Here's another view, with one of the cleaner heads (#6). Valves are still dirty, as I intend to replace them.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1506910969.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1506910969.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1506910969.jpg



I suppose I should ask, what is valve recession, and how do you see and/or measure it?

Cheers-

Jake

Yep- makes sense. I'll definitely re-run all the measurements/calcs when I get to that phase.


According to the chart, 2.2E pistons have a dome volume of 28.4, which results in a CR of 9.64:1. That's much closer to what I was thinking. Perhaps I was a bit over exuberant on my purchase of the 2.2S pistons! Anything with an S just sounds so cool :)


Yeah, that was the plan. Can I infer from the question that maybe you'd recommend otherwise? The pistons are coming from a well-known Pelican, who I have no reason to doubt when he says they're totally in-spec. Obviously, I'm new at this- but I'd imagine that the critical specs are the ring-groove gaps. Any other suggestions on what to verify before re-using them? (assuming I stick w them...)


Great suggestion. I'm seriously considering it. I love the idea of re-using the OE 2.2S's, but at the same time, there's some piece of mind that comes along with new parts. Did you end up using your stock cylinders?


Great catch! I missed that as well. Does seem to confirm my initial math, at the least...


Thanks again for the great feedback.

Best,

Jake

Valve recession is when the valve sinks into the head due to seat and or valve face wear. The seat and valve can be re-ground but this positions valve even lower which is a real hindrance to low lift flow according to people who flow heads for a living. I imagine slightly less compression as well.

You can search this forum for an idea of how much new valves stand “proud” in new seats.

Jake, are you in Washington?? Your location says "SF Bay" but the license plates say otherwise.

I think I would go with the JEs or other new pistons. You are talking about 45+ year old pistons with the 2,2s. They MAY be OK, but for a little extra money, new would be the way to go IMO.

It really comes down to your expectations. If you just want to get a motor running or do you want a freshly rebuilt motor that will last for a generation?

The other issue is the iron cylinders you have. They might be OK for a mild street driven motor. Are yours in spec? If you have to hone them, then the old pistons may no longer be a match.

Maybe others that have used iron cylinders in a hotrodded motor will chime in. If you order new pistons, make sure you let them know what type of cylinder you have.

BTW, I used my old cylinders. HOWEVER, they are Mahle nicasils.

Good to know- I'll check it out. According to receipts there was some head work way back when, so I can imagine the valves have receded a bit.


The car had been in the Bay Area its whole life, until it found its way to a dealer outside of Portand OR, where I picked it up while living in Seattle. I've since moved back to the Bay Area, so it has been a homecoming for both of us :) Wish I could find the original plates somehow...


Thanks for the feedback. My original priority list had reliability at the top- so your advice on the pistons is well received.

Not sure if my C's are in spec, but I hope to measure them soon.

I would consider a new matching set of P's and C's if I could find something that makes sense (both from a $ and CR standpoint)... closest thing our host appears to offer is a new set of 84mm 2.4S P's and nikasil C's (911-103-944-01-OEM); $4k for a slight CR bump to 8.5:1. Seems a bit spendy for what I'm after.


More to come...


-Jake

I'm right in the middle of rebuilding a very original '72 911T MFI motor for a customer.

Since he is retired and on a budget, we went with simply regrinding the T cams to E spec, and sourcing some low mileage 2.2E pistons which will go in the original cast iron cylinders which were still well in spec. Leaving the ports stock. This should net around 170hp, which is right at the limit of power output before you need an auxiliary oil cooler.

This makes for a really nice street motor with a very wide power band, and doesn't necessitate a bunch of other upgrades which can drive up the cost. It's easy to get carried away with upgrades, and the cost adds up in a hurry.

There is nothing wrong with a set of used Mahle pistons, so long as they are within spec. The most critical measurement is the ring land gap.

