Building an AutoStick Engine

[Bookwus]

Hiya All,

Based on the total weights for each piston/rod assembly, I have assigned each assembly to a cylinder.  I took my two heaviest assemblies and put them in cylinders 1 and 3.  My two lightest assemblies went into cylinders 2 and 4.  Now all of my piston/rod assemblies are pretty darn close to being the same weight.  But this is a good approach you can use to assigning piston/rods assemblies even if you have a more noticeable weight difference.  A hint:  if that weight difference is more than 5 grams you probably want to work a bit on evening that difference out somewhat.

Now I want to show you a very useful component in an AutoStick assembly.....



I know what you're thinking...........what is a blinking flywheel doing in this thread?  And on an AutoStick website to boot!  Well, actually, I've found flywheels to be useful little critters.  Even in an AutoStick rebuild.  I take the crank and attach it to the flywheel with a gland nut.  I then tighten it down as much as I can - good and snug in any event.  Turn the entire assembly up on the flywheel and you have an excellent working set-up for assembling the crank.



Oh, and take a close look at the crank.  Do you see that I have also slipped the front main bearing into place on the crank?  That will prove useful later.  Now let's take a look at getting the connecting rods in place.  Of course, you'll need the connecting rod bearings...........



They come in a blister pack like this.  My rod bearings (like my main bearings) are .025 over standard.  That means that the bearings are .025 thicker than a standard bearing.  Why?  My crankshaft was ground down to a true round on the journals.  That means some material was removed from the crank journals.  These larger bearings make up for that missing material.  This is probably a good time to mention that your old crank and rods (as well as your case, camshaft and lifters) should really be inspected and machined, if needed, by a good machine shop.  Attempting to rebuild on the cheap by skipping the machine shop is gonna cost you in the end.  Sermon over...........

In any event, the connecting rod bearings should be pushed into both halves of the connecting rod....



There is no difference in the rod bearings so they can go on either part of the rod.  Just make sure the anti-wiggle dent in the bearing goes in the corresponding slot in the rod on each side.  Pretty easy actually.

I like to make sure that I have the proper clearance between the rod/bearing and the crankshaft journal.  To do that I use a measuring tool called Plasti-Gage.........



This stuff is nothing more than an extruded plastic/wax thread.  Take a portion of that thread (cut the thread to fit across the face of the connecting rod bearing........



You do that by just cutting the envelope the thread comes in to the proper width.  Then pull the thread out  and place it on the face of the connecting rod bearing.........



Place the rod on its proper crank journal and tighten the nuts down to 25 ft/lbs.  Make sure you do this without oiling up either the journal or the connecting rod bearing first.  Once you have the nuts tightened down, undo them and disassemble the rod.  You can then measure the width of the squished thread against the edge of the Plasti-Gage envelope.  It will tell you the clearance between the rod bearing face and the crank journal.  

My clearance was .0016 inches and that is comfortably within specs.  Ok for me to clean up the Plasti-Gage, oil up the bearings and the journal (I'm using the oil/STP concoction for assembly), and install my first rod.  When I get to the tightening up of the rod nuts (by the way, these guys are one of the very few 14mm nuts you'll find on a VW) there are a few things to be aware of.

1.  If you look carefully at your rods you'll see that both ends are stamped with numbers on one side only close to their seam.  Those numbers/sides must be placed next to each other in assembly.

2.  If you look carefully (a lotta careful looking in this assembly!) at the rod nut and the its seat on the rod end you'll see a couple of interesting items............



The red arrow points to a skirt on the rod nut and the yellow arrow points to a groove in the rod end.  The nut skirt is to be peened into that groove after you torque the nut to its proper spec (25 ft/lbs).  I also put a drop of Blue Locktite on the rod threads for a little extra insurance.

