August 2022 Shop Solutions - Engine Builder Magazine

August 2022 Shop Solutions

August tips and tricks for the shop!

STOP THE FLOW

I line up the oil stream on my rod machine to where I want to stop the stroke. I try to over stroke approximately 1/2 of the rod width to keep the shoes from wearing unevenly.

Randy Torvinen
Torvinen’s Machine Shop
Menahga, MN

O’RING END STOP

When honing some parts on the rod machine, I use an o-ring on the mandrel as a visual end stop for proper over stroke. This really helps on things like motorcycle cases and multi-rod assemblies to ensure proper mandrel over-stroke coverage. It also helps with pistons when they’re upside down and you can’t see the inside end of the stone.

Ron Flood
Cedar Machine
North Branch, MN

THREAD DEPTH MARKER

When tapping tapered pipe thread for oil or coolant passage plugs in blocks and cylinder heads,
it is important not to tap too shallow nor too deep. A length of soft copper wire, twisted around the tap,
works much better than tape or a Sharpie mark to indicate the proper depth.
The copper wire stays in-place for hundreds of uses, saving engine builders time and frustration.

Tom Nichols
Automotive Machine & Supply
Joshua, TX 

FINDING YOUR CENTER

One of the most challenging jobs is the 302-351W cylinder head stud removal that fastens down the intake manifold. It rusts and sits at an angle, which makes it almost impossible to center a drill bit for removal. The solution is to drive a 1/4-inch roll pin under the cylinder head, this will make passing a 5/32 drill bit through perfectly centered. Then you can try an “easy-out” or an E-drill bit to get most of the material left. Then pass the 5/16 tap, as shown in the picture.

Luis Guzman
Technomotors
El Paso, TX

INSTALLER EXTENSION

The harmonic balancers on the 5.0L Fords are deep and need extra space. I used a small PVC pipe coupler to extend the reach of the installer. It is cheap, lightweight and works great.

Pete Ross
Petes Car Care
Rochester, IL

FITTING IN A SIZE SMALLER

After file-fitting piston rings to get the perfect end gaps, we need to remove all burrs left from the filing process. Despite all our best efforts, sometimes we install a ring on the piston and still notice a little drag when testing for rotation. I like to test fit my ring chamfering and rotation on a smaller bore piston with the same ring thickness to check for drag so that I am not removing, reinstalling and overextending the rings for a second time if I must touch up my ring chamfer.  

Dave Matton
D and D Auto Machine
Bloomington, MN

You May Also Like

Shop Solutions February 2023

Check out February’s shop tips and tricks.

Engine and machine shop tips and tricks.

Dowel Removal

This is an easy and clean way to remove hollow dowel pins found in connecting rods or mains. Start tapping the I.D of the dowel with an NPT tap. Once it starts to cut, it will spin the dowel, and with upward pressure, the dowel can be removed and reused.

Shop Solutions January 2023

Next time you have set of large journal small block Chevy connecting rods to resize, consider honing the big ends of them for a +.002” outside diameter bearing that the LS engines with fracture cap rods use.

Shop Solutions December 2022

Everyone misses occasionally, and this helps avoid dents and damage.

November 2022 Shop Solutions

November tricks and tips for the shop!

Shop Solutions October 2022

When machining on the CNC mill, it’s necessary to blow the flood coolant and chips off the parts for inspection. I tried a tool holder mounted fan, but it wouldn’t get all the chips and coolant out of the deeper areas.

Other Posts

Sandy Wilkins Invites Us to Tour Wilkins Racing Engines

When we were in Mooresville, NC this summer, we kept seeing signs for Wilkins Racing Engines, so we took the hint and stopped at the shop to check it out. Shop owner Sandy Wilkins invited us in and we were not disappointed! This engine machine shop does a number of different things for several racing

A Better Way to Remove Valve Springs

Danny Soliz of Hill Country Performance & Machine has a lot of tricks up his sleeve to make engine work a little easier. He’s great at working smarter not harder, and in this latest video he shows you a great way to remove valve springs and keep some of those valvetrain components organized. Related Articles

EB Takeover: TKM Performance

The team at TKM Performance invites you on a tour of their Denton, NC engine and machine shop in our latest Instagram Takeover. Lots of cool engine work going on here! https://www.tkmperformance.com Related Articles – Pro Motor Engines’ LS3 Engine Build for TA2 Racing – Harrell Engine & Dyno Shop Tour – How to Clean

EB Takeover: Mesa Balancing Racing Engines

We’ve been following Mesa Balancing Racing Engines and shop owner Lazaro Mesa for a number of years now, and the shop’s engine work never ceases to amaze us. We recently got Laz to takeover our Instagram account (@enginebuildermag) and showcase Mesa Balancing live. Join him on a tour of the shop to see what Mesa