The complete guide on casting parts

[turbinepowered]

So... you have a backplate that will have holes in it, and slide that backplate to open and close the throttle rather than turning butterfly valves in the throats, am I right?

How are you going to seal that sliding contact? I'm curious about the reasons behind this.

[chippievw]

Quote, originally posted by turbinepowered »

So... you have a backplate that will have holes in it, and slide that backplate to open and close the throttle rather than turning butterfly valves in the throats, am I right? How are you going to seal that sliding contact? I'm curious about the reasons behind this.

Ya kinda right, 3 parts, lower machined plate, middle brass throttle plate, and the top cast plate as I showed here.
The bottom machined plate will bolt to my runners to head(when I cast them) the brass plate slides, and the top plate is what the trumpets and airbox bolts to. The brass plate slides on PTFE slide runners fixed to brass, running in grooves in machined lower plate. Approx .2mm exsits between brass slider and lower plate so the ptfe takes all the thrust at closed throttle(high Vac). Ill post a few pics to help you see the full picture, its not done yet but you may get the idea.

(Thanks Baz, I take it your looking on Vagdrivers? You'll see it al pan out there. It is cool desiging stuff, exactly how you want it, I feel experience with these engines helps a lot, takes away that feeling that goes with generic tuning parts off the shelf altered to suit many makes...ya know what I mean

Now this is off another forum Im posting my project on so it may read funny In relation to time, order etc, but youll get the idea.

Its drawn in the idle mode, its pretty basic, top and bottom alloy plates, brass throttle plate in the middle, bottom plate machined to brass plate thickness so that it sits into it.
Below the brass plate there's 2) 12mm grooves cut, in these grooves goes the ptfe bearing plastic so the brass slides nice and easy.
Below these ptfe strips are the counter bore holes to hold the whole lot onto the manifolds.
I have to draw in spring mounts, Idle stop, full throttle stop, and linkage yet, but ya get the idea. Ill also have to mount an Idle switch, wot switch, and a potentiometer fixture too, but thats fairly minor.

Slide plate highlighted...

Ill prob be machining away alot of the top and bottom plates too where the material isnt needed on the outsides to get rid of a bit of the bulk.
Hope to finish plans later tonight,

Finished off drawings this eve and milled out the main bottom plate as shown above.

I could have done this on the bridgeport, but I used the router to show what can be done with basic tools, not everyone has a bridgeport...

So, onto the job, all this milling took around 30min, so the router is by no means slow.
You will need a very good quality one though, that is one that did not come from aldi...Its needs to have a strong spindle, and good bearings. German ones are good B)

A normal tungsten tipped bit can be used to cut the plate.

Heavy cuts can be taken to rough it down to near final dimensions, rough being 1.5mm deep, and finish up with a light cut of say, .25mm to bring you to final dimension, this will ensure the best surface finish. wd40 or something like that is used as a cutting fluid, and cuts are taken very slow.
If your not used of using a router, then dont try it, or it could kill you, or take out your eye if your not careful and Ill get the blame....
....anyways, onto the pics...

The plate, the bit, and my coffee...(most important)

Heres the approx shape Ill be milling to give ya the jist....

Zie bit...

The router, just zeroing bit before I start...

Ill let the next few pictures roll, there just showing the various stages of cut/depth etc...these are all rough cuts to get down to near my sizes...

Finish depth cut on slide slots..

Bang on including clearance...

Time to start roughing down the centre section...

Nearly there...finish cut to go...

Oiled up ready for last cut...

Finished...

Silky...

Getting there...

End view, ptfe strip sit into grooves, brass throttle plate sits onto them, the ptfe keeps the brass up approx .15mm of the bottom alloy plate to make sure it slides nice n easy.

Punched main hole centres and drilled them out...

Bored with a 3mm pilot...

How it looks from the other side...

Open them up to 6mm, this bit has a 3mm auto pilot tip built in...

Drilled...

