. A small frame and a good running sporty will move down the road but fast. Iron heads well they are more trouble from what I have seen, for some reason they seemed to have had a rougher life than most other engines.


A term that has been used for the evo lower with a shov top end is a shovelution rather a slang term but you get the point.

 

ok pan/shovels upping

 

Your talking about something from over 50 years ago. When shovel heads came out, they flowed better than pan heads, so some guys swapped them to their pan bottoms. I bought an old school chopper with one. They are cool, but just from a time from long ago. I can tell you will dump a ton of money into them rebuilding them correctly.

Dave

 

truth told, the shovel heads did not flow very well either. having both, not much diff. the shovel did have better electrics and did not mark there territory as much. the trannies were better. yes, it seems the older machines did have more curb appeal. i sure miss the 74fxe, the 62 pan not so much. basically the same, love my 74ch but the k model sucked, lack-luster and leaked like crazy. the 01 sport is a hoot!

 

True fact