Engine test stand??

[patkeefe]

Anyone have an engine test stand, for bolting up the engine to run on? In the old days, we had a Stuska dyno. I want to build a stand to run new engines on...just want some ideas of what's out there. I can go either engine only, or engine/trans mated, which may be easier.
TIA!
Pat

[al lkosmal]

Porsche EFI kit - fire up - YouTube
Slightly modded V8 test stand..........bought it at costco five years ago or so for $300.

regards,
Al

[sailchef]

Originally Posted by al lkosmal

Porsche EFI kit - fire up - YouTube
Slightly modded V8 test stand..........bought it at costco five years ago or so for $300.

regards,
Al

I played that video twice just to listen to the engine purr............sweet!

[donporfi]

Check this test stand, it is very simple and can do the job. You can buy it or build it.
Engine Test Stand for Air-cooled Porsche and VW
A friend built a test stand to start up 356 and VW engines, he is using an empty gearbox. I will post pictures later.
I think you are not looking for a dyno to load the engine. If you are, there are plenty to choose from.

[donporfi]

Pictures of two 4 cylinder test stands.

This is the one my friend built



I found this one in the Pelican Forum

[boyt911sc]

Originally Posted by patkeefe

Anyone have an engine test stand, for bolting up the engine to run on? In the old days, we had a Stuska dyno. I want to build a stand to run new engines on...just want some ideas of what's out there. I can go either engine only, or engine/trans mated, which may be easier.
TIA!
Pat

Pat,

I got one made from scrap metals I found at home few years ago and have been using it successfully. I spent less than $30 to complete the project (test stand) plus accessories (battery, oil tank, CDI, fuel tank, etc.). I posted several pictures in this forum for people see it as an inexpensive way to have one.

Tony

[patkeefe]

So, I picked up some 1-1/2" tubing, and found a couple of old display racks at work which were built with 3/4" square tubing. I'm building a full stand to carry an old 901 914 transaxle which has been gutted. I'll make the trans permanent on the stand. Now, if I can just find a cheap water absorption brake unit...


Base and trans posts:




Test 2.4 case with the gearbox mounted:




Don't forget what your Porsche really is:

[patkeefe]

Well, I can't see to weld as good as I used to, and I did set myself on fire yesterday (I survived unharmed; don't weld in cotton flannel jackets!). The good news was that I only burned up the jacket pocket that was already ripped.

Test fit of gearbox:







Battery mount plate. Fuel tank will be on the other side.

[patkeefe]

OK, here is where we are at. I need to incorporate a battery, fuel tank, fuel pump for my CIS, and ignition, some terminal blocks, the oil tank and a control panel. BTW, I found some old display racks at work, which I glommed. They sure were heavy duty, and had lots of steel in them. Wish we had turbos lying around like that!

For the equavalent of the rear mount bar, I fabbed up this bracket to bolt on. I can't just put a couple of vertical risers on the stand, because there is too much exhaust crap in the way. From the mount carrier to the back of the rear bumper on my SC is approximately 12", and the Flowmaster 44 I have on the turbo takes up about that much room. I left myself about 2-1/2" to spare. This bracket and the unfabbed braces will be bolt on, else I'll never get the engine in.





Battery tray for the Optima. This Optima is 15 years old, and still starts the car. Amazing.



The fuel tank I have is a bit too big to fit. I do have a 3 gallon tank from the blown up emergency generator which is 13" x 20" by about 5" at the deep end. It will fit nicely where the red milk crate is.



I have a brand new Ebay knock off Bosch fuel pump somewhere. I need to find an accumulator and fuel filter setup, which will get mounted by the red milk crate fuel tank.

The Sennecker oil tank is going over by the engine mounted oil cooler. I'll go with an AN-16 gravity feed to a rubber hose to replace the "S" line, and use some AN-12 for the scavenge outlet. I have so many oil coolers on my car that I go through AN-12 fittings like TicTacs. They are cheap if you buy used from the circle track guys on Ebay, just clean them out really good.



Here's the control panel. Wireless!



Anyone got any ideas, feel free to chime in. I can never learn enough from listening to you guys.

Here's some of the stuff that needs to fit on the stand:





Tony, it's almost golf season...