BTW, Mahle pistons are very overstated on their compression ratio. Theoretically when you put 2.2 pistons in a 2.4, it should bump the CR up another .55 points above what it would be with the short stroke. But when you actually measure everything out, it usually ends up just a tad under their supposed 2.2 spec.

Agree that the used Mahle pistons should be okay. I don't have any experience with the JEs and Ted steered me away from them. Maybe talk to Ted and see if his opinion of JE has changed since you're working with him anyways.

You need a new valve to check it, measure from the spring pocket to the top of the new valve stem there is a spec for this. If it’s to deep you need new seats to correct it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Good to know! I figured the actual CR must end up below the formulaic CR, but couldn't figure out which part of the equation was typically off. Sounds like the Mahle piston dome volumes might work out to be a bit lower than spec- that would definitely explain it.



Ted hasn't changed his opinion :) But, to his credit, he's quick to point out that he's a machinist, not an engine builder.



Very cool- I wasn't planning on ordering my new valves yet, but now I have an excuse...


Thanks all for the great feedback.


- Jake

Now that everything is out and apart, I've been spending a ton of time trying to clean everything and get it organized enough to send out to the corresponding experts (pretty much all from this forum) for whatever's needed (machining, grinding, blasting, coating, plating, et al).

I've been using a cheap Harbor Freight parts cleaner with mineral spirits for most things, and warm, diluted simple green for some of the other bits. I'm not trying to get everything perfect at this stage, as most everything will end up getting cleaned and/or blasted. I guess I'm embarrassed to send the parts out if they're too dirty. Plus, though laborious, it's kinda fun to get to know the ins and outs of each part.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1507524343.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1507524343.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1507524343.jpg



Ted from German Precision suggested that I get the major parts steam cleaned at San Jose Steam Cleaners. Those guys were great- fast and efficient. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it's a really simple process. I just showed up, put my parts right on the ground, and they went blasting away with some impressively loud steam wands.

I shoulda done this first! They did in about 20 minutes what woulda taken me many, many hours hunched over the parts cleaner with a wire brush.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1507524483.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1507524483.jpg



The mag case cleaned up pretty good, but did reveal a lot of corrosion on the outside (previously covered by a thick layer of oily gunk). After reading a ton about mag parts here, it seems that this is pretty normal- and as long as it's not affecting any machined surfaces (it's not) I can just leave it as is, and maybe coat everything with some Gibbs spray. I'd really like to clean it up though, but haven't decided which way to go. Consensus here seems to be soda blasting, or possibly elbow grease and a wire brush. I'm striking out trying to find a local soda blaster (I tried Accessories Plus in Belmont, but they don't do soda and couldn't recommend anyone. They're super helpful for other stuff, fwiw). So I'll probably hack at it w a brush and see if I get anywhere.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1507524548.jpg



Good times!

- Jake

So I decided to go after the mag case corrosion with various implements. I had the best luck with different wire wheel brushes mounted in a corded drill. I tried to stay away from all of the machined surfaces.

First pass at it:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1509166752.jpg


...then went back over with a finer grit, just to catch any of the larger scratches. Getting into all the nooks and crannies is pretty much impossible, at least with the tools I have, so I just tried to focus on the most visible areas.

Here's one half done:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1509166752.jpg


Lookin' pretty good! Gave everything a healthy spray with Gibbs.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1509166752.jpg


All in all, I'm not sure it was worth the trouble. It's nice to see everything shiny, but there's basically no chance it'll stay that way. It'll probably end up looking like it did within the first 1000 miles of driving... and some would say that's an optimistic view :)

Still, especially as a first-timer, it's fun to see what's really underneath.


-Jake

While I'm waiting on some other parts, I thought I'd try to restore my yellow engine shroud. Fortunately, it's totally intact, and without too much damage, so I won't need to do a bunch of fiberglass repair.

