DIY Engine build

[Wez]

Nice work

[and1c]

Looking good Simon.

 

Im curious, can you tell me what make your valve spring compressor is please as my current one doesnt quite fit the 2JZ head and Im in the process of buying a new one and it would be handy to know its going to fit!!!

 

cheers

[paul mac]

Looking good Simon.

 

Im curious, can you tell me what make your valve spring compressor is please as my current one doesnt quite fit the 2JZ head and Im in the process of buying a new one and it would be handy to know its going to fit!!!

 

cheers

 

Halfords do a good one, you want the more expensive one with the adjustable valve spring extension on, as per Simons pic

[SimonB]

Looking good Simon.

 

Im curious, can you tell me what make your valve spring compressor is please as my current one doesnt quite fit the 2JZ head and Im in the process of buying a new one and it would be handy to know its going to fit!!!

 

cheers

 

I got mine from Machine Mart on one of their VAT free days. Here it is:

 

http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/product/details/cht434-multi-valve-spring-compressor

[SimonB]

My new 0.025mm undersize ACL bearings arrived today (thanks to Dusty at MVP for that one, I was expecting them to take ages being a special order). What I'm doing is mixing these with the standard size ones. So I'm using a standard size half bearing on the block side (i.e. the top) and a 0.025mm undersize (i.e. slightly thicker) bearing half on the cap side (i.e. bottom). That gives me 0.0125mm less oil clearance. So I got the plastigage out, stuck the crank in and checked it again, and woohoo, spot on! They are all pretty much bang on 0.038mm now apart from the centre one which is a bit tighter at 0.030ish.

[Chris Wilson]

Hmmm, don't like that idea, sorry. Wish I had a tablet, could draw my worries FAR easier than type them.

[dandan]

I may not have understood your method properly but if it is what I think...

 

Will your main bearing centrelines all be "true" to one another once the main caps are torqued down? I can't quite see mixing bearing halves as a great idea - I have certainly never done it. Each of your main bearing centrelines will be "moved" (or at least loaded as caps are torqued) by the difference in clearance from one half shell to another...does that make sense?

 

Only way I can describe why I say that is by an example "test":

It would be interesting to install the crank and torque caps down and measure torque required to turn it crank in situ with non mixed pairs of shells - breakout torque and rotating torque. Then do your mix and match and see if that drag torque has increased.

 

You could use a spring balance off a lever arm from one end of crank....? Or do it by hand to get a rough representitive feel for it?

Edited July 24, 2008 by dandan (see edit history)

[Chris Wilson]

Although the actual figures are very small you will theoretically now have a step at the inside of joint of the shells on the cap to block interface. This may lead to the oil film being wiped, odd bearing wear or even a epicyclic motion which could pump the oil film out. All theoretical, as i said the figures are tiny and it may well wear even. Still unsure this is good though, I'd use same thickness shells in block and cap.

[SimonB]

Ok, let's deal with the bearing issue first! First thing is that bearings are eccentric - that is they are thicker in the middle than at the parting lines. So the difference between the two bearing half thicknesses where they meet is no more than 0.01mm (I measured it). Also, there is an oil channel that continues across the parting line, and then there's the tang that locates the bearing. See pics. So there's actually not much width where there will be a very slight step (we're talking less than 0.01mm here as I said).

 

As Chris said, in theory I suppose it could effect the oil film but given the oil channel I can't see that happening. As for offseting the crank, yes it will effectively move the crank up in the block 0.0125mm, but that's barely more than you would get by just using thicker bearings - the max runout of the crank is 0.06mm in any case so it could be off by that amount anyway!

[SimonB]

So, moving on, time for final assembly. First up I installed the new core plugs. I used a thin film of hylomar universal blue round each which is a non-setting sticky sealer. Then I hammered them in using a socket just smaller than the plug in the middle. Job done.

[SimonB]

Next it was time to assemble the pistons to the rods. The pins are held in by circlips which fit into a groove in the piston (see pics 1 and 2), which are a total PITA to install! You put the first one in, which isn't too bad (pic 3). Then lube up the pin, pin bore and small end of the rod, slide the pin in and then swear and shout at the little bugger while trying to get it in without stabbing yourself with a screwdriver and bleeding to death! Ta dah, pic 4! You do get the hang of it - I ended up using a screwdriver to hold one end in while simulataneously bending and levering the other with a small pair of pliers. Eventually I got them all assembled, pic 5.