The holes in the grooves need to be counter bored for hex heads that will hold the assembly onto the runner pipes...

Counter bore bit...

Cuts a square shouldered recess...

Done...

Next, I want to get rid of some alloy on the underside of bottom plate, this will take some weight away for me, Ill be keeping to the shape of the runners top flanges which Ill also be making...

One router bit and guide bush, the bush runs along an edge of any sort, and the bit is automatically guided, the bush is 14mm and the bit 10mm so Ive 2mm to take off flange drawing dimensions when marking template. That way, the 2mm difference between the bush edge and bit will be compensated for and the cut line will end up in the right spot...Its handy, it just sounds a bit complex.

Bit and bushing...

Marking out flange profiles...

Coping saw, chop chop...

Template screwed on using the port centre 3mm pilot holes to fix...

Bit and bush fitted...

Height bar placed in-front to rest router on when doing the outer cuts, keeps router base level at all times and stops tipping...

First roughing cut...

Second...

Final super light finish cut, the camera picks up the surface funny, makes it look all over the place...

But its flat...

Jig off, one side done...

Ready for other side...

Rough cuts....etc...same as first side...

Few shots of it cleaned up, marking fluid gone...

Underside...

Runner side, and hex fixing screw...

Surface finish...

Major machining done, and not a cnc in sight -_-

I have to fit the independent Idle control screws/drillings next, I want to have one on each port for total balancing control.

The throttle stop adjuster brackets turned out in the right place...

Small bits of flash to clean up with a small file, gate to grind off, and a few other bits to do to it yet but Im very happy.
It should be starting to make sense now...I hope...!

Tapping stand-off bracket holes...

Tapped...

Pilot boring bottom plate in the marked positions...

Laid down on top plate to drill through on 2 end holes...

Drilled and pinned...

These pins will hold both plates bang on for when Im boring the other 6 holes...

Bored...

5mm bit ready for tapping...

Tapped...

Top plate holes drilled to 6mm and counter-bored...

Time to wash off cutting fluid and do a few checks for Idle holes on drawings...

Modified by chippievw at 7:28 AM 4-9-2010

[chippievw]

I made a great job of washing them ..anyway...

Getting there slowly, Idle holes and brake booster vac line to do yet, and stops, and brass throttle plate, and trumpets, and and and.....

Onto the Idle drilling's, these are probably the most confusing thing to photo but Ill try and explain how they work, the drilling's are pretty complex and hard to get shots of to show how they work, but anyways...Ill try...

All they are is a drilling from the head side(Vac side) of throttle plate(brass, not in the photos) to the top side(atmosphere) side of throttle plate, but half way along this drilling is an adjuster screw to set the amount of air each cylinder gets at tickover. These are to fine tune each port, before I set the overall Idle speed with the main throttle plate stop screw(the two sticky out bits on top plate). They are a by-pass around plate.

First, I marked the bottom plate up...keeping drilling's as near to clamping screws as I can, as on second drawing(youll see why later)...

This is the line the bit will take, once the main port hole is drilled, the 3mm hole will be entering the side of it, you can see that by the rough scribed circle...

Drilled...

Next, I had to drill the top plate, same idea, but I had to move these holes slightly to stop them breaking out into the clamp screw counterbores on the top plate, This would mean they would suck air here, no harm, but I want it coming from inside the trumpets. The holes on the lower plate(the first on I drilled) did skim the plate to port counterbores, but this is no harm because these are below the throttle plate, and are airtight because the ptfe strips will be on top of them(Hex allens and counterbores).

Ill drilled the port centres too while they were together, drilled from the bottom through the pilot holes, and through the top plate, the way to make sure there all in the right place...

Took them apart and drilled the top plate down to meet the main drilling...the hole is offset in respect to the other one to get it as near to the bolt as possible, both drilling's skim each other by half, spot on...you can just see the other hole in the picture...

Same with the bottom plate, these holes are opposite so it was just a matter of drilling them to meet...

