400/450 stroker....Cheap parts, lotta work.

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Here is my homemade valve seal installation tool....
I was forced to make it because the plastic ones I had inherited would destroy the spring around the seal.
400-450 head assy 015.JPG


Even though the new tool won't ruin the spring I remove them for installation...........
400-450 head assy 010.JPG


Then re-install them after the seal is in place.....and no that isn't rust on the spring, it is brown paint.
400-450 head assy 013.JPG


The weenie valve spring compressors I had received in the past from my Pop wouldn't work with some of the 800# springs I would be using so I had to build something a gorilla could use........overkill for this engine but it is fail safe.....
400-450 head assy 017.JPG


And here we are assembled with the break in springs..............I had my choice of spring retainers laying around, these tool steel ones or titanium, lots of titanium ones. I seen in the past some springs with a flat wound dampers were chewing up the titanium retainers. So as both sets of springs to be run on these heads had flat wound dampers I used the tool steel retainers.
400-450 head assy 020.JPG
 
is it my eyeball or is that tip on that exhaust valve angled.
I'm going to adjust my eyeballs and come back for another look before Jim replies.
 
I'm certainly not questioning Jim's work, but that's some trick photography.
I hate it when photo's at different angles trick my eyes. lol
 
fishmens67 said:
is it my eyeball or is that tip on that exhaust valve angled.
I'm going to adjust my eyeballs and come back for another look before Jim replies.
Click to expand...
Gimme a break. Don't all the good engine builders run a 12 degree angle on the exhaust valve tips?

Or it's just a distortion in the lens angle.

Sheesh!


Bewy said:
Have you flowed the intake ports? Numbers? Int valves look like 2.19"?
Click to expand...
1) We've flowed all 16 ports maybe a 1/2 dozen times at least.
2) No flow numbers will be given.
3) As noted in post #23 we are using some 2.20/1.84 valves. The valves were an ordering mistake I made that have lain around for many, many years and we just decided to save some money and get rid of them by using them in this engine.
 
My cocked eye let me down again.
I should have known better
 
Every valve is tested on Dad's homemade valve checker.................
Rocker arm cleaning 004.JPG
 
So after we make our own rocker shaft hold down kits........
correction kit 002.JPG


Which by the way we only make for ourselves. If you need something like it contact B3RE as they are better at it than us.
correction kit 003.JPG


And we get the sweep across the valve tip looking respectable.............
correction kit 004.JPG


We then have to get the roller tip centered over the valve.........
CL valve tip 001.JPG


We machine the hold down so that the roller is centered over the tip with a .015 hard steel shim between the rocker body and the hold down..................
CL valve tip 006.JPG


And then machine a spacer to go between the rockers with about .015" gap.....
CL valve tip 007.JPG


Then bag each set so we know what cylinder head and cylinder it works with.
CL valve tip 010.JPG
 
Very very nice. Do u not use a thin shim on both sides of the spacer or between the rocker and the hold down? Where did u get the studs and nuts for the hold downs. Kim
 
Then each pair of old Crane Gold Race rockers is stripped and cleaned, lubed and re-assembled and new clean bags then receive the pair. A break in oil is rolled into the tip and assembly grease is used on the adjuster screws. I do this for every manufacture. Even though an outfit as good as T&D places a slip of paper saying their rockers are clean and lubed and ready to use, they are not. I have found machining particles, damaged adjuster threads and junk in the rocker shafts on Harland Sharp systems also. Clean everything..............

Rocker arm cleaning 002.JPG
 
IQ52 said:
I'll probably hate myself for using these valve springs I took off of some OOTB Indy EZ heads. Spring pressures are all over the planet. I've had to use a lot of different spring shims to correct the pressures. Cheap parts, lotta work. I'm using some softer springs to break in the cam and lifters. Every final spring has been designated to a specific valve and is marked on the box so when we change over to them, after break in on the dyno, they'll be over the correct amount of shims. I just randomly placed the break in springs on the valves because that will be good enough for the no more than 3,000 rpm for break in.
View attachment 1715716790

I have to measure each valve, retainer, lock and spring locator combination and keep them together for that chamber.
View attachment 1715716796

Take the mic and retainer and set the spring tester to zero, then put a spring with the retainer on the tester and measure the height that gives me the correct seat pressure I want. Subtract the second measurement from the first and that gives me the amount of shims to put under the spring locator.
View attachment 1715716797

My old aluminum mic is a bit worn and checking the mic with the dial caliper says the mic reads .010" longer than what it actually is. I need to be smarter than the mic. God help me please.
View attachment 1715716798
Click to expand...

