Valve Seat Selection, Finishing & Materials
Over time, erosion and corrosion can eat away at the metal resulting in compression leaks, elevated valve temperatures and sometimes valve failure. If a valve seat insert doesn’t have the correct amount of interference fit in the cylinder head, it’s possible the seat may loosen up and fall out damaging the valve, head and piston.
A Million Here, A Million There
First, Fisher’s a former winning sprint car driver running with the top-gun World of Outlaws and All-Star groups. Then, there’s the fact that he’s got the mind of a skilled surgeon when he probes the innards of his engines looking for more performance. The guy is a graduate engineer (Ohio State – 1975), but his
Cracked Cylinder Head Repair
It seems as if many cylinder heads are doomed to crack from the very start because of their lightweight construction and design. Aluminum overhead cam (OHC) heads, in particular, are often found to be warped as well as cracked. But so too are many pushrod cast iron heads. Cracks are often blamed as the cause
Roush Yates and Rottler Manufacturing Announce Production Partnership
Roush Yates Performance Engine Group offers new engines as well as engine performance upgrades covering more than 60 different engine types, including Sprint Car (360 and 410), Dirt Late Model, Asphalt Late Model, Modified, Drag Racing, Off-Road, general performance (resto-mod), and road racing. “We are excited about our partnership with Roush Yates Performance Engine Group,”
Booth Visits Remind Us Why We
There’s something to be said for stability and as we come to the last issue of 2011, I’d like to thank all of our long-time readers and advertisers for their continued support of Engine Builder magazine. Since we can’t physically come to each of your shops to do it, I’m instead sending out a virtual
Mike Pulk Retires from Goodson, Roque Named President
Pulk joined Goodson in 1996 when he took on the role of senior manager for operations, and in 2008 he was promoted to company president. During his tenure, Pulk oversaw the purchase and integration of Mach-B Grinding Wheel Shaping and Resizing as a division of Goodson. He also attended many industry trade shows and says
Cam Drives and Timing Components
Cam timing plays a huge role in an engine’s power curve. Advancing cam timing shifts the power curve more toward the lower rpm range, while retarding it moves the power curve higher up the rpm scale. If an engine is being built for a particular application (stock, street/strip, drag race, circle track, you-name-it), how the
Smooth Moves: Today’s Surfaces Often Demand Different Finishes
When multi-layer steel (MLS) head gaskets became commonplace a number of years ago, there was a lot of concern that aftermarket surfacing procedures might not be able to reproduce the mirror-like finish that the vehicle manufacturers said was absolutely necessary to seal MLS head gaskets. The challenge was to duplicate the factory finish using out-dated
EQ Names New General Manager and National Accounts Manager
As general manager, Cabral will oversee sales, marketing and purchasing for EQ. She has more than 25 years of aftermarket experience, including 18 years at Bonded Motors, an engine builder based in the Los Angeles area and four years at SMP Sales/Don Gross Sales. She has worked at AAEQ since 2006 in purchasing and administration.
Valves, Guides and Seat Materials and Selection
Ginsu knives became a household name by blasting infomercials showing how their superior steel blades could cut through a shoe and then slice a tomato paper-thin. The blades would bend and flex and never lose their sharpness. Millions of homeowners bought the knives; however, you would be hard-pressed to find an executive chef who used
VP Racing Fuels, Superflow Technologies Announce Strategic Partnership
SuperFlow Technologies Group has announced a multi-year agreement with VP Racing Fuels whereby SuperFlow factory technicians will test all new engine dynamometers prior to shipment exclusively with VP’s C12 racing fuel. “The partnership with VP is very exciting because although we sell very different products, our goal is the same – to produce repeatable products
When You
Unfortunately, a lot of engine rebuilders and remanufacturers seem to question the value of membership as well, and they’re needlessly working too hard. Businesses are usually encouraged by profitability experts to band together with similar companies in their industry. Not to set prices or steal employees, mind you, but to share experiences, trade war stories
Cleaning Cylinder Heads and Blocks
The cleaning process should remove all of the dirt, grease, oil, rust, scale and carbon deposits that have accumulated over the years. With painted castings, the old paint also has to be stripped away so the surface can be repainted. Even if you’re working with brand new castings, a final cleaning is still necessary after
Running To Stand Still: Natural Gas and Diesel Power Generation Markets
Turns out, many engine builders are experts at building for applications that don’t move as well. And there’s a wide-open market for power system units that either run an electrical generator or power another system such as an irrigation pump through a power take off (PTO) shaft. While there are a number of large, established
Tips for Hotter Street & Strip Performance
Long’s HO Enterprises Performance Auto (www.hoenterprisesclassics.com) in Birnamwood, WI, sells hot rod parts, but his once traditional view on performance is changing as he sees his sons working on late-model imported cars with port fuel injection and “coffee can” exhausts. “Yeah, I think it’s all electronics now, but at least they’re car guys” Long points
Racing Oils
As a motorhead physicist, I get to look at engine lubrication from theviews of both an oil formulator and an engine failure analysis expert.Since I used nitromethane fuels when I raced funny cars, I’ve seen morethan my share of engine failures. I’ve also formulated oils for usewith alcohol and nitro burning engines, but let’s leave
Performance Lifters, Pushrods and Valve Springs
Low friction roller lifters replaced flat tappet lifters many years ago in stock production engines, but there are still plenty of hot flat tappet cams bumping the valves open in vintage muscle cars, street rods and race cars. Even NASCAR is still using flat tappet cams to actuate the valves. The advantage of flat tappet
2011 Machine Shop Market Profile – Part 1
For what seems like an eternity, it has almost become commonplace to wait for the eye roll, the shake of the head and the hangdog expression before hearing the familiar refrain, “Oh, man, let me tell you…” In the engine building business, of course, the standard response industry-wide has, for many years, been simple:?Lousy. Numbers
Does Ignition Tuning Still Matter? Things You Need To Know
Spark plugs never foul out anymore, and the old term “it’s breaking up at high rpm” has literally disappeared from the racer’s vernacular. And now thanks to digital electronics, even the spark advance curve can be programmed on a laptop computer instead of adjusting weights and springs that fly around inside of a distributor. How
Oiling Systems For Grassroots Racing
One of the first things to look at when building an engine is the oiling system. Dry sump systems are very scalable and efficient but are not known to be inexpensive by any means. Wet sump systems, on the other hand, offer affordability and can handle some impressive performance applications, but using all stock components