I counterbored the 3mm hole out to 5mm ready for tapping, its around 10mm deep...again you can see the other hole at the bottom meeting it...

Tapped with a plug tap(square at end, taps all the way to shoulder)

Both plates together again, you can see the holes in the top plate will be plugged with 8mmx3mm plugs(have to cut them yet and epoxy them in) And the bottom holes have the idle adjustment screws in them, these will be grub screws with lock nuts...The tips will be pointed and will meet the 5mm to 3mm counterbore as above...

The reason the holes are so close to clamping bolts is because they both meet each other at the join, so I want max clamping force there.

A fast pic of how the brake booster line will be, I have to machine out a slot here that will join all ports on the Vac(head) side of throttle plate, Ill fill in the top 1mm of this slot again with a strip of carbon fibre, that way Ill be left with a square slot all the way along. Once the plate is bolted down to flanges, the last 8mm of carbon fibre will be under flanges, so they'll stay there, as well as being epoxied...

Ill stop the slot short one end and drill a hole into it for a barbed fitting for brake booster hose, etc...I could link the runners with some hose and tee's, but thats a cat way of doing it.

Onto machining the slot for the tab on the brass throttle plate to exit out, this tab will be what the acc cable goes onto, and the return springs...

Fixed down in jig...Limit stops either end...

Sub base fitted to router...

You can just make out bit in there, maybe...

First pass...

Second, third, finish, the length of this isnt that Import, but has to within a mill or less...

Last cut is .25mm below the slots as I want to get a bit of epoxy below the ptfe strip here...

Together, roughly...

[chippievw]

Got the throttle plate cut out this eve, I had forgotten how nice brass is to work as its been a while, its kinda hard to make a mistake as it files and works so good.
Hacksaw is out the window though on brass this thick, so unless your still a student and bound to the hacksaw the jigsaw is the only way to go

The plate...

Marking Fluid and Marked out...

3mm holes drilled at internal corners...

Zip...

I cut this rough, to be finished by hand in the vice...

Finishing by hand in said vice...

Light edge polish all round, drops in there...

Height looks good...

All edges finished by hand, its the only way to get things perfect I feel...

Gave it a quick mop with the dry wheel...

Mopped machine finish off lower plate also...

Cut up the ptfe strips to 1mm narrower than the tracks...

They will be pinned and epoxied on like so to the underside of brass T/plate...

Height looks good here also, just enough clearance under plate, ptfe runners will take all the thrust, and not the alloy around ports(Second Pic below)...It slides extremely smooth even half finished...

The strips will also run on the inner raised section at the edges, that way the brass plate wont touch the aluminium at the outer edges...

End view, this has to be closed off yet, once micro switches are fitted but ya get the idea...

Cable and spring tab...

Nearly done on the plate, looking forward to doing plenum and trumpets, and the plate to head runners of course.

[chippievw]

got the vac line machined, and the plenum surface machined too...

I had to machine a slot joining all ports on the Vacuum side of throttle place in order to run the brake booster. I could have done this by linking all runners with a hose and some tees, but thats messy and not the way to do it if you have a clean sheet custom designed part to do. Its easy incorporate it this way. All it is is a groove joining all ports below plate, this groove has a step which Ill fit a strip of carbon fibre to in order to form a square tube. At the end of this tube the lower plate will be drilled in to meet square groove and a barb fitting screwed in.

The camera had a massive bit of swarf on the lens that went un-noticed so I had to bin some photos, but most of them are there...

Drilled a 12mm start hole for cutters, these cutters cannot plunge cut into alloy, so you plunge them in the open hole and then start moving, they are side cut only.

Screwed down...

13mm wide slot cut 1mm deep(Thickness of 5 layers of carbon fibre, thanks to the spoon test!)...

And then the 6mm groove routed, its a bit hard make them all out, I stuck in a red line to make it clearer, you can see the step on top where the carbon will sit, and seal it off...