I was initially tempted by the high-gloss, show-car look of a freshly painted or coated shroud, but then decided to stick with the "patina" of the original fiberglass. You can really see the imperfections and discolorations in the glass, and I've convinced myself that that's how it woulda looked straight out of the factory :)

Here's what it looked like when I pulled the motor. Super gunky, but intact:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1509170139.jpg


After a thorough cleaning with warm water, simple green, and a scotch pad:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1509170139.jpg


At this point I decided I could live with the discolored areas, but I wanted to try to do something about the areas that still look a little dirty. I wet-sanded everything, but I don't think that helped much, other than to dull the yellow a bit. Looking more closely, I could see a lot of tiny cracks in the outer surface (gel coat, I assume), which have been filled with oil/dirt over the years to make each tiny crack darker in color. My experiment with the wet-sanding suggested that I'd have to sand the heck out of the shroud to take out all those micro-cracks... not worth it! Let's keep 'em and call it "character".

I did buy a gel-coat repair kit, which comes with a two-part clear epoxy resin and some coloring agents. I tried to match the color as best as I could, and patched the areas with the biggest scratches and pits.

Then I found this thread:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/paint-bodywork-discussion-forum/416863-engine-shroud-restoration.html

... which includes an interesting suggestion of leather dye to help restore the shroud's color. The dye is pretty cheap on Amazon, so I gave it a shot- definitely helps. Take a look at the before/after here. Didn't do much against the dark fissures, but really helped even out some of the discoloration:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1509170139.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1509170139.jpg



Then a couple of coats of rattle-can hi-temp clear, and I'll call it done:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1509170139.jpg

This is definitely good enough to mount to the engine (whenever I get it done...), and if for some reason it just doesn't look right I can always paint or cerakote it later.

Also, I now have a half-bottle of yellow leather dye- pay for shipping and it's yours!

- Jake

If you're thinking about powder coating your engine tin, cylinder air guides and painting your fan, a great place to take it is West Coast Powder Coating in South SF. AJ is the owner and does a lot of Porsche parts.

Great job! I just went through this early this year and it was one of the most enjoyable things when the engine starts up again for the first time! The way you're going, it won't be long. Only one thing I would do differently, is to not put any sealant on the bearing towers inside the case, and generally put less sealant. See last page of this thread:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/911-engine-rebuilding-forum/941752-need-advice-re-build-rebuild.html

I would be really interested in knowing how much wear you have on your cylinders and by how much they are out-of-round (oval) after so many miles. If you get the chance, could you post the inner diameter of a cylinder near the top (horizontally and vertically)?

Good luck!

Dario

Thanks very much for documenting your rebuild and thought process so thoroughly! As a like-minded newbie I find it really informative and I'm sure it will be useful for when time comes for me to do something similar.

Hi All-

I'm finally back in action. Crazy how the days can click by... I welcomed a 2nd daughter to the family, which has slowed the progress on this project. I know, excuses, excuses...

Anyway, I'm catching back up. I've got the major machining done and back (thanks Ted @ German Precision), and still working on a bunch of the peripherals. I'll soon try to remember where I left off regarding my P's and C's and the whole compression ration calc.

I got a few minor things done during my down time. I had my heat exchangers blasted, with the intent of cera-coating them, but in some areas they're pitted like swiss cheese. Couldn't tell before they were blasted, because there was so much oil and dirt caked on. Anyone think these are salvageable? I've got basic welding/metalworking tools/skills, but I think this is beyond me:


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529292799.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529292835.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529292835.jpg

They're otherwise clean and intact. The guys at Accessories Plus (where I got them blasted) thought there might be a brazing technique that could work, but their general sense was that it wouldn't be worth the trouble.

Thanks, and glad to be back at it.

- Jake

I've been getting a lot of the parts back; nice to see them so clean and pristine.

84mm S Pistons:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529452673.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529452673.jpg

Ring gaps all looked good, according to Ted @ German Precision.


Original cast cylinders, honed and looking' good:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529453135.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529453135.jpg

Still not sure where I'm gonna land re. the compression ratio, so some chance I'll end up w a different set of Ps and Cs... but I'm hoping these are gonna work.