[SimonB]

Next up, fitting the oil squirters. Pretty straightforward really, see pic.

 

Then I installed the crank for the last time. I lubed up the bearings, lowered it in and then bolted up the caps. You must use the supplied grease on and under the washers and nuts when doing this with ARP studs so you get a consistant torque. There is a sequence you must use when tightening the caps, and you do it in three stages. So I used 30 ft/lbs, then 50ft/lbs, then 70 ft/lbs. The sequence is in the engine manual, but basically goes from the center outwards like this:

 

13 9  5 1 3 7 11
14 10 6 2 4 8 12

[SimonB]

Time to install the pistons. First up, I cleaned the cylinder bore out thoroughly.Then I coated it with oil. Next I installed the rings onto the piston. To do this you really need a decent ring expander like the one in pic 1 - makes it a doddle and avoids twisting the ring or scratching the side of the piston.The compression rings are marked (with an R in my case) - the mark goes uppermost. Pic 2 shows the rings fitted. The ring end gaps must be positioned in the right place - I used the stock positioning from the engine manual. Then I coated the piston with oil, and my ring compressor and clamped it round the piston. Position the crank at bottom dead center for the piston you're installing, then it's a case of carefully lowering the rod into the cylinder (pic 3) and tapping the piston down into the cylinder with the handle of a hammer or something rubber like that (pic 4). The pistons have an arrow which marks the front by the way. Pic 5 shows a piston in.

 

Once in, I carefully guided the big end of the rod onto the crank journal. I then used some plastigage again to make sure the oil clearance was correct and tightened the rod caps up to the torque I found out using the stretch method earlier. The clearances were all spot on so I then undid the caps again, lubed up the bearings and tightened them up again. The bearings are all the same on the rods, there is no upper and lower. The tangs go on the same side (it's important to get the caps of the rods on the same way round.

[SimonB]

So, that's the pistons in, time to sit back and admire the lovely shinyness of it all!

[JamieP]

Splendid work, wanna sell it?

[SimonB]

Splendid work, wanna sell it?

 

No chance, the amount of time it's taken! I reckon I'm going to sit it in the lounge and admire it... Good fun though.

[paul mac]

Although the actual figures are very small you will theoretically now have a step at the inside of joint of the shells on the cap to block interface. This may lead to the oil film being wiped, odd bearing wear or even a epicyclic motion which could pump the oil film out. All theoretical, as i said the figures are tiny and it may well wear even. Still unsure this is good though, I'd use same thickness shells in block and cap.

 

just to clear this up as i had never heard of mixing bearings either so i checked in my tuning bible and voila its in Mr A. Graham Bells book Four stroke performance tuning (third edition)on page 377 to be precise, is this one of your references Simon or were you born with the knowledge to build engines very good write up fella

[SimonB]

just to clear this up as i had never heard of mixing bearings either so i checked in my tuning bible and voila its in Mr A. Graham Bells book Four stroke performance tuning (third edition)on page 377 to be precise, is this one of your references Simon or were you born with the knowledge to build engines very good write up fella

 

Yeah, I do have that book. I knew I'd read it somewhere but couldn't remember where, that'll be it then! Found some stuff on the internet about it too.

[Kranz]

So, moving on, time for final assembly. First up I installed the new core plugs. I used a thin film of hylomar universal blue round each which is a non-setting sticky sealer. Then I hammered them in using a socket just smaller than the plug in the middle. Job done.

 

Nice

 

A handy tip to ensure that they stay put is to drill and tap the block to the sides of the core plug with an M5 thread, then install cap head bolts with washers that over lap the core plug edges.

[SimonB]

I needed to order a few bolts from Toyota to replace sheared ones, so I thought I'd put the cams in the head and measure the valve clearances so I could figure out if I needed any more shims at the same time. Before doing that I checked the oil clearance for the camshafts by installing them dry (i.e. no lube) with plastigauge on the journals. It was a bit tight actually - right on the smallest end of the tolerance.