3.  The bump in the rod MUST face up when the rod is in its installed position.  



I cannot stress how easy it is to foul up on this step.  You really have to have your wits about you when you do this.  Imagine that the rod is out and into the cylinder on an assembled engine.  Check to be sure that the bump is up by taking all the rods (after they've been installed) and moving them to one side of the crank.  If all the bumps are pointing the same direction - you screwed up.  Two (3 and 4) should be facing one direction and two (1 and 2) should be facing the other direction.  If they are facing opposite directions when they are one side of the crank, take 3 and 4 and place them on their proper side.  Then take 1 and 2 and place them on their proper side.  Now all bumps should face up.

I also like to check the clearance between the installed rod and the crank body.  This is called the rod endplay and it is simply measure with a feeler guage like so........



My rod endplay for number 3 cylinder is .010.  In truth, this space is usually never a problem given that there is a pretty wide range of measurement allowed (.004 to .016). But it's nice to know and this is your only chance to do this.

And as long as we're talking endplay, remember that I told you to slip the front main bearing on the crank before tightening up the flywheel?  Now you can go back and directly measure the all-important crankshaft endplay.  



It's as simple as sticking your feeler gauge in between the main bearing and flywheel.  This measurement does not take the place of measuring endplay indirectly when the engine is complete, but it does give you a solid figure to compare with when you do later measure endplay.  My endplay was .034.  Looks like I'll have to go out and get get about .031 in shims because I want the final shimmed endplay to be between .003 and .004.  More on that later.

[Bookwus]

Hiya All,

OK...........before I install the crank into the case there are a few jobs which need to be done.  

First off, a job which, hopefully, will make laying the crank in the case easier.  Truthfully, the laying (or installing) the crank into the case can get a little difficult.  This little job may provide a "trick" to help with that task.

Take your rear main bearing and your front main bearing (you'll have to remove the flywheel if you went with that set-up) and take them on over to your case which you now have mounted on your engine stand...............



Before you get the bearings over to the case, install the crank dowel pins into the case.....



The other side of the case also has one hole for a crank bearing dowel, don't forget to install it also!  Now you're going to want to dry fit both these bearings into their case journals.  Make sure you look over the crank journal and the bearing.  You'll see that (on the front main bearing) the hole for the crank bearing dowel is offset to one side.  Take a look.........



So, once you are sure you have the bearing lines up with the journal and the crank bearing dowel, simply press it down and into place.  It should be a nice snug fit.  No wobblies at all.  Now, with the bearing in its proper place, mark it at the sides with a line (a Sharpie is good for this) and at 180* opposite of the crank bearing dowel with a "T" (for top!).......



Now, when we drop the crank into place, all we have to do is to rotate the bearing so that the "T" is facing straight up (and the lines match up with the journal seam) and the crank should settly nicely into place.  But we're not quite at that step........yet.

Now I need to install the rear main bearing and the oil slinger.  This is a pretty straightforward operation.  The rear main bearing simply slides onto the crank.  Make sure you lube it up before you put it in place.  And take another look at this picture...........



Notice how the rear main bearing is oriented.  The circular hole opens to towards the front of the engine.  Also notice how the oil slinger is oriented.  Its cupped side faces the rear of the engine.  Both are held in position by tapping the woodruff key into the crank just behind the oil slinger.  Oh, and make sure that woodruff key is all the way into its slot and level.  The main pulley will later have to fit over that woodruff key and it should be a snug fit.

And speaking of orientation, the big front main bearing also has a front and back.  Now you have probably already figured this out after doing the marking for seating the crank.  But take a look at this picture anyway...........

 

Notice the "cups" in the bearing?  These should face the flywheel when installing the bearing.  And do that now.  Make sure the front main bearing has a good liberal dose of lubrication and slide it on the crank.

One last thing to do before we attempt to install the crank..............We have to install one of the number 2 main bearings.  Journal number two (just to the rear of the front main bearing journal) uses a bearing that is split into halves (this for ease of installation).  Take one half of this bearing and slip it down and into its journal making sure that it is well seated into the journal and the crank bearing dowel.  Then lube it up.

We are now ready to take the big step - installing the crank.  Pick your crank up by the Number 1 and Number 2 rods.  Rods 3 and 4 should just dangle straight down.  Very carefully lower the crank into its position in the case........