E cams:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529454864.jpg


The folks at Pacific Oil Cooler did a nice job flushing and cleaning up my oil cooler:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529454969.jpg


Resurfaced flywheel:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529455134.jpg


...and a Glenn Yee modified 3-rib oil pump:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529455258.jpg


A lot more to come, but at least the kit is taking shape.


- Jake

Side note: be careful what you teach your 4yr old daughter...

I showed her how to use my lift table:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529683115.jpg


and then, like a dummy, I stored it under the back of my 911. I wasn't watching, and she lifted the table until.. Crunch! All of the weight was on the bottom edge of the rear bumper panel, which now has a funky new shape to it. So, off it comes:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529683428.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529683115.jpg


I know this is an engine rebuilding thread, but looks like I also get to try my hand at some panel-beating. It'll have to be repainted as well. Lesson learned- kids practice tools on Mom's car now :)

- Jake

Pulled the oil tank out:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529684207.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529684207.jpg


I guess that's what 285k miles of road grime looks like!

Cleaned it up:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529684207.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529684207.jpg


I think I shaved 10lbs by removing all of that crust ;) ...Now off to Pacific Oil Cooler to be checked out, flushed, and repainted.


-Jake

Figured I'd pull the fuel tank and check it out- wouldn't want a bunch of rusty crud messing with my eventually rebuilt motor. Glad I did!

I thought it'd be a simple job, but the weather stripping-like sealant foam between the trunk and the tank was super nasty to deal with. It had me double- and triple-checking that I had removed all of the hold down clips/bolts, because it really held the tank down! I put a floor jack under the tank to try to break the adhesive grip, and nearly got both front wheels off the ground before seeing any play. Eventually a sacrificial box-cutter blade into the sticky and tar-like adhesive broke it free.

Here's the tank, removed. You can see remaining strips of the adhesive foam. There's no record in the car's history of any work that would require tank removal, so I guess that's the original stuff; it's a goopy mess that won't be fun to clean up.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1530579484.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1530579484.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1530579484.jpg

I spent an hour or so rinsing and flushing w Simple Green. Lots of rusty material came out, so it'll need some work. My plan is to have the tank professionally flushed and coated, assuming no major flaws are revealed.

Here's the fuel outlet "filter". Hard to imagine this working properly- it looks like it must have been restricting the flow in a bad way. I guess that's why Porsche went to the swirl-pot design shortly after this gen...

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1530579484.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1530579484.jpg

Glad to check this off the list!

Jake

Great thread! Best of luck with your rebuild and note taken on what you show your daughter!

Jake, any update on where you stand?

Thanks for asking- and good timing!

My project has been on hold, as my personal life got a bit messy there for a while. Divorce sucks, in case anyone had any doubts...

Good news is that I moved my project into a new, well-kitted workspace, and I'm just getting set up to dig back in to my rebuild.

Actually, I should say the good news is that I still have a project ;)


Here's a preview:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1550099935.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1550099935.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1550099935.jpg

More to come, soon.

Jake

Ok everyone, I'm finally getting back into my rebuild. As I previously mentioned, I'm in a fantastic new shared shop space, with access to some great new tools (blast cabinet, parts washer, big lift, etc.). Better yet, the other folks here are all car-nuts (though not necessarily P-car), which helps keep things fun and motivating.

First step was to unpack everything, and to try to remember where I left off. I still have some parts out for service, as I haven't been lighting a fire to get them done... fortunately, I have this thread to look back on- really helps jog the memory!

So, after getting re-acquainted with my inventory of stuff, and minimally organized, it was time to start prepping my crankcase for assembly- aka clean clean clean.

From earlier in the thread, I'm reminded of how much time I spent trying to clean up the outside surfaces of the mag case. I'm here to say: wasn't worth it at all! My case sat in a garage, in plastic (though not air-tight) for a just over a year, and all that shine is gone. That's magnesium for ya. Take a look below- the left shows before I started polishing (back in Oct 2017), and the right after polishing.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1509166752.jpg


I thought it was looking pretty good, at the time. I gave it a good spay with Gibbs, but it wasn't gonna last...

