Ninka

Only if you blend 50/50 which I have not

Well, no oil pressure issues in my engine, it is a bit low at 600 rpm, but nothing which is a cause for concern, as engine is not loaded anyway, and it's not low enough to light the oil pressure warning light. It sits at about 20psi and increases rapidly to 40+psi when rpm is lifted above 1000 (at operating temperature) In a built engine, oil viscosity choice is critical if you want the engine to be quiet and not have piston rattle, as racing pistons typically have shorter shirts, and run more liberal clearances than stock pistons. If you run a high viscosity oil like 50 or 60 (never mind the 10w its only for cold winter start anyway) I believe it makes the oil too good to remain inside the bearings (thus the higher pressure) BUT this in turn results in less bore lubrication beneath the pistons, as less oil is flung around by the crank, thus the pistons and bores have less oil film and a higher potential for rattles. Most if not all after market conrods I have seen, have also deleted the small oil squirter hole at the base of the big end bearing, resulting in a drier bore then stock. Every engine will be different depending on specification of parts and clearances, but I have built a few of these by now, and my current engine is the only one which I have managed to get to be 100% as quiet as a unit running of the Ford production line, but the wrong oil choice (too heavy) will make this engine rattle slightly, despite the extreme care taken in choice of clearances. I have lately upped the viscosity slightly by blending a 30 and 50 oil to try to find the optimal viscosity, and this work will continue.

Yes it is an Atomic Tensioner.

I agree with F1PERFORMANCE, conservative or not, if it goes 'bang' and you have exceeded power rating, you will be the one responsible. It would maks a lot of sense to go for something with a higher rating, as it would not take a lot to break or bend something which is on the limit.

Had a good cruise to New Norcia for lunch with the FPV and Tickford Owners Club yesterday, beauuutiful day for a drive up Great Northern Hwy, if only there were more overtaking lanes, as there are quite a few trucks up that way. Had some good 'spirited' driving in sections though :sungum:

I would seriously doubt that any power increases will be seen from modifying the pulleys, certainly not from a weight reduction point of view, as plastic factory units are quite light already. Underdrive pulleys may provide a little gain by spinning your alternator and a/c slower, but only at the detriment of performance. As spinning energy is only a fraction of a fraction of the reciprocating energy lost by moving the rods and pistons up and down, there is nothing to be gained, except for the 'bling' factor, which is why I have red alu pulleys on my engine, nothing more, nothing less

Hmmm, do I smell clutch :f*ckyou: Sooo much easier in an auto

Thanks to Steve for organising the Cruise, even though you may need to make the first meeting point a bit easier to find for those of us suffering from navigational iliteracy A good chance to clear out the cobwebs :sungum:

True, but if V8SC was to continue to rely only on Ford and Holden, it would surely die a slow death, as the market share of these 2 brands decline. As it is, they don't share much (if anything) with the road car, and the COTF will pretty much look the same as current car, so more players will help to ensure viability of the sport. Should be interesting to see next year, as the cars do handle a lot better, and should provide close racing.

Yes, that's the 2013 'Car of The Future" where all cars will share a common chassis, and many changes, including what you mention. The COTF project will allow other manufacturers to participate in the V8 championship, and Nissan have already anounced that they will take part next year, I think Chrysler is considering it as well. Should be interesting....

Well I checked with Repco, and they do have an idler pulley made from machined steel (see pic), so given past experiences with alu, this is now going on my car. Cost was only $35, so worthwhile insurance.

Yeah I could have done that, but after 9 hrs out in the sun and fresh air, I just felt like putting my feet up at home

They were doing 56 seconds qualification when the track was dry on Sunday. The track hasn't changed at all, only pit/garage facilities and PA system. Also have a new media center. Overall impression is that maybe the new stuff is better for the V8's and teams, but as a spectator the experience has declined, as the view of the track is somewhat obstructed by the new boulding on the infield. Also thay have now put safety wire fencing on top of the old pit wall, which doesn't improve spectator experience either, as the main 'grandstand' is too low to properly see what's going on. Great result for Ford though, especially last race on Sunday, which had the most exciting finish I have seen for a long time, with Jamie Whincup losing 2nd spot to Mark Winterbottom on the 2nd last corner, while trying to catch Will Davison.

I think it took a detour due to discussion of manufacturer quality, something which at the best of times is hersay anyway, and not exact science. Nice to have Moderators to keep us straight......

Biggest issue for oil discolouration is obviously if oil is not suitable for the application, but more importantly if you have had poor piston ring bed-in or poor ring gap specification installed as this leads to quite a bit of gas and flames escaping into the cranckcase, and this will discolour the oil very quickly, irrespectively of brand. I use Nulon oil at the moment, has currently done about 3k since last change, and still nice amber colour and clean and clear. A few years ago when I broke the ring land on top and 2nd rings on 1 piston, the oil turned pitch balck in the space of a couple of hundred km's, and you could tell from the smell that it had been fried.

Was that you turning into the servo as I was heading south? I did see the 'baby blue', and wasn't sure if it was Luke or someone else from here. I had just been to the V8's at Barbagallo, sh*t rainy Saturday, but great racing yesterday, and Ford in front in all 3 races

Well, I had an Atomic metal (aluminium) tensioner idler pulley until last Friday, when I noticed a nasty knocking noise from the front of my engine. On inspection, the serpentine belt was rubbing against the tensioner arm, and it was clear that the pulley was out of alignment, so I pulled the tensioner assembly off and found play in what I initially thought was the bearing. On closer inspection, the bearing was fine, but what had happened was that over time, the bearing, being hardened steel had 'massaged' the aluminium in such a way that the depth of the bore for the bearing had increased and the circumference of the bore in the aluminium had also increased on the side away from the bearing retainer circlip, which allowed the idler roller to wobble around, and also caused misalignment for the belt, causing it to rub. Fortunately I had a spare plastic pulley, but will look at replacing with metal again. Just goes to show, regular service and inspection is necessary, as nothing lasts forever.

Steve, Please include me in map distribution, I will try to make this one :sungum:

Steve, try Ebay, they have bucketloads of 32gb Micro SD's for $25 or less

V8 Supercar weekend @ Barbagallo, so I'm out.

Well, unless you know exactly what you are doing, removing the chain is a poor suggestion........ Whatever you do, DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CRANK THE ENGINE WITH THE CHAIN OFF or you will bend your valves as some of these will be left open and the piston will hit them :f*ckyou: The suggested action should only be undertaken with GREAT CARE, and then only by cranking very carefully by hand, turning the camshafts every time a piston touches the valves Better to remove the spark plugs and valve cover and then use the starter motor to crank while watching the marks on the cam sprockets, and once alignment is seen, stop cranking and fine adjust by hand

Stock BA boost is around 6 psi, which is what the solenoid will open at. If you bypass the solenoid, and your car has the stock actuator, then boost will be lower, probably around 4 psi depending on age, condition of the spring etc.

It will probably hang in for a while, provided you take care with things like fuel choice and the way it is driven. Listen out carefully for 'pinging' as your potential for this is higher with a high compression ratio, and with stock rods and pistons, you are at higher risk of damage. Many years ago I converted a 2l 4 cylinder ford OHC engine to turbo, running standard compression ratio, and I had it for years with no problems, boost was low though. Good luck

Yep, BF service manual states compression pressure to be 1010 Kpa = 10.10 bar = 146 psi (should be achieved with a max. of 5 compression strokes)