....but they're in a K-Motion box. That makes um good, right? :lol:
 
oldkimmer said:
Very very nice. Do u not use a thin shim on both sides of the spacer or between the rocker and the hold down? Where did u get the studs and nuts for the hold downs. Kim
Click to expand...
Everything was sourced from Summit Racing. The bolts and nuts are ARP. ARP didn't have the stud length I needed so I got Dorman grade 8 studs in the proper length. After I machined the steel spacers the ends of the spacer were polished with 400 sand paper.
 
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fishmens67 said:
is it my eyeball or is that tip on that exhaust valve angled.
I'm going to adjust my eyeballs and come back for another look before Jim replies.
Click to expand...

Naw, it's a junk bent valve.
 
Gotta check lifter rotation so we lube the cam journals and slip the cam in. Leaving the cam lobes dry I put a dab of oil on the lifter face only and spread it around on the face with my finger.
Lifter rotation 002.JPG


I place the dry lifter into the dry lifter bore and mark all the lifters with a felt pen...........
Lifter rotation 004.JPG


Rotation is apparent on all the lifters after just two or three rotations of the cam..........
Lifter rotation 006.JPG


I'll now remove the cam until later when the bottom end is assembled and we re-install the camshaft fully lubed and time the cam. I'll go ahead and keep the lifters sorted to the lobes as tested, but really there is no need to keep the lifters on the same lobes as no wear has yet occurred. Still, we know they all work in their present positions so why not keep them there.
 
Excellent! I was trying to figure out a way to test lifter rotation before I button up the top end. My cam is currently installed dry (journals were lubed first) so I will try that!
 
Pistons installed. I used the Sealed Power OE quality E-318K 30 piston ring set that is not file fit. It would seem that it would work as-is just fine on regular cast pistons and forged ones as the gaps were .020"-.021" on the top ring and .025" on the second. Using the KB hypereutectic pistons I had to open the top ring gap to .028". After all the pistons were installed it took 23 ft-lbs to turn the rotating assembly over. I'm wondering what installing the cam and new tight timing chain will have on the torque reading. I've never checked that before.
400-450 torque 001.JPG


Let's do that..........Before installing the cam I slathered all the lobes and intermediate shaft gear with Driven Assembly Grease. It is thicker and sticks to the lobes without running off like the Comp Cams cam and lifter lube...............
400-450 cam 008.JPG


I took the timing chain out of it's break-in oil bath and let it drain on a paper towel so I didn't have oil running all over the place as I timed the cam.....
400-450 cam 002.JPG


The Total Seal Assembly Lube was used on the piston rings and piston skirts before dropping them into the bores. I've seen people dip the top of the piston and rings in an oil bath before installing. I guess I'm on the opposite end of the spectrum as I squirt the lube onto my fingers and before installing the rings to the pistons, rub the lube onto the rings. Then squirt a dab of oil onto the skirt and spread it around on the skirt with my finger.
400-450 cam 009.JPG


I like to have an oil supply to the roller chain. There is a threaded plug in the oil galley behind the cam gear. I've struggled drilling a .030" hole in that plug so this time I drilled and tapped the plug for a 10-32 thread and installed a .030 carburetor air bleed into the back of the plug with loctite.
400-450 cam 004.JPG
400-450 cam 010.JPG


And here it is in the right bank lifter oil galley. Does it really work? I don't know......but I do it anyway!
400-450 cam 013.JPG


The cam has a 110 degree LSA and is ground 4 degrees advance for a 106 degree ICL. I installed the gear set on the zero (0) degree marks and got a 105 ICL............good enough for me. 1st time they have ever come out that close for me right at the start.
400-450 cam 017.JPG

The torque wrench clicks sometimes at 24 ft-lbs and doesn't break at 25 ft-lbs with the timing chain installed. I'm okay at that with those rings.

