Engine Builder Shop Solutions: July 2012
Olds V8 Distributor Gear Lubrication Problems When building an Oldsmobile V8, especially a performance engine with a high volume oil pump, it is a must to drill a small squirter hole in the rear galley plug by the distributor gear. A hole .025? to .050? in diameter will do wonders for gear lubrication and save
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: June 2012
Reducing Vibrations And Chatter Vibrations when machining with extended length setups can not only cause chatter and premature tool failure, but also reduce spindle bearing life and lead to poor surface finish, dimensional control issues and premature tool wear. Shops are often forced to reduce cutting parameters to avoid chatter, decreasing productivity. Chatter occurs when
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: May 2012
Why Engine Valves Break The following are some of the most common reasons why engine valves break. This information is courtesy of Basso S.A., a manufacturer of engine valves for original equipment and aftermarket customers. Break between valve head and stem: Cause: Repeated stress to valve stem Contributing Factors: - Weak springs -
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: April 2012
Cold Air Tool Cooling For Machining We have been using cold air cooling in our shop for cast iron machining for several years. It does several things: it keeps the tool cool without the use of wet coolant, it blows away the dry chips, and it eliminates having the mess of coolant everywhere. Also, we
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: March 2012
Transferring Gaskets For Intake Port Matching I have found an effective way to transfer the gasket to the intake manifold without losing the “port location.” First, have the completed long block with the heads and its ports finished. Next, do all the pre-fitting of the gaskets and manifolds or “mock-up” work. Make any machining or
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: February 2012
The Perfect Pilot With the increasingly smaller valve stem diameters it is getting harder than ever to get an air-floated, self-centering, single point, multi-angle pilot aligned with the guide. Here is a pretty simple way of getting you almost dead-on every time and without bending or breaking your $80 to $100 solid carbide pilot.
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: January 2012
Finding Better Ways to Clean Fasteners I work on all brands of American classic cars, and mostly rebuild their engines. Most of my clients desire the preservation of original parts as much as possible, especially exposed fasteners. Here are the ways I clean and detail head, pan, front cover, valve cover, intake and exhaust manifold
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: December 2011
Avoiding Hydraulic Timing Chain Tensioner Trouble Be certain to carefully follow the manufacturer’s recommended torque settings when installing hydraulic (oil pressure fed) timing chain tensioners. Over tightening the tensioner can result in distortion of the tensioner piston bore, which in turn can cause the piston to bind up in the bore instead of doing its
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: November 2011
Removing Mushroomed Lifters in Vehicle A good way to remove mushroomed lifters while the engine is still in the vehicle is to use the box that the new cam came in. You will need to pull the mushroomed lifter as high as it will go in the bore and hold it there with a small
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: October 2011
GM LS Engine Building Tips The GM “LS” engine format (GEN III and IV) is a replacement for the Chevy small block. For performance purposes it is no problem to obtain 500+ horsepower from just about any version of this engine. The following are some tips and suggestions we have found to make working on
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: September 2011
Editors note: The first two Shop Solutions are responses to Larry Carley’s article “Cleaning Heads and Blocks” in the July 2011 issue of Engine Builder. Cleaning Vintage Mercedes Parts I enjoyed the July 2011 article “Cleaning Heads and Blocks” and wish to include a tech tip about the use of caustic cleaning on vintage Mercedes
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: August 2011
Securing Cam Gears Years ago it came to my attention that the replacement aluminum cam gear used on 4- and 6-cylinder GM inline engines has a tendency to walk off the camshaft. I wanted an easy way to resolve the problem, and here is what I came up with. I grind a notch about 5/16?
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: July 2011
Editor’s Note: Over the past few months we have published several views on engine pre-oiling. This month is no exception. Here is an idea on how to save money on a priming tank. Low Cost Priming Tank I prime the oil system in every engine I build. It’s cheap and easy insurance against a dry
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: June 2011
Editor’s Note: In the March issue we printed a Shop Solution from Melling Engine Parts titled “Oil Pump and Engine Priming” In the May issue we printed a different view on the subject from Timm Jurinche titled “Pre-Oiling.” This month we have a still different viewpoint on the subject. A Better Way to Pre-Oil New
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: May 2011
Editor’s Note: In March we printed a Shop Solution titled, “Oil Pump and Engine Priming” supplied by Melling. Here is another opinion suggesting an alternative method of pre-oiling a newly rebuilt engine. Alternative Method to Pre-Oiling Tip I respectfully disagree with the published tip on how to properly prime a new engine’s oiling
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: April 2011
Keeping Chevy 4-Bolt Mains From ‘Walking’ All four-bolt small block Chevy main caps “walk” when used with either studs or bolts. The factory cap or a splayed cap relies on the register to locate itself because bolts and studs don’t fit well enough to keep the cap from walking. What I have decided to do
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: March 2011
Inspection: Vacuum Check That Engine With the advent of foreign castings, some less than stellar, it is important to be more critical than before during inspection. I have a large vacuum pump that I use to vacuum check every engine’s water jacket before it leaves my shop. My pump pulls around 22 inches of vacuum.
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: February 2011
Making the Most of Every Job Quote Often times when my people are quoting a job, I will ask if the customer wanted gaskets, to which the reply is typically, “uh, I don’t know.” That’s just a lost sale every time the phone hangs up if you ask me – it’s only selling part of
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: January 2011
Keeping Gaskets In Their Place Can’t get a hard to reach gasket to stay in place even using various types of sealers? Try this trick that worked for me. Simply tie the gasket in place with sewing thread through available bolt holes/studs and/or any area that can be used for a temporary tie off. Once the gasket has
Engine Builder Shop Solutions: December 2010
Your Best Salesman “Ring, ring”… Another interruption – Will somebody grab that @%#& phone!? Too often we look at the phone as an interruption to a busy day. Leroy, the owner of a 3 man shop in Missouri, says he “hates the phone.” He says it’s a waste of valuable shop labor to answer the barrage