Template for the ends, I need to leave a bit on these for mounting the spring brackets, cable brackets ,etc...

Done, and I did the same the other end...

Next onto the surface that the lip of plelum will sit on, the cast was good enough, but machined is better...

The jig in place...always working of the port centre holes as with all the jigs, ensures accurate placement...

One pass was enough, round about .60mm deep...

Here is where I have to drill in to meet groove, and fit barb fitting...

Few other shots...

[chippievw]

The plans of trumpets, the drawings are a bit busy in spots but you'll get the Idea, these were actually fairly time consuming to draw as there was a lot of things to consider while doing so, they have to fit, be the correct size, have the correct taper, and base size, etc...I need these drawings in order to strike my templates off when making the trumpet form/mould. With these I can check the form at any particular point and ref it off plans.

The trumpets will also kiss each other half way up, which is what I want so I can tie them together with a bit of kevlar to stop them vibrating.
Due to the plenums design and location Ive curved them towards the opening. Once the plenum is made it'll make sense. I may index each trumpet a bit yet, Ill see how it goes.

Ive thought about the former too, I was originally going to make it in one piece, add one layer of kevlar, cut trumpet down one side and remove former(The former hasn't a hope in hell of coming out without something due to shape) and then epoxy up cut in trumpet again and add more layers(1) but I came up with another way where I wont have to cut trumpet.
Ill make the former in 4 pieces, a flat bit will form bell mouth that can be screwed off the other 3 parts, The other 3 parts slide together, the centre being a removable core. Once the epoxy is dry, the top flat bit is screwed off, the core is slide out ,and I can then collapse the 2 outers bits together and remove them. (pic below)This is the best way I feel as its easier to take kevlar/carbon direct off a mould as opposed to slide it out/off it. Even if there is a lot of release wax on there, wax breakdown, and its shape may make it Impossible to get off any other way other than cutting.

So Im going to tackle all that tomorrow eve.

[chippievw]

Had a rethink about former with removable core, I was afraid that wouldnt work as any resin that could seep between parts would be a disaster, and Its a chance I cant take, so Ill be adding one layer and slitting down one side to remove one piece core. Ill then add another layer after epoxying join line, Id say 2 layers should be enough, if not Ill add another...

Onto the former...

A run on the belt sander and its almost there...

Checked for diameter at 8 points and hand finished...

Making the bell-mouth form...

Few rough cuts to get rid of the bulk of material...

Tidied by hand, shape matches template...

Screwed together...

Checked, and checked again, bang on off drawing when checked with square...

Hard to photo right over it... but ya get the idea...

Im going to now give it some isopon to blend mouth to body...

Very thin skin all over to act as a primer/filler...

Also got clay for making the intake runner patterns...

One thing that amazes me with this whole build is how cheap these sort of materials are, and what you can make from them...

[chippievw]

Got it all sanded and sealed...

Started with 180 and went all the way to 2000 paper...

Waxing...2 coats of shoe polish clear...

2 coats of 5yr old car wax...

I went a step further and gave it a coat of ptfe spray just to be sure I cant see how anything could stick to all this!

Now I came to cutting the kevlar..... ..... It nearly beat me I have to say....Its Nothing like cutting the carbon fibre, its tough as nails and scissors just dont cut it, or a snips, or a tin shears, or a pinking shears..I had to abandon it all last night as I was just making a mess of fabric trying to cut it, its INSANE stuff and is hard to believe it could be so tough to cut.
I had a think and thought the dremel would do it, so I fitted a mini disc
I thought that if I layed some hardboard(3mm) either side of cut line with just the width of disc that it would work....well, it didnt, It just pulled up some strands around spindle and jammed the whole lot...

I got on the net and had a look for some kevlar scissors, found some, 16 dollars, from the Us, with a ten day delivery time, ad 25 dollars postage...no good, to long to wait.

The kevlar scissors looks exactly like a normal scissors, so where's the difference? I played around with the diamond stone until I found out, it didnt take long!