Note that with this setup the ARP cam gear bolts are 15/16" off the face of the block. The stock timing chain cover is 15/16" deep. I had to bubble the cover between one large socket and one slightly smaller socket in the press to make sure the cam bolts didn't hit the cover.
 
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IQ52 said:
Pistons installed. I used the Sealed Power OE quality E-318K 30 piston ring set that is not file fit. It would seem that it would work as-is just fine on regular cast pistons and forged ones as the gaps were .020"-.021" on the top ring and .025" on the second. Using the KB hypereutectic pistons I had to open the top ring gap to .028". After all the pistons were installed it took 23 ft-lbs to turn the rotating assembly over. I'm wondering what installing the cam and new tight timing chain will have on the torque reading. I've never checked that before. View attachment 1715720837

Let's do that..........Before installing the cam I slathered all the lobes and intermediate shaft gear with Driven Assembly Grease. It is thicker and sticks to the lobes without running off like the Comp Cams cam and lifter lube...............
View attachment 1715720838

I took the timing chain out of it's break-in oil bath and let it drain on a paper towel so I didn't have oil running all over the place as I timed the cam.....
View attachment 1715720839

The Total Seal Assembly Lube was used on the piston rings and piston skirts before dropping them into the bores. I've seen people dip the top of the piston and rings in an oil bath before installing. I guess I'm on the opposite end of the spectrum as I squirt the lube onto my fingers and before installing the rings to the pistons, rub the lube onto the rings. Then squirt a dab of oil onto the skirt and spread it around on the skirt with my finger.
View attachment 1715720840

I like to have an oil supply to the roller chain. There is a threaded plug in the oil galley behind the cam gear. I've struggled drilling a .030" hole in that plug so this time I drilled and tapped the plug for a 10-32 thread and installed a .030 carburetor air bleed into the back of the plug with loctite.
View attachment 1715720843 View attachment 1715720844

And here it is in the right bank lifter oil galley. Does it really work? I don't know......but I do it anyway!
View attachment 1715720846

The cam has a 110 degree LSA and is ground 4 degrees advance for a 106 degree ICL. I installed the gear set on the zero (0) degree marks and got a 105 ICL............good enough for me. 1st time they have ever come out that close for me right at the start.
View attachment 1715720847
The torque wrench clicks sometimes at 24 ft-lbs and doesn't break at 25 ft-lbs with the timing chain installed. I'm okay at that with those rings.

Note that with this setup the ARP cam gear bolts are 15/16" off the face of the block. The stock timing chain cover is 15/16" deep. I had to bubble the cover between one large socket and one slightly smaller socket in the press to make sure the cam bolts didn't hit the cover.
Click to expand...


I love the way you oil the timing chain. Have you ever used the Total Seal dry lube stuff on the bores??? I never have, but I’m thinking of it since the rings TS sold me seem a bit overkill.
 
IQ52 said:
Kinda got the 346 iron heads ready for the KB251 pistons. Flat chamber depths were from .084"-.102" and they are all now .110". The quench pad on the pistons are .260" tall and we'll have to mill about 1/2 that off or rather some .125" with the preliminary measurements.

Cody and I are having some fun with this engine. Just went and bought the 251's because they were the cheapest stroker piston I could buy. We'll be using rebuilt stock 6.358" 400 rods. They are of course just a teeny bit shorter now.

View attachment 1715685393 View attachment 1715685394
Click to expand...
I like the port job i like it a lot
 
yellow rose said:
I love the way you oil the timing chain. Have you ever used the Total Seal dry lube stuff on the bores??? I never have, but I’m thinking of it since the rings TS sold me seem a bit overkill.
Click to expand...
I never have used the dry lube, maybe I'm to old fashioned for something that sounds that different.
 
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