Here it is from a few days ago:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1551982985.jpg

...definitely still better than where I started, but clearly the time I put into getting it all silvery and shiny was not exactly well spent. I can't say I wasn't warned :)


Next up: Soda Blasting!


Jake

After re-inspecting the case halves, I still wasn't happy with the remaining amount of gasket residue, and little pockets of gunk (inside and out). My new shop space has a big-ass air compressor, so I figure it was a great opportunity to try my hand at soda blasting.

For the uninitiated, soda blasting is like sand blasting, except you use baking soda. The idea is that it's a little less abrasive, less toxic, and most importantly for this application- it dissolves in water. The fear with traditional sand/media blasting is that little bits of the media could get stuck in some of the small oil passageways inside the crankcase, which could lead to big big problems down the road. With soda, the thought is that a good wash after application would remove/dissolve any leftover media.

My original plan was to just farm out the work. But, turns out it's really hard to find a place with a dedicated soda blasting setup. After calling around to some local shops, I learned that there are some clear reasons for this. Soda is a one-time use media, which means you can't recover/recycle it within a traditional blast cabinet as you would with sand/glass, etc. This makes it a lot more expensive; you have to use new media for each job. And, soda is a lot smaller than traditional media, so you have to use a smaller nozzle on your blaster, and probably a different type of adjustable flow-valve. Also, the soda is supposed to "pulverize" when it hits your parts, which makes it really dusty. This can really clog up the filter in a traditional cabinet, which of course can be cleaned, but creates a big PITA for the user.

So, though I have access to a big media blaster, the process of converting it over for soda use (and for only one job, at that), seemed daunting.

I read about a few places that would do the work, but they weren't local, so I figured for the same amount of time, $ and effort I could give it a shot and maybe learn something. So, off to Hazard Fraught I went!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1551984752.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1551984802.jpg


Given that it's "non-toxic" and dissolvable, I figured I could give it a go outside, and cleanup wouldn't be too bad. There are warnings about how soda can discolor plant leaves and grass, so you do have to be a little careful about where you do it.

True to form, my HF blaster was DOA- the media flow-valve was busted:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1551985168.jpg

But, my expectations were low, so another trip back wasn't too much of a bummer. I just made sure to open up the replacement there in the store to check it all out, now that I knew what to look for.


Ok, here's my setup:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1551985388.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1551985388.jpg

Filling up the pot is an annoyingly slow process. You definitely need a funnel, but the pot's opening only allows a funnel with a relatively small neck. It was a lot of fill the funnel, wait for it to drain, fill, wait, repeat...

Once I got it filled and ready to go, I first tried blasting a test part- some random oily thing I had laying around. It worked great! removed all of the oily gunk with no issues.
Now on to the first case half:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1551986060.jpg


I can tell I'm doing *something*, but the progress is not exactly mind-blowing.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1551986060.jpg


Here you can see the completed half (left), next to the remaining one. Again, you can see that a difference was made, but it's a bit underwhelming.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1551986060.jpg


The process itself was really messy. The soda gets on and into everything! I was wearing decent protective gear and coveralls, and I swear I had it in my socks and between my toes by the end of the day. Everything in the side yard where I did the work had a layer of white powder on it.
The HF blaster itself held up pretty well. Again, expectations were low- so I wasn't really disappointed that the filling procedure was a pain, and that the unit would clog and frequently require a good shake to get going again.
I think most surprising to me, being completely inexperienced here, was how much soda I went through. I think this means that I wasn't using the soda efficiently- that my ratio of airflow to media flow wasn't optimal. That said, I had the tank pressure all the way up (and a little past) the recommended max of 90psi, and the big shop compressor has no problems keeping up the CFM. I was also really surprised at how much media was left on the ground and everywhere- so much for the idea of "pulverizing" the soda! There were Medellin-caliber amounts of it left for me to sweep up:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1551987478.jpg


Still, I'm glad I did it. Though the aesthetic results weren't what I had hoped for, I can see that it clearly removed any remaining oily residue, and it leaves a more uniform surface texture on the magnesium. Would I do it again? I dunno... it was messy. Without the fun part of learning something for the first time, I'd have to have a really compelling reason to do it again.