All I did was flatten the tops of the blades to give it a more guillotine action, worked perfect, success!

You can see the terrible edge on last nights top and bottom trumpet bits, even cutting circles was out of the question...but still, these were two sample bits so Im not worried, I still have my main roll untouched...edges were flayed to provide a good bond where they meet the main tube body section which will be wrapped, as this stuff doesn't like going around complex shapes as the weave doesn't move on itself too good to let it do so and it ends up all puckered...unlike the carbon fibre.

Next I cut a long strip off main roll, with the scissors reground it was a breeze...

I then teased 3 strands from the edge, this causes it to fray as ya can see below, these should give it good overlapping edge when wrapped, as opposed to just a straight square edge. These will also blend easier and leave less of a step. (Id say/hope)!

Thats as far as I got, the scissors was a major problem for a while, but thats sorted now so I hope to resin this up later,

[chippievw]

1st layer...

Main section wrapped...I taped it after to tighten even further, thats the layer that matters really as its internal surface has to touch form all over, I can add the other later in what ever way I want now pattern-wise...Ill have a run with some cloth templates once this is dried and any rough spots sanded off, see what kind of patterns I can come up with, Ideally Id like to wrap it using just 4 pieces, top doughnut, bottom doughnut, and two bits on the centre section, but the centre section may run to 3 bits depending how much the kevlar fights me...I could just wrap it again with an 1 wide strip, Ill see how it feels.

Got the spring bracket done...

The springs will sit towards the top inside the bracket so access to the idle grub screws isn't hindered too much...

Water papered, waiting final papering/wax...

1 small bolt will fix it there because if its shape...

Going to leave it at that, I hope its gives a bit more insight now to how this will work. As I said You can see the lot in the projects section on Vagdrivers, named 'No boundaries'.

Ive more casting to do on my dry sump pump, Ill add it here when done.

Brian.G


Modified by chippievw at 7:24 AM 4-9-2010

[MikkiJayne]

Nooooo I need more!!!

Using a router as a milling machine is just inspired You do awesome work

[chippievw]

Ha ha!! I guess I can post more so...I have to say though, the thread title is becoming less and less relevant the more rambling I do

Router works good, as long as its a good quality one with tight endplay tolerance you'll be grand. Its all about how you setup, the jigs, measuring, checking etc. Ive not had any problems yet. While I will save major tight work for the bridgeport, the router works good for work which can only be done on a cnc machine(curved work, etc) Plus, its pretty easy setup, and Im all my life using one!

Brian


Modified by chippievw at 8:31 AM 4-9-2010

[Slayer]

man this is awesome stuff

[Agtronic]

You are so baller it hurts. I have a lot of respect for what you do. You seem like a very patient person too.

[polov8]

Please post more of this as it happens, this is one of the most fascinating threads I've ever read on here, and better still, it's all doable, it doesn't depend on expensive machinery, or spending a fortune on parts! Loving it!

[wantacad]

Everytime I check back on this thread I am more amazed at the work you do Brian, you truly are a craftsman.

[chippievw]

@ Slayer, thanks, Im enjoying it too!

@Agtronic Yes, Patient I am, I guess Im used of it spending so long being a cabinet maker, suppose Im at it 15yrs or so...
I think Its the best trade you could have when turning your hand to making performance parts. Theres a lot of similarities(spelling,) Care in marking out and attention to detail the main ones, and being able to picture the finished functioning item before your even ready to draw/design it.

@polov8, ok, I will so, Another instalment coming after I hit reply here, I really didn't think it would interest so many. Although it doesn't look like it, this is how may one off parts get developed or made in a lot of the smaller market race/rally supercar places where time or cost doesn't matter. Its as basic as this, clay, raw alloy, fire, filler, all used in the quest for finding the finished part.
A lot of people rant on about cncs, but they are just tools and can often get in the way of your aim as to what exactly you want. Its the part your after, anything between the idea and arriving at the finished item isn't Important its just clutter. Dont get me wrong, cncs are great at what they do, and accurate too, but there sole function is mass production.

