PRI Racing Trade Show To Attract Racers From 65 Countries
PRI will feature the latest advances in motorsports technology for all forms of auto racing, including sports car, stock car, drag, open wheel, formula, prototype, off-road, karting and more. Approximately 1100 companies will exhibit their new product lines for the 2012 race season in 3,200 booths. The whole event takes up 700,000 square feet. In
The Business Case For Buying a CNC Machine
Like a good chef, a good machinist does a lot by feel and experience. These things can’t be learned in a few hours or even days – it takes years. When it comes to CNC machines, sometimes the sum equals more than its parts – but many times the parts generate more than its sum.
How Piston Rings Affect Horsepower
The rings seal the pistons to prevent air and oil from being drawn past the rings into the combustion chamber during the intake stroke. During the compression stroke, the rings make sure the air/fuel stays in the combustion chamber and is fully compressed before it is ignited. During the power stroke, the rings prevent pressure
CNC?Head Porting & Machining Centers
The fact that CNC machines have come down in price over the years, coupled with less complicated interfacing systems means that today they can be used by nearly anyone. You don’t have to relearn everything. You don’t have to take endless courses on how to make a tool change. Today’s machines are sophisticated and savvy
Advanced Machine Tooling
The key to boosting productivity is to remove more metal in less time. However, faster cutting speeds and feeds require tooling inserts that can take the heat and abuse without dulling. To achieve these goals, tooling suppliers have come up with various cutter shapes, edge geometries and surface coatings that significantly improve tool performance and
Getting it Right
Mark Dodge, owner of Midwest Cylinder Head, can pinch a penny thin enough to see through (and maybe that keeps his businesses alive and well in poor economic times), so you can bet his choice was thoroughly researched and thought out. I wanted to see what this unit was all about and so arranged to
CNC Machines for Heavy-Duty or Industrial Engines
On one hand, automating certain commonly performed machining processes means you only have to do the initial setup once and the machine does the rest. It frees up the machine operator to do something else, and it reduces the risk of human error when doing tedious, repetitive tasks. On the other hand, making the transition
Head and Block Surfacing Equipment Update
How smooth is smooth enough? You used to be able to tell by dragging your fingernail across the surface of a cylinder head or engine block. And besides, it didn’t really matter because the composite head gasket would fill any gaps that your equipment or technique left behind. But with MLS gaskets the requirements have
Valve Seat & Guide Equipment Selection
Cylinder head work is one of the mainstays of any engine building operation, and these components often require valve guide and seat work to restore them for service or to improve performance. In order for a valve to seat correctly, for efficiency and power, engine builders must replace or bring back to spec all valve
CNC Machining: Making Dollars and Sense
"For the first time, we saw people who weren’t overwhelmed by the concept of CNC machines,” Matt Meyer said about the recent PRI trade show. “This was the first year that most people really seemed to know what they were looking at and understood that CNC machines are a viable part of the automotive machine
GM’s 6.5L Diesel Engine
The 6.5L GM diesel engine was introduced in 1992 to replace the 6.2L diesel engine and was in turn replaced by GM’s Duramax 6600 in 2001. On the surface it would appear that the story of the 6.5L diesel would end here, right? Well, that wouldn’t make much of an article. In actuality, production of
Honing Stones & Equipment
The finish on the cylinder walls is critical for proper piston ringlubrication and sealing. The bore geometry is also important, and mustbe round, cylindrical and straight for optimum sealing and minimumblowby. The equipment used to hone cylinders has changed in recent years as thedemand for better surface finishes, faster cycle times and lowerproduction costs have
From Block Work to Manufacturing – CNC Machines Wear Many Hats
From a shop owner’s perspective, a good employee is one who’s never late, is extremely productive and never asks for a raise. Enter the perfect employee: the multi-purpose computer numeric controlled (CNC) machine center can do the work of several employees and never complain about it. There is no doubt that today’s machine shops must
Machine Maintenance: The Flywheel Grinder – Getting To Know Your Shop Profit Pal
[email protected] In the last edition of “Machine Maintenance” I challenged you to tell me who introduced the first portable boring bar to the automotive aftermarket. I must admit that I was impressed by the number of responses I received. Here’s the answer: Rottler Manufacturing from Kent, WA.It seems that the founding father of Rottler was
Machine Maintenance: There’s Nothing Boring About Boring Bar Maintenance
You know the feeling: the machine you want, you can’t afford, and the machine you can afford you already have. Don’t you wish, just once, you could call up the sales representative and say “My turn, send me one of those new ‘XYZ’ machines?” You know the kind, the new state-of-the-art machining center that can
Coretalk: New Brochure, Poster And Web Site Promote The Benefits of ‘Repowering’
Limited quantities of the “Serious Engine Trouble?” brochure are available to industry professionals by contacting ERC at [email protected]. “The new brochure encourages motorists to talk with their automotive technician and consider all of their options when faced with major engine trouble,” said ERC Chairman Tom Schrader. “Often times, choosing to repower the current engine is
How To Eat an Elephant
Over the past 13 years, readers of this magazine have come to expect creativity, innovation and a healthy “gee whiz” factor from the annual Machine Shop of the Year Award winners. From technical expertise to absolute professionalism, the winners of this prestigious award have been great representatives of this industry. New last year at MMM&P
Line Boring Equipment: A Boring Subject?
But as the British philosopher Bertrand Russell noted, "Change is one thing; progress is another." While some might say the basic techniques for line boring main and cam bearing bores in engine blocks hasn’t changed much in 30 years others say that isn’t such a bad thing. A horizontal boring bar with cutters mounted on
Head and Block Resurfacing
Resurfacing cylinder heads and engine blocks is an essential aspect of engine building today, whether the work is being done by a production engine rebuilder, a high performance specialist or small custom shop. Bimetal engines, multi-layer steel (MLS) head gaskets and tighter assembly tolerances make accurate surfacing more critical than ever before. The key to
What Are The Costs?
In the equipment industry, it’s a similar situation. Change and development have been furious. Advancements in technology have made nearly every step of the rebuilding process more exact than ever, which has made it easier for shops to meet the ever-tightening tolerances and reach OE specifications. But these advancements haven’t come without their costs, both