Do NOT expect the crank to seat itself.  You'll have to do a little manuevering here to get to that point.  First......rotate the bearings until you get that "T" facing straight up.  Then make sure the bearing is centered on its journal.  This is especially true of the rear main bearing which has a bit of play.  Then too, the front main bearing can get one of its shoulders hung up on the journal, so take a good look around.

I have found that that it's easiest for me to seat the crank by working from the rear forward.  In other words, once everything looks generally in place, I start futzing around with the rear main bearing to seat it.  This usually means that I have to pull up on the crank a bit to give me a little room to move the rear main bearing around a bit.  Once I have that bearing seated, I move on to number 3, then number 2, and finally to the front main bearing.  Be patient with this process.  It has taken me as long as a half hour to get everything into the correct position.  The crank in the picture above laid down in less than two minutes!  Yay!

But let's make sure that crank is properly seated.  Get out the other half of the number 2 bearing and place it on top of the crank at the number two journal (where it be when in position).  



It should fit snugly atop the crank with no wobblies.  If it does, you just succesfully fit the crank to the case.  If it doesn't.......................well, remember what I said about being patient.

[volkenstein]

Mike,
      Devils advocate question . Why measure end play when the crank is seated in a manual flywheel?  Or have I jumped the gun somewhat?

Regards
Sean

[Bookwus]

Hiya Sean (you devil!),

Considering that I'll be changing out to a flexplate, that's a very good question.

Actually Sean, I have just gotten into the habit of going through this step because most of the engine rebuilding I have done in the past has been manuals.  Basically I've just had the camera along as I put this AS engine together.  I suppose if I had planned through the steps before I actually went through with them, I probably would have left that out.  On the other hand, it is a nice little trick if one does wind up doing an engine for a manual application.

[Bookwus]

Hiya All,

The next step for me is to seat and install the distributor drive pinion.  This little guy............



I know that some folks who have built engines do this job after the case halves been bolted together.  They say the entire operation is just about as simple as correctly orienting the dristibutor drive pinion and dropping it into the case.  I don't like this approach for a couple of reasons.  I have found that the distributor drive pinion usually does NOT go nicely into place.  It has to be prodded and poked.  If in the resultant jiggling around the shims are dislodged, the case may have to be reopened to fish them out.  Also it is difficult to tell if the distributor drive pinion is completely seated when the case is closed.  Then too all of these problems are non-existant if the DDP is installed with the case open.

The first thing to do is to take the two end shims in the picture above and coat them with a good sticky grease.  I use a little wheel bearing grease to stick them together.  I then insert a long screwdriver through them.  The screwdriver is then inserted into the DDP case hole while I hold the shims on the screwdriver shaft.  When I let the shims go they ride the screwdriver down to their proper seating position.  I tap them down to secure their position and now it's time to insert the DDP itself.

First, remove that little spring that lives between the DDP and the distributor.  Now, take a look at how the DDP is oriented as it approaches the case hole.  



It's very important to note that the distributor drive slot in the top of the DDP is offset.  That offset must point towards the front fuel pump stud as the DDP is slipped into its hole in the case.  I insert the DDP in this fashion and it usually hangs up somewhat in the hole (note its position in the next picture) even though the DDP and the case hole have been well lubricated.  That gives me the opportunity to temporarily set the main pulley on the end of the crank.  I do this so that I can line up the TDC mark on the pulley with the case seam.  That will make sure that the number 1 rod is all the way out at TDC.



Now I can ahead and push the DDP down and into position.  I can also do a just a bit of wiggling with the crank to help the teeth of the DDP engage the distributor drive gear on the crankshaft (another good reason for doing this operation with case open!).  When the DDP is all the way in and seated the distributor drive slot on the top of the DDP should be oriented in this fashion......



This is the classic TDC position for the DDP.  I install the small spring that lives in the top center recess in the DDP.  Now I install my distributor and bolt it down.



