Another engine for the Triton.

[Superscan811]

106rwkw is NICE, but I want MORE.... so I started building another engine for the Ute.

Comp on this engine will be 12½:1 (current engine is 11.2:1)

Block is away getting bored and decked.

Lightened and knife-edged crank is ready to be balanced.


Ford 5.4L rods which are 3.1mm longer and 30% lighter than the standard rods.

Because these rods are "floaters, I'll need to make up some "buttons" to go in the ends of the gudgeon pin so it doesn't move. Thought about modding the pistons and gudgeon pins to use c-clips, but I've been told that isn't a good idea.
4mm spacers will also be required to center the rod on the gudgeon because the bigend is also narrower than standard and will also be "floating".

The M8 head will be shaved approx 3mm for a combustion chamber size of 48cc. 1mm-OS stainless valves, porting, bronze guides, bee-hive valve springs, swivel foot tappets and a lumpy cam.

The matching M8 pistons will need to be approx 2.2mm shorter. This shouldn't be a problem because they already have a 1.6mm dish in them already.

This time I'll be going EFI with my quad throttle bodies.


The ECU is a MICROSQUIRT 3


Using a Dynatek ARC-2 dual CDI unit (wasted spark).


Because I'll be running E85, I'll also be using 440cc low impedance injectors out of a VR4. They should be good for at least 140rwkw.

This should be interesting..


Cheers.

[geezer101]

I don't know if there is a thread on this and I 'should' be searching for the answer to this question but - how do you determine where the metal is removed from the crank and how much? I've prepped my G63B SOHC block for a balance shaft deletion and read up on it today. There's mixed reports on how it has affected the overall smoothness in engine rpm and I'm beginning to think I need to go the extra step and balance the bottom end too...

[Superscan811]

- how do you determine where the metal is removed from the crank and how much?

The outer edge yields the greatest benefit to engine acceleration not HP.

The reason I do it ts to:
A.) Make the crank more symmetrical .
B.) Lighten the crank.

You will gain more by lightening the flywheel than you ever will by lightening the crank.

That said, when removing metal from the crank, make sure you don't encroach on ANY bearing thrust surface, ie: where the side of the rod bigends can touch the crank or the center main bearing thrust surface.

I basically just mill a straight line along the tangent of those 2 points and then tidy the rest up.

I've prepped my G63B SOHC block for a balance shaft deletion and read up on it today. There's mixed reports on how it has affected the overall smoothness in engine rpm and I'm beginning to think I need to go the extra step and balance the bottom end too...

It's always a good idea to balance the crank but all in-line 4 cylinder engines have an inherent 2nd order harmonic that cannot be balanced out.

The 2nd order harmonic "bounces" the engine up and down at twice the RPM of the engine, that is why the silent shafts spin at 2x the engine rpm.

The lighter the piston/gudgeon/rod little end, the less vibration you will get (if you have removed the balance shafts).



Cheers.

[yno26galant]

scotty i already loving this start of a new motor for the ute. cnt wait to see more!

[ddt]

hooray, another sweet engine build begins!

[geezer101]

Thanks for the advice Superscan. Wish I had access to the resources to balance prep my bottom end components. I guess I'll have to get some prices and scratch up more cash now...

[Superscan811]

Wish I had access to the resources to balance prep my bottom end components. I guess I'll have to get some prices and scratch up more cash now...

The prep work on this crank was done on a lathe (cut down the OD of the crank by 10mm), a small mill to machine the edges of the crank down so they are even, and an angle grinder with a flapdisc to blend, smooth and knife-edge the crank.

Balancing the crank requires specialized balancing equipment, but only costs around $150 to have it done.

Balancing the rods is easy to do with 2 electronic scales ($10 off Ebay) or have a look at this Youtube video around the 8-minute mark for another easy way to do it with just 1.

The rods I'm using have already been balanced.

Balancing the pistons, rings and gudgeon pins is easy. Assemble them, then weigh them. Remove weight from the heavier pistons until they all weigh the same as the lightest.

DONE.



Cheers.

[amgis_obrut]

what pistons are you using ??

I remember they used a rod spacer like you plan to use in in early Cleveland stroker engines and it was an area of failure, a piston guided rod is a much more reliable way to go

[Superscan811]

what pistons are you using ??

1mm oversize ACL Duralite pistons with the kidney shaped dish in the top of the piston. These are used with the M8 heads.

