Re: Stuff at the Shop
Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2018 11:41 am
The 1600SP went smoothly, here's the case ready to mate together. The crank looked great to begin with but I polished it using a drill to spin it and 1000 grit, it looked like a mirror when done. The bearings are marked and "lined" to make sure they're seated correctly on the dowels, the case flanges are cleaned and gooped with sealer and it's already been dry-fit to make sure everything spins free.
Here's the short block done, it spins freely with zero effort. I've been drilling an extra drain hole in the case to relieve pressure on the rear seal, the hole should be at 6 o'clock and the Germans put it at 8 o'clock for some reason. This leaves an ounce of oil against the lip of the seal when the car is parked and sometimes ends up on the driveway. The heads had less than 1000 miles since last ground, I disassembled them..... And blasted everything. I don't like the "valve grinding compounds" sold lately for lapping as they're too coarse and make little grooves in the valve face and seat, it's like sand in a paste carrier. I tried using rubbing compound this time and it worked great. (you can see a bit of it in the tub in the left background) I used a power drill running really slow and reversed directions a lot, maybe 2-3 seconds at a time and refreshed the compound. Parts done and ready to assemble, German jugs ball honed and checked, no wear or out-of-round measurable. Pistons soda blasted and re-ringed. Heads assembled and ready to go. I always air check heads as soon as they go on to make sure everything is air tight. The compound must have worked well as there was not a bit of leakage. Long block done. Oil system complete and priming, I was able to get 40psi cranking. Note the spark plugs and rocker shafts are off to relieve pressure, the engine spins very free like this to build oil pressure. You can see the "4" written on top of the piston and the notches in each jug to match- 4 notches on #4 jug, 3 on 3. I only use engine oil as an assembly lube, no fancy greases or assembly lubes. Runs perfect and great oil pressure, I use a really thin oil initially on the stand (like 0w-20) while the rings seat in for a few hours and then change to 0w-40 Mobil 1. I'm not finishing the sheet metal trim on this engine because I don't know what it's going into, that's why there's VGs on the heat riser pipes.
Here's the short block done, it spins freely with zero effort. I've been drilling an extra drain hole in the case to relieve pressure on the rear seal, the hole should be at 6 o'clock and the Germans put it at 8 o'clock for some reason. This leaves an ounce of oil against the lip of the seal when the car is parked and sometimes ends up on the driveway. The heads had less than 1000 miles since last ground, I disassembled them..... And blasted everything. I don't like the "valve grinding compounds" sold lately for lapping as they're too coarse and make little grooves in the valve face and seat, it's like sand in a paste carrier. I tried using rubbing compound this time and it worked great. (you can see a bit of it in the tub in the left background) I used a power drill running really slow and reversed directions a lot, maybe 2-3 seconds at a time and refreshed the compound. Parts done and ready to assemble, German jugs ball honed and checked, no wear or out-of-round measurable. Pistons soda blasted and re-ringed. Heads assembled and ready to go. I always air check heads as soon as they go on to make sure everything is air tight. The compound must have worked well as there was not a bit of leakage. Long block done. Oil system complete and priming, I was able to get 40psi cranking. Note the spark plugs and rocker shafts are off to relieve pressure, the engine spins very free like this to build oil pressure. You can see the "4" written on top of the piston and the notches in each jug to match- 4 notches on #4 jug, 3 on 3. I only use engine oil as an assembly lube, no fancy greases or assembly lubes. Runs perfect and great oil pressure, I use a really thin oil initially on the stand (like 0w-20) while the rings seat in for a few hours and then change to 0w-40 Mobil 1. I'm not finishing the sheet metal trim on this engine because I don't know what it's going into, that's why there's VGs on the heat riser pipes.