@wantacad, thanks, I really do appreciate it, Ive spent a long time thinking the last few yrs on what Id like to make, or see made. I always figure that if you can first, figure out a design and how to make it in your head, then everything else is easy once you have that bit done. Its just a matter then of telling your hands what you have in mind which should be simple as your around your hands since you were born.
From memory all this work has been just done using a bench saw, welder, drillstand, jigsaw, and coping saw. There may be a few other bits but not many. I have the access and ability to use my mill here but I get a kick out of not using it at this point, just to see what can be done.
Im using the most brain power on design, and after that the process of manufacture without complicating things too much. The mould for the intake manifold has been the biggest challenge and is actually harder in ways that my proposed 16v head casting mould design. There are compound curves involved in the runners but I have the mould box figured now and Ill be starting it in ten days or so.

About 5% of the emails I get on all this are asking wheres the point in all the trouble the fact its an 8v, well its not really about that on this one, Im getting a feel for everything in the run up to my 16v build, head incl. The 8v is still great, I hope to make nice power too, Ive always loved them, 150hp say in a mk2 is loads of fun on the twisties. A 1.8t could be fitted and mapped to say 220hp, but I hate them, and the power band they have, I like an engine that can be revved out to the limiter all day. Plus Id have it all done in a weekend, and what would I have for thinking about then.

I suppose its fair to say that engineering has also been a major point in my life, nearly more-so than timber so I guess that helps. I do the sums where I need to or apply materials science to particular parts etc in stressed areas, limits, fits, etc...its all one complete package really. Spending half my life taking apart engines and parts, seeing how they are made, jigged, machined, and where, how, and why they wear helps too I guess...I cant leave down any new part without figuring out how it was made from start to finish, or what the moulds could have looked like.

Of course the main point in all this is, I can make exactly what I want, how I want. And more or less free too.

Ill add more to this in a while with a few more thoughts Ive had through all this fabricating.

Brian.G

Modified by chippievw at 7:02 AM 4-15-2010

Modified by chippievw at 7:08 AM 4-15-2010


Modified by chippievw at 7:13 AM 4-15-2010

[chippievw]

Got the part lines inserted and filled on the plenum former.

These will end up being the carbon fibre flange faces where the two halves(top+bottom)will be screwed together once the top and bottom are separated off the former.
The carbon will be laid over the former and out onto these timber slips before being vacuum bagged tight onto the full form.

Once dry Ill trim the flange surfaces to say 12-15mm wide, a neoprene gasket will sit on the lower flange which should form an airtight seal once the two are bolted together again.

Melted a centre line all round the form, the front I had to angle down in order to get the top and bottom mating line down and away from the inlet hose/neck.

Superglue! No need for dovetail joints here

Filler, just normal board filler/plaster crown moulding filler...

This is good gear and sands easy, Ill sand it once dry, check it, and give the whole lot a thinned down wash of the stuff again in preparation for the final flattening for the release wax.

Just working on the shape/design of the scavenge pump foam patterns now...pics up later.

[chippievw]

The start of the scavenge pump build...
Its a 2 section pump, that is two scavenge sections, Ill be getting my pressure feed from the internal factory pump, but feeding it remotely and doing away with the pickup and sump. It will be fed into base of pump where the pickup attaches normally.
This idea struck me one night, and once its done, Ill have a dry sump system, cost free, bar the fittings and hoses. It will be a bit unusual but I want to try it out and see how it comes together.

Im using four pump rotors and two vw casings also for the scavenge pumps, Im doing away with the bottom part that holds the pickup and relief valve.

Ill just be using the main bodies and rotors.(x4) After looking closely at off the shelf dry sump pump plans this will do the trick nicely.