I remember they used a rod spacer like you plan to use in in early Cleveland stroker engines and it was an area of failure, a piston guided rod is a much more reliable way to go

I'll need to use both. The spacers are to center the rod on the gudgeon pin, which will then center the rod on the crank (piston guided rod),
BUT
because the gudgeon was designed to float in the piston, the "buttons" will stop the gudgeon pins from moving out and hitting the cylinder wall.

The only other viable option is to make the spacers "press fit". The danger is if they are too tight, I may crack the piston when they are installed.

I'm trying to use cheap "off the shelf" parts as much as possible, and the machining work is basic enough that even a backyard hack, like myself, can do it.



Cheers.

[amgis_obrut]

ahha
I misunderstood your first post, I though you were using spacers between the rod/crank

[Merv]

Went for a ride in the triton last night... Very impressive :p will be interesting to see how much better this engine will be

[cheaterparts]

.

the machining work is basic enough that even a backyard hack, like myself, can do it.

Cheers.

with nothing more than an Ebay die grinder and hammer right !

[Superscan811]

the machining work is basic enough that even a backyard hack, like myself, can do it.

with nothing more than an Ebay die grinder and hammer right !

As I have said before, my brother sums it up nicely when he said that I'm a computer geek with delusions of adequacy when it comes to machining.


Cheers.

[Superscan811]

2 steps forward, 1 step back.

The crank is back after being balanced and linished.


The head is now done..
Decided to use the M7 head because it was almost done.
Decked 1.5mm and currently has a 60cc chamber.
Inlet valves are 50mm, Exhaust are 41mm, all have 7mm stems.
Behive valve springs.
Some porting and blending has been done as well.








The difference








That's the good news. The bad news is I'm going to need another block.
3 of the bolt holes for the studs have cracks. Just wish this was picked up before all the work was done.


Luckily I have a few spare blocks kicking around.



Cheers.

[cheaterparts]

I like it -- 50 mm inlets will run nicely with the 42 mm inlet ports
is there enough clearance between the valve on overlap - have you checked them with them both opened say a couple of mm

[Superscan811]

I like it -- 50 mm inlets will run nicely with the 42 mm inlet ports
is there enough clearance between the valve on overlap - have you checked them with them both opened say a couple of mm

The exhaust seat is recessed an extra 1mm to help with that. I'm checking it today with the MS334 Speco cam but I expect all will be fine.


Cheers.

[cheaterparts]

I like it -- 50 mm inlets will run nicely with the 42 mm inlet ports
is there enough clearance between the valve on overlap - have you checked them with them both opened say a couple of mm

The exhaust seat is recessed an extra 1mm to help with that. I'm checking it today with the MS334 Speco cam but I expect all will be fine.


Cheers.

I would think they go close and I haven't ( or cant find ) the spec sheet to you cam but I'm guessing it is about 15 deg ether side of tdc at 0.050" ( or about 1.25 mm lift ) so they are going to be at least 0.050" open at the same time and maybe up to 0.060" or 1.5 mm

thats why I said it might be worth cranking them open about 2 mm and doing a check just to make sure

I must say I like what I see - if the clearance is a bit tight droping to a 40 mm exhaust would not cause any real problem it's still 80% the size of the inlet - rule of thumb guidelines
and would help out with .020" extra clearance

[cheaterparts]

By the way Scott do you remember where I live - Dianne keeps reminding me, you may have forgotten and there a sigma on a trailer still sitting here

[Superscan811]

I would think they go close and I haven't ( or cant find ) the spec sheet to you cam but I'm guessing it is about 15 deg ether side of tdc at 0.050"

Cam at TDC and over 1mm clearance..

By the way Scott do you remember where I live - Dianne keeps reminding me, you may have forgotten and there a sigma on a trailer still sitting here

Have you in my GPS but it says I have to go through the Kimberleys to get there..



Cheers.

[bruggz351]

Well, asthma shouldn't be one of it's problems...

Lookin good.

[Superscan811]

Well, asthma shouldn't be one of it's problems...

Lookin good.

Definitely minimal throat restrictions in this head.

The main aim of the porting was to get the port sizes more even from the manifold to the combustion chamber.

From a few of the shots of the ports, you can still see some of the casting marks.

Going bigger in diameter would help the top end but there would be a big penalty to pay, losing low down torque.

Well the 2nd block is back from the machining shop (the first block has been scrapped) and it looks a lot better. Still a lot of work to do before it's running.




Cheers.