I loosen up the distributor adjustment bolt a bit and rotate the distributor body until the number 1 notch on the top lip of the body aligns with the center of the rotor.  The glare from the flash washed out the image of the notch so I've marked it with an arrow.  Even though this engine is not even close to being halfway finished, it is already in time!

Next up, we'll drop in the lifters, take the camshaft for a walk, and button up the case.

   

[Bookwus]

Hiya All,



That's a dished VW camshaft and it's going into my engine.

But before we get to that, a couple of words about camshafts and lifters.  Always think of camshafts and lifters as a matched set.  An exactly matched set.  If you are planning on reusing your present cam and lifters (and that's a perfectly valid option as long as they have some "life" left) make absolutely sure that you keep the lifters in order so that they can be replaced in the same hole from which they came.  That's because the cam and lifters establish a unique wear pattern on their respective faces.  Change that wear pattern by getting the lifters out of order and the cam and lifters will wear out quickly.  Not a good thing.

Since lifter faces are slightly convex you can test them to see if they are still good.  Just push two lifter faces together.  Being convex they should rock or wiggle a bit.  If they don't, they have flattened out and need to be reground.  Don't forget to grind the cam also!

A closer look at the oil pump end of my camshaft



reveals a dot imprinted in the gear ring.  Make a note of that for it will be important later when we install the cam.

And if you look at the opposite side of the gear ring you will find a number.........



Mine is a zero.  This is the camshaft index.  Camshaft index numbers can range from +7 all the way down to -7.  Usually however, the numbers run from +2 to -2.  So, what's the deal with the numbers?  The gear rings sporting these numbers are actually  somewhat larger (+ numbers) or smaller (- numbers) than standard (zero).  No change in the gearing ratios or teeth, it's just that the outside diameter is larger or smaller.  That's because when VW made the cases the journals for the crank and cam did not always come out exactly the same distance away from each other.  There was some small (very small) variation in each case.  But the crank and cam needed to be set to a finer tolerance.  So the engineers at Wolfsburg came up with this way of matching the camshaft to the case.  My advice is simply that if you take -1 camshaft out of a case, replace it with a -1 camshaft.  In reality, that is not quite as easy as it sounds, although, if you are willing to look long enough you can probably find an exact replacement.  It has been my experience that one can replace a specific cam with another that is close and have no ill effects whatsoever.  We'll show you how to judge if a particular camshaft is suitable for your engine.  And one last thing, if you case has been align-bored, all of the material in this paragraph can pretty much be thrown out the window.

Let's start with the lifters.  Goop 'em up with your assembly lube....



And shoot a bunch of that assembly lube into each lifter hole.  Spread it around with your little finger and set your lifters (remember the order if they are NOT new or reground) in the hole.  They should set themselves into their holes under their own weight.  They just sorta slide down and in.  Then I coat the faces of the lifters with white grease.....



Notice in the picture above I have also set the cam bearings in place.  The wide cam bearing with the shoulders goes to the rear, and the skinny cam bearing goes to the front.  The middle sized cam bearing goes in the......................middle.  Make sure you place a generous amount of assembly lube on the cam bearing faces.

And with that, it's time to set the camshaft in place.  Remember that dot on the gear ring?  It's about to play its role in the assembly.  First however, take a hard look at the crankshaft cam drive gear (you may have to do a little crank rotation here).  You should see a couple of dots on that gear ring.  They will be spaced on adjoining teeth.  The idea is that the single dot on the camshaft goes btween the double dots on the crankshaft, like so....



Then, simply roll the camshaft down and into place in its bearings.  Remember I said that you could test the camshaft for compatibility with the case and crank?  It's easy.  With both the crank and the cam in place, grap the number 1 rod and the number 2 rod.  Now rotate the crank counterclockwise.  If the cam is a good fit it will sit there in its bearings and rotate happily.  If it is not a good fit it will tend to lift itsel out of its bearings.  If that's the case you need to look into getting a new camshaft (and lifters!) The camshaft is now (hopefully) oriented and installed.

We need to close up the case, but there are a few jobs to be done first.

The camshaft plug needs to be installed.



