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I agree Mel, to a certain extent, imagine a little weight at the small end of a rod, and then that gets matched up to one of the heavy pistons, and then gets thrown on the heavy crank journal, all those little grams add up, the way I have seen it done is, all pistons milled down to lightest piston, all rods get balanced big and small ends, bob weight of rod bearings, rods, wrist pin, retainers, pistons and rings, rod bearing oil amount, flywheel, HB get mounted to crank and dynamically balanced by adding Mallory or drilling counter weights, not that expensive in the scheme of things.
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Into Building Crazy Big Blocks are we?
So why not try an LS1 small block like this
https://youtu.be/PP2bJcu85ho Or an LS 6 454 big block for a few extra pounds ? https://youtu.be/4uao4lJrwnk |
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My point is that you don't need to balance to 1/10 gram. If I remember correctly, Lycoming's limit is something on the order of 7 grams between the heaviest and lightest assembly. If you get to within a gram, that's a pretty good balance. |
Well....I've done a few V8 Pinto and Vega 1/4 mile cars, even a turbo V8 Detroit 8.2 diesel+Allison in a pickup, but I think Ill stick to airplane engines in airplanes....for now....
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balancing your mass
PLEASE don't drill on your crankshaft. PLEASE!!Or you'll be buying another one.
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See! constructive criticism! I won't drill my crank. thanks, as you re read my first post, first sentence, I have no aircraft engine experience, But, I still want to build my own engine. I am getting a feeling that this is one big secret or maybe there is not that much info to be gathered here, or, maybe folks are afraid to give advice in fear of a lawsuit? I see some have stated that they are not responsible for any advice given, is that a problem here, just asking....... here is one example of a Lycoming improvement. how many folks have this improvement, and how many do not? I'm sure there are many improvements out there but not much interest? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDnPOE5lGEE
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I found rebuilding my engine to be very simple following the instructions of two A&P friends and the Lycoming manual. That said, it is procedural in that you must be disciplined enough to make sure it goes together properly. You have to verify a number of measurements, assemble things in the correct order, use the appropriate sealants/lubricants for the specific applications, etc. Still, it is not rocket science.
If you do have a desire to build your own engine, I think your best bet is to find an experienced local engine builder and have him supervise your work. That way, you do the work, but know that the engine was assembled properly. |
Bret, you are asking the right questions. Like you, I too had built up a number of engines before the one I currently fly behind but none of those were aircraft engines.
What I did was to find an IA who helped me put my engine together. Taking the engine apart and sending the pieces out for inspection takes a lot of time and will be a big savings, if you do that yourself. I was stunned at the number of different lubricants and sealants needed for the assembly. Heck, even finding the silk thread was a challenge. Quote:
While our engines are low speed engines, they are high torque, and that can snap parts. |
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The toher thign to rememerb is that if you mess up building a fire-breathing Chevy with lots of mods for your ground vehicle, you coast quietly to the side of the road. Airplane engines have to be extremely reliable, because when they quit, you are much worse off. Reliability is achieved through careful attentioon to detail and using processes and parts with long track records. |
Another thing no one has mentioned is, pay attention to tolerances.
An air cooled engine that is subjected to a wide range of temperatures is built to somewhat looser tolerances than a liquid cooled engine where the temps are quite controlled. |
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