Next up: more case prep.


Jake

You’ll want to really rinse off your side yard if there is any vegetation there that you care about. The baking soda is a base which will burn everything if left untouched. Ask me how I know…

Yep. I got lucky with the timing, and we had some nice rain to help rinse everything down :)


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Back in action... was off on a tangent, trying to organize and tailor my shop space more to my needs. Ended up building a welding table, which will also double as a workbench.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1557964926.jpg

It turned out pretty good; you can see my build thread here:

https://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-technical-forum/1029323-building-welding-table.html

Ok, now back to the motor.

After soda blasting everything and a quick cleanup, I ran the case halves back through the parts washer.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1557965496.jpg


All of the gasket residue was now gone, and the mating surfaces had a uniform look:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1557965134.jpg


... but I decided that the machined, mating surfaces should be as clean as possible before they eventually get sealed up, so I hit them with Scotchbrite pads on the die grinder. I used the green 2" Roloc-style discs, which worked great. For some of the tight areas right around the bases of the studs I used a non-abrasive polishing disc on the Dremel.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1557965134.jpg

One half done; lookin' pretty good!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1557965134.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1557965134.jpg


Polishing the surfaces really helped reveal some of the imperfections, like the pitting here on cyl 1. This was the worst one, but it still looks like there's plenty of contiguous machined surface to get a good seal once the gaskets are in place (...so says I!).

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1557965134.jpg


Before and after:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1557965134.jpg

Both sides cleaned up well.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1557965134.jpg


Once I was happy with that, I gave everything another liberal coat of Gibbs, hoping to slow the inevitable oxidation of the magnesium.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1557965134.jpg


Next, checking the oil squirters.


- Jake

With the major case cleaning done, I wanted to make sure my oil squirters still looked ok. Part of my reasoning for doing the whole soda-blasting thing was all of the concerns I had read about getting the squirters clogged with blast media, so I wanted to be extra careful.

Some of the squirters have a passageway which feeds them directly from inside the case; these ones are easy, as you can just blast some brake cleaner from the inside and see the spray come out of the squirter. Wayne's book says you should see a nice spray here, not just some bubbling out.

The other squirters share an oil passageway, which makes it kinda tricky to just do the blast test, as you have to somehow block off the shared part of the passage. I couldn't find any rubber tubing (what Wayne's book recommends) that was the perfect size, so I fashioned something quick and dirty to do the trick:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1557967408.jpg


I could orient the split in the tubing away from the squirter feed hole, and jam my makeshift tool in there to block the passageway. I'd then get some compressed air going, which would be blocked my my tool and forced out the squirter. Worked well!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1557967408.jpg


At this point I was using compressed air, instead of an aerosol cleaner, so I couldn't really see any spray misting out of the squirter. But, I could feel a nice strong blast of air, so I figured that was good enough.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1557967408.jpg


I did have a couple of squirters which just didn't feel as clear as the others, so I went back around with some small Mig welding wire, which fit right into them.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1557967408.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1557967408.jpg


All squirters looking good!


Next up, cleaning the crank and rods, and checking tolerances.


- Jake

Wayne's book says you can stand the crank up on the flywheel, but that fitting the rods would be easier with a horizontal stand- so I threw one together out of some scrap.

