Soft in the Head.

I am certainly no authority when it comes to heat treating but I have been told a lot of modern production casting is quenched in the mold or goes directly from the mold to the quench without re-heating. Jim

There was a bunch of drivle about a batch or two of non heat treated soft Mk III heads in't press three decades or more ago .They missed the boat as workers at the pub , or suchlike ,

actually , someone was in a hurry , and demanding their heads , the unions being what they were then , mayve been some malicious delight involved .
Aside from that , one machineist with a grudge against the manadgement coudve cost the a fortune , long term . When did the three day weeek end .

Rip Van Winkle .

Compared to modern alloy heads all of the british alloy heads were soft any way, but they didn't suffer as much as the modern stuff when they were overheated, the new stuff losses alot of strenght very quickly, air cooled parts overheat very quickly when heated with a big gas torch don't they.

Livingstone ( Richard ) does allot gas welding , oxy acetylene . On old british stuff , unworriedly . But . . .

Rover P-4 manual has section on Gas Welding Aluminium shin repairs for keen types or repair outfits . . .

But a Kiln & a Gas Torch are two differant things , they cut up stuff with Gas Torches , in aircraft scrap yards .
Though these days they tend to use modern Steam Shovles , J C B s excavator thingos . Big holes in youre aeroplane .

Hillbillies can use tecniques like hippie potters to have a hearth / forge , bellows & the like . Saviored over a few days
with a bottle or two off . . . Er , yes , well . Not neccesary to have the new fangled aparatus for all heat treatment :lol: .