Guide and Seat Equipment
Cylinder head work has been and should continue to be a profit center for engine builders. Heads almost always require guide and seat work to restore compression and oil control. This includes drilling, reaming and replacing valve guides, removing worn, loose or damaged valve seats, cutting new seat counterbores, and machining valve seats. For performance
Researching the Rebuilding Market for Multi-Valve Cylinder Heads
Cylinder head work has provided a good income for many of our readers over the years. All engines eventually need a valve job and guide work if they accumulate enough miles. Head work may also be needed if an engine overheats and blows a head gasket, if the head develops a crack, or an OHC
Building Drag Racing Cylinder Heads
One thing every drag racer wants is to go faster – even bracket racers. There are lots of ways to shave tenths of seconds and even whole seconds off an elapsed time. It all comes down to how much money the racer is willing to spend in his quest for speed. One way to go
Cylinder Bore Refinishing with Honing Tools
By ring friendly, we mean a finish that provides good support for the rings, retains oil and does not require a lengthy break-in period. For most engines today, a ring-friendly finish means a plateau finish. A plateau bore finish is what all types of rings eventually produce when they are fully seated, so the closer
Surfacing Equipment For Today’s Engines
The surfacing needs of today’s engines are as complex as the engines themselves. Multi-valve aluminum cylinder heads on cast iron blocks are a tough combination to seal because of the difference in expansion rates between the two metals. If the surface finishes on the head and block are too rough, lateral shearing forces which occur
Pushrods – Key To Performance
Pushrods are the weakest link in the upper valvetrain. Pushrods transfer and redirect the upward motion of the lifters, which goes in one direction, to the rocker arms which move in another direction. Consequently, they are subjected to bending forces as the load and engine speed increases. For stock engines, mild steel stock pushrods are
The New Sport Compact Market
The most popular nameplates are imports such as Honda, Acura and Mitsubishi, but coming on fast are Nissan, Toyota, Mazda, Subaru and Volkswagen – plus domestic models such as Ford Focus, Dodge Neon and even Chevy Cavalier. Nobody is abandoning the small block Chevy or any of the other V8s that have traditionally been the
Oil Pumps: The Heart of the Engine
The oil pump is literally the heart of an engine
Valve Guide Reconditioning
A valve loses about 15 to 30 percent of its heat through the stem. On the exhaust side where there is no cooling effect from the incoming air/fuel mixture, the guides are critical, because cooling through the stem is especially important for valve longevity. Worn intake guides or ones with too much clearance can also
Align Yourself
The crankshaft main bores are the foundation of every engine block. The alignment of the main bores is important because their position establishes the centerline of the crankshaft and how the crank aligns with the cylinders, deck surfaces and camshaft. Misalignment in the main bores can cause binding and premature main bearing wear. Misalignment occurs
Piston Rings and Sealing
Though piston rings haven