Auto Engineers in East Kent

[maxstu]

Looking for a reliable company to do the following work:
Vapour blasting cases and cylinder heads
Regrind and polish 2.1 crank.
Camshaft measuring and polishing
Check conrods for twist and big end bearing size (may buy new).
Cut new valves, lap and fit.

I've shortlisted the following companies.
Turner Classics, Ramsgate.
Thanet Engine Centre ( nearest but last resort).
Southern Rebore Co in East Sussex.

Crankshaft damage on No1 conrod journal. Is this repairable? The conrod big end bearing went walkies and ended up here.





Regards
Stuart

[Stesaw]

Oh dear is that from the 2nd van I assume?

[maxstu]

Oh dear is that from the 2nd van I assume?

No, matey. This is a crocked DJ2.1 engine l bought blind from a chap in Scotland. It was fifty quid plus courier charges of about sixty pounds. So no complaints about it's condition.

He pulled it because his mechanic said it's has cylinder head problems (ha!), and l've a spare set of useable heads sitting here. So l was hoping for it's crank and conrods being in useable condition.

Removed both heads and sleeves to measure tolerances between conrods and crankshaft (1 and 2 sleeves were stucked to it's head) and that is when l noticed a very loose and wobbly conrod/piston. No bearing between conrod and cranks. That is the black crap sitting on the magnetic stick

It must have sounded evil when running. But l think it' a rebuildable unit. And one day (soon) it will replace the asthmatic 1.9 engine in the camper l broke down in last Thursday..

[Stesaw]

Ahh fair dues.
Well... hopefully someone can clean the journal up without oversizing it.. hopefully the case is OK

[maxstu]

The damage is quite severe. But can go to US 1mm for conrod bearings.

[ajsimmo]

There's no way you're reusing the conrod that came off that. If you replace just one with good used it'll need weight and balance matching to the others, and all new non-stretch bolts. I'd fit new.
The crank looks like it'll regrind, and might not need more than 0.5mm taking off (1mm is a LOT of metal removed!) Bear in mind if you also do mains that only 0.25us bearings are available. Defo fixable, and the good news is you've got a good standard case for peanuts. Best of luck with it.

Sent from my moto g(30) using Tapatalk

[maxstu]

Starting a lightweight rebuild thread after this post.
Thanks Andrew.
I know l can buy new for 200 quid. However,
I have four spare and tested/cleaned conrods from another project. I intend to replace the bolts and nuts (available at Brickwerks) with early versions and torque to 1.9 specification. Then l can fit small end bush and drill out myself. Then find a workshop to do reaming; Modus Engines in Sussex come highly recommended.



The heads on the donor 2.1 are crappy. I have one spare 2.1 cylinder head and an AMC head to work with.
Removing the valves from the AMC head l came across these spacers on the inlet valves. Also a bit of corrosion next to inlet valve seat.
Your opinion please.

Spacer over inlet valve on AMC head.



Slight pitting on AMC head.

[Stesaw]

Ah yeah the spacers/seal things on the inlet ports marco mentioned those on amc heads. He removes them.

[silverbullet]

I am not a fan of "vapour blasting" aka wet media blasting. Unless you are going to remove all the oil gallery plugs from the case and repeatedly wash it and blow it out there is no way to get it clean. Failure will occur rapidly, you might get a few hundred miles out of it.
I have the evidence in my rogue's gallery of wbx failures which can be dramatic.
New rods every time, ultrasonic cleaning only unless your blasting company uses soft dry media such as apricot stones or nut shell waste.
Glass beads = engine death!

[maxstu]

A nod of appreciation for your comments, Ian.
I thought vapour blasting using water was the best option for disassembled engine parts? Live and learn.
I guess that's no no for cylinder heads, too?
For my last engine rebuild l did have the cases cleaned by ultrasonic process and was not impressed with results.
Regards
Stuart

[silverbullet]

So-called vapour blasting uses abrasive media carried by high pressure water afaik?
We have a Vacublast machine which uses air and recirculated glass bead media.
Soda blasting is better from a cleaning perspective because it is water soluble, but rather less effective. U/S cleaning should remove almost all oil varnish residues with the appropriate deterents and heat (50°C upwards) but it doesn't break down aluminium or iron oxides so some mechanical prep is required.
Horses for courses.

[maxstu]

Thanks very much for explaining.

Will stick to ultrasonic cleaning and live with the non-pristine finish.
I've found a local company for crank grinding and polishing at nearby Manston Airport.
Will give them a call tomorrow.

https://www.daautoengineering.com/

[maxstu]

The story continues here......

viewtopic.php?t=180701

[silverbullet]

One thing that I have found is that a good really hot u/s clean can be enough to give you a head start on swapping any iffy studs.
I changed a few on my wbx6 by arranging to collect the case as it was due to come out of the machine at our local engine shop (didn't have our own machine back then) and then wrapped it up in some clean transport blankets, dashed back to the works and it was still piping hot so the studs came out without any further heating.

[maxstu]

A good point. Noted for future reference.