[patkeefe]

So, I had to putter slowly, as I had surgery on Groundhog Day. Literally a PITA. So, in my spare time, I got this far. So far, I have used only stuff I've had lying around the garage. I'm starting to get a bit out of control.
Primer and Paint, Safety Yellow
Fold away oil tank:






Fuel tank from the blown up Chinese generator, mounted under the transaxle. Fuel pump is my spare Ebay special unit.

[911pcars]

Mounting the gearbox with the engine presents add'l structural and space considerations. The gearbox isn't necessary to run the engine. You can just use the clutch housing from a 901/915 gearbox to mount the starter or fabricate a starter housing.

Some pics from Rennsport last year. Modified 6 > 4 cyl. 911 on what looks to be a regular engine stand with brackets added for oil/fuel tank, control panel, etc. The heavier 911 would need more support on the fan end.







Sherwood

[HawgRyder]

A fair sized water pump of the gear variety and a valving system to provide some back pressure would give the engine something to push against if you are worried about RPM run away.
That is all an engine dyno is BTW.
I had a friend that built one...sent the engine to have it dynoed on an expensive unit...then mounted his engine on his own home built dyno...and used the engine to calibrate the valving and flow to give the correct curve.
Seemed to work quite good.
Bob

[patkeefe]

Well, I got the engine out and on the stand. Got some things off the engine which are either in the way, or need to go out for repair. Now, I can fit up the other bracing and stuff I need to be able to run the engine on it.

[j911brick]

Did anybody mention Pelican sells a pre-fabbed unit?

[patkeefe]

Originally Posted by j911brick

Did anybody mention Pelican sells a pre-fabbed unit?

Those stands are for building engines on, not for running them on.

[boyt911sc]

Pat,

The project is looking better each day. But if I were doing this project, I would add a brace/bracket for the front end side of th engine to reduce the stress/cantilever effect of the heavy engine on the transmission bell housing. Your set-up is very common on VW engines test stands but not on the big and heavier 911 engines. Since I have limited working space, I opted for a more compact set-up by eliminating the 915 transmission during test.

This is an example of a test stand posted in the forum. Notice the vertical support on the left side?


This is my home-made contraption and has been handy for the last 12 years. But after seeing your work, I got jealous and would start fabricating something more attractive for show & tell. I wish I could weld as well as you do.


Your engine stand is built to last and looks great. Keep the good work going. Keep us posted.

Tony

[j911brick]

Originally Posted by patkeefe

Those stands are for building engines on, not for running them on.

look harder.

http://www.pelicanparts.com/cgi-bin/smart/more_info.cgi?pn=ZLX-ENG-STND&catalog_description=Engine%20Test%20Stand%20for%20 911%2F930%20%281965-86%29%2C%20912%2C%20914%20air-cooled%20motors%09

[patkeefe]

Originally Posted by j911brick

look harder.

I don't know how you found that, but you are absolutely correct! My search skills are slipping. But, I am saving $629 doing it this way.

Tony:
I had to put my SC engine up on the stand to figure out where I can put the vertical stabilizer bars for the nose of the engine. It was too hard to figure bracing location while it's in the car, with the turbo mounted, and the muffler on. I am going to work on that this week, while I wait for parts.

I will be down soon with the Mizunos, BTW...couple of weeks.

[NeedSpace]

Originally Posted by patkeefe

Well, I got the engine out and on the stand. Got some things off the engine which are either in the way, or need to go out for repair. Now, I can fit up the other bracing and stuff I need to be able to run the engine on it.

Pat,

This is great, thanks for posting. Just curious, I noticed there are no shocks or bushings for the engine to mount to your stand, how is the vibration on this? Does it stay put when running it?

Also, all in, what do you think it cost? I am planning on doing some investigative work to try to track down some oil leaks and thought this kind of setup would work great.

[patkeefe]

need-
I was laid up from surgery, and needed a project. I will figure out what it cost in dollars...I think the most expensive part was the MSD Street Fire, which was about $120. The rest was stuff I had lying around.

The engine doesn't move around. I thought it may try and circle the driveway, but it was stable, and fairly smooth.

I see you're in the lovely Garden State. I'd be willing to let you use it (you may have to leave the 190 as collateral)