It goes into the circular groove in the case just ahead of the front cam bearing.  Coat the edge of the cam plug with Permatex and push it into place.  Generally, when tearing into an engine you will find this cam plug installed with the solid end facing forward.  On the advice of a person who has done quite a few AutoStick engines, I install mine with the open end facing front.  This eliminates any possible wear problems from the proximity of the flexplate.



Oh, and notice that I also greased my camshaft lobes?  

Place the rubber gaskets around the main case studs and push them down and into place.



And we need to get the other case ready to mate up.  Make sure that crankshaft bearing dowel is in place and then insert the half main bearing into place over it. Don't forget the other halves for your cam bearings either. 



Place the lifters in their holes and grease 'em up.  On the outside of the case we'll need to secure the lifters in position when we raise the case half up to mate with the other side.  This can be easily done by cutting a wire coat hanger in half.  Insert the ends into lifter from the outside and that pressure will keep them in place when you upend the case.



Now coat the seam of this half of the case all the way around with light but even coat of Permatex.



I also coat the journal end/seams.  This side of the case is ready to mate up.  But there is one thing left to do on the case half holding the crank and cam.  I like to seal the bottom of this side with Permatex also...........



I go from just under the oil pump in the rear to just above the cam plug in the front.

Now it's just a simple matter of lining up the studs and holes and easing the one case half down onto the other.  The very first thing I do when the case halves are together (before any bolts or fasteners) is to plug up the holes..........



Trust me, you'll be glad you took the time to do this!

Now you want to go around the outside of the case and tighten down the 8mm case nuts to 14 ft/lbs.



Note that the numbers above are NOT a tightening sequence.  Just an aid to location.  All yellow numbers are 8 mm nuts.  Number 12 is also an 8 mm nut but is on the opposite side of the case.  A,B, and C are case bolts.  I usually start with number 3 and then work back and forth on opposite sides of the case.  

And about those case bolts, A, B, and C.   Here they are



Notice that the bolt in the center is just a bit longer than the other two.  That bolt in the center goes in the A position.

Before I do any tightening I take a small brush and dab Permatex around the opening for the stud in the case.........



This allows me to seal up a possible leak spot without getting sealant all over the threads which would affect my torque readings.  Makes for a neater looking installation too.

After the outside case nuts and bolts are all torqued to 14 ft/lbs I do the main stud nuts.  Pretty much the same procedure here with regards to the sealant.  The special washer goes down and then the self sealing nut atop that.  Torque to 18 ft/lbs starting in the middle and then criss-cross the outside nuts.

Oil/ATF pump next.  

[volkenstein]

Mike,
      A small diversion (still O.T!), I can see (ass*u*me ) by your crank thrust bearing, you have a .25mm undersize crank and .5mm oversize case, correct? Any thrust cut on the case? Rod journals undersize too?

I can also see why fitting a 4 rivet cam is somewhat foolproof compared to a bolt together flat cam/gear! Those Scat jobbies appeal even more....

Back to normal programming....


Regards
Sean

P.S.  No discovering a 48 hour day does exist?     

[Bookwus]

Hiya Sean,

.......I can see by your crank thrust bearing, you have a .25mm undersize crank and .5mm oversize case, correct?

You are correct, sir.

....Any thrust cut on the case?

No, the machine shop determined everything was good-to-go in that respect.

....Rod journals undersize too?

Yes.  The machine shop ground the crank to a 20/20 (20 off the mains and 20 off the rods)

....P.S.  No discovering a 48 hour day does exist? 

I'm working on it.  Believe me, I'm working on it!

[Bookwus]

Hiya All,

We're going to talk a bit about this guy...........


The AutoStick oil/ATF pump.

But before we get into that, I need to slightly revise something in my last post.  Instead of tightening ALL the case bolts and nuts to spec, please leave nut number 8 and case bolt C loose.  These are the fasteners closest to the oil/ATF pump position.  To install the oil pump housing section into the case these fasteners should be loose.

