dimlight65 Posted January 20 Report Share Posted January 20 (edited) So, ever since the shop told me there was an issue with the valvetrain in the Dajiban (ok, so it's still being diagnosed at this point, bear with me), I have been looking at different cams for it. Amazon (All Hail Lord Bezosabub!) has had several different grinds of Comp cams compatible with the MOPAR Magnum/LA small block for $505.95. Well, I got an e-mail today saying they had one of these in stock... It is the second stage grind (800-5000 rpm vs 700-4800 for the mildest). Being the dumbass that I am, I immediately jumped on it! I should have it Wednesday and will take it to the shop with yet another pile of money for them. Edited January 20 by dimlight65 1 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted January 25 Report Share Posted January 25 I dropped the cam off today. The guy at the shop seemed excited to be a part of this plan... of course, he might just be looking at the dollar signs, but still. I can't wait t get this thing back and go for a hoon! 1 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted January 27 Report Share Posted January 27 The double roller timing set arrived today. I wanted a gear drive for that "Blower Whine" sound. But alas, no one makes one. Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted February 19 Report Share Posted February 19 Just like the active-aero air brake a few pages back, this is very unlikely to ever happen... but I still gots to know. What do you think about running the livery from the Pink Pig Porsche 917 on the Dajiban? 1 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted February 20 Author Report Share Posted February 20 Is that different regions of Germany, or different parts of a pig? 1 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted February 20 Report Share Posted February 20 Different pig parts, I do believe. 1 Quote Link to comment
bilzbobaggins Posted February 21 Report Share Posted February 21 Kind of like the pig from secret life of pets. Quote Link to comment
iceman510 Posted February 26 Report Share Posted February 26 On 2/19/2024 at 6:58 PM, dimlight65 said: Just like the active-aero air brake a few pages back, this is very unlikely to ever happen... but I still gots to know. What do you think about running the livery from the Pink Pig Porsche 917 on the Dajiban? Or a whale, but then you will need a whale tail on the roof. 2 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted March 1 Author Report Share Posted March 1 It has a pretty big wang on it already... 😋 1 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted March 6 Report Share Posted March 6 Oof! The donk is about to get a lot more expensive. Apparently my cylinders are more barrel shaped than cylindrical. As the pistons come up the bores, 4 of the cylinders start making compression, suddenly drop compression, then start making compression again. No, I've never heard of such a thing either. We're weighing the options on how to move forward... have this block bored for oversized pistons or pop for a reman from work. Overboring my block could be cheaper, but the reman would be a shorter time frame to completion. On the gripping hand, we won't know how much the reman is overbored, if any... and being the geek that I am, that's important! Is that reman a 0.030" over 322 or a 0.060" over 327? Quote Link to comment
EDM620 Posted March 6 Report Share Posted March 6 2 hours ago, dimlight65 said: how much the reman is overbored, if any... You gotta assume it's overbored some for sure but like you said, knowing is important if you want to know... Personally I'd do the rebuild just 'cause then you know exactly what you're putting into it, plus the opportunity to do some of the little differences that can help your motor produce more power or live longer (port matching, oil port chamfering, deburring) - things that certainly won't be done in the "on the shelf" stock reman. Time is money however. The "barrel" or oval cylinder wear pattern is considered normal and more obvious on higher mileage engines. As the rods swing through their arc, the side thrust creates that wear. The propensity for piston side thrust increases mid-stroke as opposed to the extremes of the stroke where the rod acts in a more vertical manner. What I can't say is if a longer stroke engine is more prone than as compared to a shorter stroke where the rod angle change is quicker, but regardless they will develop the same wear eventually. 1 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted March 7 Report Share Posted March 7 23 hours ago, EDM620 said: The "barrel" or oval cylinder wear pattern is considered normal and more obvious on higher mileage engines. As the rods swing through their arc, the side thrust creates that wear. The propensity for piston side thrust increases mid-stroke as opposed to the extremes of the stroke where the rod acts in a more vertical manner. What I can't say is if a longer stroke engine is more prone than as compared to a shorter stroke where the rod angle change is quicker, but regardless they will develop the same wear eventually. This makes perfect sense, and I wonder why I never realized it before. It also "proves" to me that the previous owner just slapped a junkyard motor in rather than a reman. Having said all of that, I came to the decision that I can't afford either option of replacement engine at this time. I have told them to reassemble it the way I brought it in and make it run as well as they can. If they can set up the carb so it doesn't smell like it's pig-rich, and runs well, I'll be satisfied... for the time being. Of course, since I have a cam, lifters, and timing set, I will build a donk as funds allow and figure out how we're going to swap them later. So, to make a short story long, I hope to have my Dajiban back by this time next wee... DAMN IT! I just jinxed it, didn't I? 1 Quote Link to comment