I found that a 2.25" hole saw makes an ideal diameter to match the main bearing journals. I drilled the hole first, then carefully cut through the center to make two uprights.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1558060126.jpg


I was careful to make sure that the 2 uprights were equal height and symmetrical. I sanded everything smooth, especially the inner surfaces of the holes. Seems to fit pretty well:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1558060126.jpg


Added some supports, and there you have it.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1558060126.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1558060126.jpg


- Jake

Next step is to inspect and clean everything.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1558061230.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1558061230.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1558061230.jpg


Looking good. Everything was already checked before leaving the machine shop, but still good to verify.

Following the book, I wiped the new rod bearings clean with rubbing alcohol, and pressed them into place.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1558062394.jpg


Here's my first attempt at using the Plastigage, which should show whether the rod-bearing-crank interfaces are within tolerance. I've never used it before, but the concept is simple enough- just squish it into place and see how wide it becomes. Here it is, in place, in its pre-squished state:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1558062394.jpg


It's kinda tricky to get the rod into place, and the rod cap torqued down while keeping the Plastigage in place, aligned and not smeared around. I think this would be much harder without a horizontal crank stand. First one worked good:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1558064193.jpg


Here I'm using the included gauge to check the spec. It's right about .051mm, nicely fitting between the spec'd .03 to .08.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1558062394.jpg


Next I'm checking the gaps between the rods and the crank. After looking up the spec, it wasn't obvious to me if it referred to each side's clearance, or the total gap (the sum of the 2 smaller side gaps). After measuring all of the gaps, it became clear that the spec refers to the total gap, i.e., the sum of each side (with the rod torqued down).

Here's a view with the rod bolts loosened a bit, which allows the rod to shift off center so that I can get a feeler gauge in there to measure the total clearance:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1558062394.jpg


After torquing it down, here you can see the that the side gaps add up nicely to the previous total:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1558062394.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1558062394.jpg


All 6 checked out, so now on to final assembly of the rods.



- Jake

Really enjoying this thread! Those Rolocs will remove material, hopefully that didn't happen on the sealing surfaces. Maybe some experts will chime in.

@David- Thanks for the feedback! You've got me thinking about the Roloc discs... my understanding was that they really shouldn't be removing any of the base magnesium. Of course, they are removing something- hopefully just the outer layer of oxidation! I can say that I was very careful to use them as evenly and lightly as possible. I can see no visual evidence, like gouging or uneven surface levels, to indicate that there's an issue... but then, maybe I wouldn't be able to?

Any other opinions out there?



- Jake

Are you replacing the rod bolts?

@Ed Yeah definitely replacing the rod bolts. I used the old ones just to do the Plastigage tests; Wayne's book says that you're really only supposed to torque down the rod bolts once, as they're designed to stretch just the perfect amount. When I'm ready for the final assembly (probably some time next week) I'll use the new hardware.

- Jake

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1558298245.jpg
my 2.4 is almost done

@jim Lookin' good! Your fan looks very clean- what did you do to finish it? Paint or powder? Any "gotchas" you experienced along the rebuild you'd care to share?

Thanks-

Jake

There are many ways to do something, but I would like to suggest you re think your method here.

When rods are rebuilt/"resized" the fasteners the engine is going to run with have to be used in the resizing operation. The free length should be recorded, then stretched. To be sure you have not gone past their yield length, they can be loosened and remeasured. As long as they go back to their original free length you are Ok. Factory spec's will not over stretch them.

They (BE) should be measured then (after honing when cold), disassembled and cleaned. The same stretch should be done when using your method of checking the bearing ID size. Changing fasteners more often than not, changes the bore size.

Not sure why its said you can stretch these bolts only once? Too much fear is placed into the minds of many about rod bolts.

Neil. Good advice. I think the "gotchya" here is the fact that you will need to know the length when the bolts are new and unused. So old bolts coming out of a motor are an unknown. But when using new bolts it doesn't make sense to only allow one torquing as you mention.

Also good advice on using new bolts to measure the big ends. I had, on my recent build, one BE that measured at the limit of spec. I put in new bolts and it measured perfect.