Now, on with the oil/ATF pump.  When an AutoStick owner rebuilds his or her engine it's almost a given that they will be reusing their oil/ATF pump.  This is mainly because rebuilt or new replacements are close to impossible to find.  Basically, that means cleaning and refurbishing your present oil/ATF pump.  So, let's take a look at the oil/ATF pump.  The inner housing (the housing inserted into the case) contains the engine oil pump...........



The outside housing contains the ATF pump.......



Of course, both of these sections of the unit should be thoroughly cleaned.  The gears should be checked for wear and don't forget to take a close look at the tang on the main drive gear.  That's the tang that protrudes from the oil housing and engages the camshaft.  Interestingly, it's this part........



the divider plate, that is most likely to need attention.  This seal...........



separates the engine oil from the ATF.  Actually, there are two identical seals at this location.  They are simply stacked one on top of the other.  To examine the inside diameter (the wear surface) you'll need to remove the gear shaft.  That can be accomplished by tapping out the woodruff key that holds it in place.



These seals are readily available and not too expensive.  Replacing them at the time of an engine rebuild would be a good idea.

And you'll want to take a look at the ATF pressure regulator assembly.  



You'll find that under a 6mm allen head bolt on the outside of the ATF housing.  All of the internals (a spring and piston) should be clean and shiny.


The oil/ATF pump goes back together just like it comes apart.  It's really not all that complicated once you get into it.  However, I do not reassemble the oil/ATF pump before I install it.  Rather, I assemble the unit as I install it.  Let's take a look.

I first prep the oil pump housing for insertion into the case.  I place the oil pump to case gasket on the pump housing.



Note that I had to cut the gasket to allow the body pins to fit.  This is because these gaskets are actually for a standard VW oil pump and they need a little customizing for use with an AutoStick pump.  By the way, I used a hole puncher to modify these gaskets.  Once I have the gasket cut and in place, I lay in a bead of Curil........



Curil makes a great non hardening positive seal against engine oil.  I then insert the oil pump housing into the case.  It should slide right in (or can easily be tapped in) if the fasteners are left loose near the oil pump opening.  Once I have seated it all the way in and squished that Curil into a good seal, I fill up the the inside of the housing with petroleum jelly...........



This will help the oil pump prime immediately upon initial turnover of the engine.  The petroleum jelly will melt into the oil almost immediately and get drained out after our first run in.  I shove in the gears (making sure I have engaged the main drive gear into the camshaft slot) and wipe away any excess petroleum jelly.



I use the hole punch on the gaskets which go on either side of the dividing plate.  Then I coat them with Curil



and rub it into the gasket on each side.  The gasket goes into place and the divider plate is slid over the oil pump housing.



Gears for the ATF side are mounted up.........



and a little bit (perhaps a teaspoon) of petroleum jelly is spread around in the housing recesses...........



The ATF housing is then mounted over the divider plate.  I place Curil on the ATF body around the mounting studs.



I then use self sealing 8mm nuts.......



to tighten the oil/ATF pump to the case.  14 ft/lbs if you please.

[Bookwus]

Hiya All,

With the oil/ATF pump installed, it's time to take care of a couple of small jobs before we mount the pistons and cylinders.

The main case bolts need to be installed and torqued down.



I use self sealing nuts for this application.  On top of that I dab Permatex around the case and stud under the washer before I install the nuts,  By the way, make sure that you do have the washers for this application.  I have seen them left out on some engines and they all leaked oil at that point.  Torque these nuts down to 18 ft/lbs.

A word about torqueing........... steps and pattern are very important when securing parts to one another.  I never torque a part down at its rated final torque.  I always do so in steps.  For instance, the torque rating on the main case nuts (above) is 18 ft/lbs.  When I install these nuts I'll snug them up with a regular old end wrench.  I'll torque them to 12 ft/lbs.  Then I'll go back over and torque them to 18 ft/lbs.  Whenever I torque (preliminary or final torque) I move the torque wrench very slowly.  No jerky movements.  Slow and smooth is the way to do it.