iceman510 Posted March 12 Report Share Posted March 12 On 3/5/2024 at 7:59 PM, dimlight65 said: On the gripping hand, Nice reference. Good read, but not as good as the original. Long overdue for a movie version. Quote Link to comment
datzenmike Posted March 12 Report Share Posted March 12 On 2/19/2024 at 3:58 PM, dimlight65 said: What do you think about running the livery from the Pink Pig Porsche 917 on the Dajiban? In a pig's eye!!!! Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted March 12 Report Share Posted March 12 27 minutes ago, iceman510 said: Nice reference. Good read, but not as good as the original. Long overdue for a movie version. Wait, original? I'm referring to "Mote in God's Eye" by Jerry Pournelle and Larry Niven... aaaaand looking at the Googles I see that "The Gripping Hand" was a sequel. I don't think I read that one. 1 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted March 12 Report Share Posted March 12 16 minutes ago, datzenmike said: In a pig's eye!!!! It was just a passing thought. Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted March 12 Report Share Posted March 12 So, I have been navel gazing over this and think I have an idea of what happened. It might not be barrel shaped cylinders after all (I hope). As a recap, Dodge Magnum intakes have a stamped steel plenum cover closing off the intake runners from the lifter valley. These notoriously leak and cause oil to be sucked into the intake. When we swapped the Manuel transmission in, we created a situation where the engine could produce WAY more vacuum through engine braking and REALLY sucked the oil into the intake. We're thinking that since the gasket blew (or sucked to be more accurate) on one side, it caused only one bank to get the massive oil soaking and therefore only the driver's side has the issue. We're hoping that by eliminating the oil ingress, the rings will re-seat and all will be well again. It's possible we just didn't give the repaired F/I Kegger manifold enough time to clear up the issue. Or... I could be full of shit and am trying to convince myself that it's going to fix itself. 1 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted March 25 Report Share Posted March 25 Ok, so the latest "Check's in the mail!" promise from the mechanic is that the van will be back together and ready for me to pick up Wednesday. I sure hope so. I miss this stupid thing. 2 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted April 2 Report Share Posted April 2 I finally have the Dajiban back! 2 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted April 4 Report Share Posted April 4 (edited) I need to get this thing inspected. I'm not confident that the monkeys at the inspection station can figure out my switches. Therefore... And while I was making labels, I figured I would do the heater and choke as well... Juan may also notice the House of Dogs has been removed again. I was not happy with the idle speed they had set, so I cranked it down a little. Edited April 4 by dimlight65 1 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted April 4 Report Share Posted April 4 As much as I hate to admit it, 4.10 rear gears are a bit too short for this gearbox. Since I "know a guy" with connections in the used auto parts market (hint: it's me), I have been looking at killing a couple birds with one stone. I'm considering a newer model rear axle to get my gearing back, with the added bonus of disc brakes. Here are a couple screenshots of a spreadsheet I did to compare gearing... Current 4.1:1 gears... 3.5:1 which could be had with a limited slip... Or 3.73:1 which would be an *open differential... So, with this data in mind, I think we will be looking for a 3.73 axle. *Of course, it wouldn't be an open differential for very long... wink wink, nudge nudge! Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted April 5 Report Share Posted April 5 Ok, so we looked at the axles available at work right now and... I'm going to live with the 4.10 gears and drum brakes for a little while longer. I know I say this every time this topic comes up but, "I have gotten used to the 4.10s before, I can do it again." It's not having disc brakes that bums me out. Quote Link to comment
Duncan Posted April 6 Report Share Posted April 6 2 hours ago, dimlight65 said: Ok, so we looked at the axles available at work right now and... I'm going to live with the 4.10 gears and drum brakes for a little while longer. I know I say this every time this topic comes up but, "I have gotten used to the 4.10s before, I can do it again." It's not having disc brakes that bums me out. I have personally found that having rear discs doesn't inherently stop that much better, but in vans particularly, it extends the life of the front brakes by a metric shitload. I bought a new Chevy Astro cargo van early on and sold it at appx 150k miles and had to put new front brakes on three times. I bought another new one that was the last year they made them, and they finally offered rear discs as standard. I sold it with around 135k-ish miles, and the original brakes were still okay. I know the cargo vans are pretty nose heavy, and those rear discs made a HUGE difference in wear and tear.. I had a 69 Camaro with a 4 spd and 4:10's. It would be at around 3500-ish rpms at 65-70 mph. It was damn fun at stoplights, though. 1 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted April 6 Report Share Posted April 6 3 hours ago, Duncan said: I have personally found that having rear discs doesn't inherently stop that much better Oh, it has nothing to do with stopping better. It's all about "The Cool" Quote Link to comment
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