 

To check the valve clearance I first measured the size of my current shims with the micrometer - I had kept them with the relevant buckets and labelled up so I knew where they went. I recorded those then put the buckets and shims in the head on the bench. Then I fitted each cam in turn using plenty of assembly lube and the method in the service manual, which tells you which position to put each cam in and the order to torque the caps up so the cam doesn't get bent. You obviously have to be careful doing this on a bench that the valves have somewhere to go rather than hitting the bench! I was using a workmate type bench with a gap in the middle so I could make sure.

 

Then it's a case of measuring the clearance for the valves that have the cam lobes pointing upwards, then rotating the cam using a spanner on the hex until the next lobes are pointing straight up and measuring those and so on. You measure the clearance using a set of feeler gauges - start small and work your way up until it will no longer fit under the cam lobe.

 

The clearances are supposed to be 0.15mm - 0.25mm for the intake and 0.25-0.35mm for the exhaust. To work out the size of shim you actually need you aim for the middle of this range, so that's N=T + (A-0.2) for the intake (where N is the thickness of the new shim you want, T is the thickness of the old one and A is the clearance you measured. It's N=T + (A-0.3) for the exhaust. You may well find that by swapping them around you can re-use what you have.

 

There are 17 sizes of shim, from 2.5mm to 3.3mm in 0.050mm increments. In my case all the intake clearances were OK - I just need to swap a couple round to get them all bang into the middle of the range. The exhausts were all too big by miles so I've had to order 12 new bigger shims for that side.

 

By the way, the buckets and shims are one of the things I cleaned up and re-used, along with other bolts and bits and bobs. To clean them I left them soaking in engine cleaner overnight, scrubbed them with a nylon brush and then bunged them in the dishwasher with some normal dishwasher liquid! You have to get them out as soon as it's finished, dry them and spray with WD40 to stop them rusting, but they come up a treat.

[SteveR]

Awesome

 

/me still learning...

[dandan]

You could go shimless with the 3SGTE buckets.....not sure how much they cost though or how high you are planning to rev this thing.....just thought I'd mention it.

[SimonB]

Next I fitted the rear oil seal and its housing. It's easier to put the rear seal in the housing before fitting - I used some hylomar blue on the outer edge and MP grease on the inner, then hammered it home flush with the outside of the housing with a nylon hammer. See pic. Then you apply sealer around the groove using a 2-3mm nozzle - I used loctite 5910 which sets slower than 5900 and gives you a bit more time which is handy when it comes to the sump later - and bolt it on.

 

Next the oil pump, a brand spanking new standard Toyota one. First you fit a couple of new O rings to the block passages. You need to refer to the manual to show you where to apply the sealer. You have to be very careful to make it a neat job and not to gunk up any oil passages. Then you just bolt it on. I put the front seal in after fitting the pump. As with the rear seal I used hylomar blue around the outside and MP grease on the inside. Then I used a bit of drainpipe which happens to be the same diameter as the seal to tap it home. It's very important not to tape it in any further than flush or you will block the drain hole, which would be bad! Then it's the 1st sump. Again, fit a new O ring to the block, then it's time to apply the sealer. For this you need a 3-4mm nozzle on the sealer. Again you need to pay close attention to the diagram in the manual telling you where to apply the sealer as it's not entirely obvious. Once it's done you bolt it up, there are loads of bolts - see pics.

Edited August 10, 2008 by SimonB (see edit history)

[SimonB]

Few more bits bolted on next - first the baffle. Then the oil pickup with a new gasket. Next the crank position sensor goes on. Then the two knock sensors. Then the oil cooler union and the oil pressure sensor - for these you need some thread sealer, I used loctite 577. The 2nd pic shows this lot, from the left its the oil pressure sensor, 1st knock sensor, oil cooler union, 2nd knock sensor.

Edited August 11, 2008 by SimonB (see edit history)

[Scooter]

Simon good stuff

 

might be a bit late now but can you remember what the inner surface of the aluminium sump was like? Was it rougher than the outside and just looked a bit of a poor casting finish? (just after reassurance that this is the norm as mine look a bit ropey to me!)