And all manufacturers will specify a pattern for torqueing when it is important.  The main case nuts above can be torqued down in this pattern........



Interestingly VW does not specify an actual torqueing pattern for these main case nuts.  Most manuals will tell you to start at the center and work your way outward while torqueing these nuts.  The pattern above (this is what I use) follows that idea.  But do be aware, when you see a torque pattern diagram in a manual, it is important that you follow the diagram.  This will help prevent possible warping of the parts.

And it's also time to button up the bottom of the crankcase.  That means the installation of the oil strainer and sump plate.  Before you go about this job take a quick look at the hole in the bottom of the case........



You want to make sure that the oil pick-up tube is centered in the hole.  If you are using an aftermarket case this can be something of a headache.  I have found these pick-up tubes off center and worse, not "square" with the oil strainer.  In other words, instead of pointing straight down the oil pick-up tube is slanted to one side.  This is really an issue that needs to be addressed before the case is sealed up.  The last time I used an aftermarket case I wound up replacing the oil pick-up with one from an OEM VW case.  

With the oil strainer gaskets I do the same Curil thing I did with the gaskets on the oil/ATF pump.  I coat them on both sides with Curil.............



One gasket goes down on the case.  The oil strainer should slip easily into place.  Then another gasket atop the oil strainer.  Finally the oil sump plate covers the assembly.  Many folks have problems with the studs here.  That's a result of over tightening the acorn nuts which hold the sump cover in place.  Making sure I use the copper washers I place the nuts on the studs finger tight.  I criss-cross when I am finger tightening the nuts.  When they are all tight I pull out my finger wratchet and tighten each acorn nut 1/4 a complete turn.  The center drain plug is supposed to be torqued down to about 25 ft/lbs.  But remember that the underlying idea here is to crush the copper washer (and in doing so make a seal) under the drain plug.  I usually keep a close eye on how that copper washer is compressing.  If it is flattening out before 25 ft/lbs I stop there knowing that I have a good seal.  

   

[Bookwus]

Hiya All,

A little "behind the scenes" entry tonight.

I usually have anywhere from 2 to 4 hours each day to work on this engine build.  My wife insists that I have other pressing responsibilities around the house I must fulfill.  You all know the drill.  Well, I wish I could say my time on the engine is all spent productively but a certain portion of almost every day goes into looking for tools, running for parts, cleaning parts, and taking pictures.  So, progress can be slow at times.  Even so, I am actually quite a ways ahead of my posts right now.  Turns out that it takes just a little bit more time than I had anticipated to compose these posts.  But hang in there - I will.  And like any worthwhile project, this one will get finished.

I thought I would let you see where the engine actually is as of this date.............



Right now I'm anticipating about four more hours of work until the engine is "installation ready".

We'll resume with the regularly scheduled posts tomorrow.  We'll be mounting the pistons and cylinders.

[hercdriver]

Looks great Mike.

I am curious though about your fuel pump. Isn't that the type of pump for use with an alternator?

[Bookwus]

Hiya Dave,

No, it's not.

The altenator specific fuel pump will be angled to the left in order to avoid the larger diameter of the altenator.  That's how I tell the type of fuel pump at a glance.  A generator style fuel pump will sit at a 90 degree angle to the top of the case.  An alternator style pump will lean off at an angle to the left.

The fuel pump in the picture is a Brosol replacement pump.  Apparently a relatively new design.  I had not seen this type of pump until I rebuilt my Bus engine a couple of months ago.  I also used this style of pump on that rebuild......

[Airhead]

Mike

I have been away from the forum for a while but I must say this tutorial is brilliant!!!

Steve

[Bookwus]

Hiya Steve,

And a big Thank You for waking me up!

The thread above is obviously not done.  I had completely forgotten about the darn thing.  When I finished up the engine in this thread I immediately went to work on another engine.  This write-up completely slipped my mind.  Yeeps!  Looks like Bookwus needs to get his arse in gear and get this finished up.

I'll get to work on it right away!

Thanks again Steve.  Had you not made that comment who knows how long this could have gone on not finished?