[geezer101]

The main aim of the porting was to get the port sizes more even from the manifold to the combustion chamber.

From a few of the shots of the ports, you can still see some of the casting marks.

Going bigger in diameter would help the top end but there would be a big penalty to pay, losing low down torque.

Good practical application - too many guys think the 'bigger is better' approach is the way to go but there's no free lunches with engine building - you gain something in one place and lose it somewhere else...

[cheaterparts]

The main aim of the porting was to get the port sizes more even from the manifold to the combustion chamber.

From a few of the shots of the ports, you can still see some of the casting marks.

Going bigger in diameter would help the top end but there would be a big penalty to pay, losing low down torque.

Good practical application - too many guys think the 'bigger is better' approach is the way to go but there's no free lunches with engine building - you gain something in one place and lose it somewhere else...

and the astron head has quite large port size for the valves

the old thumb of rule you need a round port of 80 % the dia of the valve

std a 46 mm valve needs a port of about 37 mm dia where as the M 6 - M 9 have a 42 mm port and the earlier magna head had a 40 mm port

taking the lump out of the top of the port does improve flow a lot the big lungs on the Astron still has enough draw to keep enough air speed through these size ports but the valve size is a little small to take advantage of these ports

Scotts mod should Improve this a lot - 50 mm valve x 0.8 = 40 mm port this is closer to using the flow avalable through the port

[Superscan811]

Got the call this afternoon and now the 2nd block is ready to pick up..

Still a lot of work to do before it's up and running, but at least I'll be able to start assembling it.



Cheers.

[Superscan811]

3 steps forward 1 step back.....
Block is back.
Pistons are back.
Gudgeon pins have been made...

BUT.....

Dummy assembled the rods, torqued up the rod bolts, and there was 0.15mm clearance between the bearing surface and the crank journal....

Checked the rod journals (without the bearings) and they were .02mm tight which is good.


Then I checked the bearing.
FUBAR... FROM FACTORY...
Have ordered another set of bearings and they should arrive mid next week.

Recalculated the Compression ratio, after machining the pistons, and it looks like I'll have a 13:1 Comp engine..

Pistons lost an extra 20g each after machining. Hoping to remove a bit more if it's safe to do so.

Standard piston/rings/rod comes to 1.431kg per assembly.

My current setup weighs in at 1.198kg per assembly.

Nearly a 20% weight loss..


Cheers.

[geezer101]

Dummy assembled the rods, torqued up the rod bolts, and there was 0.15mm clearance between the bearing surface and the crank journal....

Then I checked the bearing.
FUBAR... FROM FACTORY...

You 'should' be surprised but that is a common occurrence. Like all mass produced items, sometimes a few duds slip into the market It's a major PITA to find out something like a bearing set is rubbish, especially if you got a grand plan to have it all up and running over a weekend...

[Superscan811]

David Vizard on engine tuning etc...


Well worth the 2 hours to watch, especially if you are wanting to build a strong engine.

A lot of the basic, but very important concepts you need to know and understand, are explained well.


Cheers.

[Sigmaproject]

That David Vizard clip bought back memories of my Mini days. I was never beaten at a traffic light grand-Prix with my 1330 mini.

[Superscan811]

That David Vizard clip bought back memories of my Mini days. I was never beaten at a traffic light grand-Prix with my 1330 mini.

Great little cars.


A few pics (from my phone).

Casidum coated (Diamond Like Coating) gudgen pins with the aluminium plugs to stop it moving.



Top edge of the piston has been chamfered 15º (same angle as the valves).



Lightened and balanced the pistons. Skirt has been cut down 5mm BEFORE the widest point to be safe. Pistons balanced within 0.1g


Over 1kg lighter total in the rods and pistons and while this doesn't sound like much, this weight reduction will greatly reduce the 2nd order harmonic, which is what the silent shafts used to do.


In all honesty, I don't know how well the cast pistons will hold up, but this engine is just for testing more than anything else.


Cheers.

[geezer101]

Over 1kg lighter total in the rods and pistons and while this doesn't sound like much, this weight reduction will greatly reduce the 2nd order harmonic, which is what the silent shafts used to do.

One kilo of metal off the rods and pistons is HUGE! Keeping it in perspective - there's only a few grams of metal between a perfectly functioning and healthy engine, and a dead engine (words of wisdom from my lecturer when I did my certificate many, many moons ago lololol) You're really going all out on this build - can't wait to see how it performs after the final tune.