Stomski Digidix?

[rwest]

Hello,

Just got my motor stripped down to the block and crank unit and will be doing reground cams and new pistons and cylinders.

About thirty years ago, I tried to time some cams and couldn’t get them set, so put it in the back of a pickup and went to the Porsche dealership. I would like to think I’m a little smarter and have a better understanding this time and hope to be successful.

Watching the Stomski videos and the dial indicator holder and the Digidix look to be the sweet ticket; albeit a pricey one for one use. Of course I’m sure I could sell it for a good portion of what I paid once done, so in the overall scheme of things, maybe a hundred dollar investment to get perfection might be worth it?https://www.stomskiracing.com/products/digidix?variant=955257359

How much easier/necessary is the Digidix for doing the job?

Thanks,
Rutager

[Flat6pac]

Now, I’m a real fan of Steve’s products and what this tool does is take the guess work out of the pulley being on centerline of the case and the crank being at TDC.
Without the tool, you have to be happy with your alignment on the case.
The biggest thing I see here with new builders is spinning their own desires into the instructions.
The challenge of setting the cams starts with both cams dot or keyway up and both pinned.
Dial gauge in place, start your rotation and keep tract of where you are, getting the numbers you want.
I believe you judge the center line and pulley mark you’ll be within one degree of rotation
I set the left cam number with tension against the pin so there can be no movement from running then match the right cam. It takes a little while but you have a window of numbers available.
Watching Steve’s video on setting the cam numbers, using the late SC style bolt lock, he goes to the number he wants to set and torques the bolt then sets the right side doing the exact match number and torques the bolt. If either gear moves under torque and running you’re getting a cam mismatch.
More history, the later 993 s use the torque to totally lock the gears to the cams.
Bruce

[rwest]

Thanks Bruce,

I really like the idea of having actual numbers to read off of to set stuff.

Rutager

[ChrisBennet]

I'm a tool junkie so I *want* to like that tool but...
I think that tool might make things a little faster if you already knew how to time cams but I don't think it will make it easier for a first timer.

Timing cams isn't that hard, but I find it is kinda hard to *describe*.
If I could give you one tip it would be:
Don't try to move the cam to where you want it to be.
Instead, change the cam timing by moving the pin one hole at a time until you get the numbers you want. Only move the pin when the crank/cam is in a position where the cam isn't trying to spin. (The rockers will try to spin the cam in some positions and not in others.)

If you were closer I'd come give you a hand when the time comes.

[rwest]

Hi Chris,

If I get stuck, I’ll send you a plane ticket!

I ordered the tool this morning along with a bunch of the other ones for building an engine.

Going to be a little while until I time as I still need to get all my parts rebuild or purchased.

I’ll keep everyone informed about how the tool worked for me.

Thanks

[shbop]

While I'll admit straight away that I own several Stomski tools, and really like them, I'm not a big fan of this one. I think if you're learning how to set-up your cams, it's hard to beat a couple of dial indicators with mounts. You can easily do it with one, but having one mounted on each side lets you see things pretty clearly. Rotating the crank allows you to verify your settings quickly. Just another 2 cents.