Theres just one catch, Ill have to make the divider sections between them, and also the pulley end section. The end section on the pulley end will hold a bearing and oil seal, and so will the section on the other end. The middle section will have a hole through it(like the pulley end)but it will be a clearance fit with the shaft.
All the bits will be then bolted together with four long bolts/rods, the whole assembly screwed to a back plate, and then mounted where the pas pump would normally go. Thats the plan anyway.

The sections will also hold the fittings, and some oil ways into and out of rotor chambers, the chamber below the rotors will be connected to the dry sump pan, and the section above them to the oil tank(supply to main pump).

Ill explain further once I have the dividers cast, but this bit below is just mocking up the rough basic shape of the foam patterns. Ill be casting them using the lost foam method again, like the girdle.

The pumps, this is all Ill be using of them. Thats the shaft you saw earlier running through them...

The end the pulley will be...

The chambers, top is the pressure section I need to send to the tank, and the lower is what I need to connect to sump...

Foam...

Marking out rough outline...

Basic shape cut out ready for fine tuning/lightening...

The square bits top and bottom are where Ill be threading in the fittings to connect hoses...

Ill need two...

Pulley end section rough cut...

All three ready for fine tuning/sanding shaping etc...

The inlet and outlet to pumps will be on the same end of rotors, but this is not an issue Ive discovered after looking at other oil/dry sump pumps.

Thats as far as I got, I want to keep the bottom end of engine moving as well as the top half/head so itll all come together at roughly the same time(probably not )

Thats all for the minute, Ill update every eve on here so. This is live now to the point where the pics stop above. I have nothing pre made or rehearsed, Im posting as it happens.

Brian.G

[yeayeayea]

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU at my lack of skillz compared to chippie

[turbinepowered]

Looks good, dude.

Are you using two pump bodies for volume throughput, to keep the sump empty?

I'm familiar with the concept behind a dry sump, just not necessarily the execution.

[chippievw]

@ Turbinepowered, yep thats pretty much the deal, they pump the oil back to oil tank.

More from this eve>

Bit of a boring update but cooler stuff to follow...

Got the form rough sanded in prep for the slurry coat of filler, I may give it two coats yet, but I may hit it all smooth first time, Ill see when I start sanding once the slurry coat dries.

I mixed it about as thick as soup...

Paints(slobbers) on pretty good...dries quick though, ten minutes and the brush was starting to resemble all my other 'used' brushes...

I have a few checks to do once its finish sanded...that is, measure in from timber slips to plaster above and below part line, to make sure the plaster is exactly opposite itself so that there wont be a little step when both carbon fibre halves are brought together, If ya know what I mean...

A quick pic of the 1.8 crank, c/w trigger wheel...

Brian.

[ABA Scirocco]

Is that the plug to make a mold? Or, do you plan to use it as a mandrel and form the CF part directly over top of the foam?

A couple years ago, I had occasion to make a quick and dirty air box for a DCOE carb. I made a polystyrene foam mandrel and coated it with joint filling compound much the same way you did but I used a joint compound that dries rather than setting up, the advantage of that is after it hardens up, you can make soft again by soaking it in water. What this allowed me to do was to form the air box in one piece, after my resin had set up, I used acetone to dissolve out the foam, then soaked the air box in warm water for a few hours and rinsed out the softened joint compound leaving me with a nice clean hollow shell.


Modified by ABA Scirocco at 7:51 PM 4-15-2010

[chippievw]

I plan on laying the fibre( 2 layers) right onto it, vacuum bagging it, removing from bag, another 2 layers and that should do it. I hope they will come off form, they should* but if not, I can hack out/dissolve the foam and filler as you did. I have a good feeling I wont have to considering its in two halves, but ya know how things can change...

[chippievw]

Few updates, Had to sieve and oil the sand before I could do any more casting as it was gone a bit dry and lumpy...

Passed through the riddle...

Also mulled it after, engine oil works fine...its a slow job doing it by hand/trampling I need to make an automated muller soon...

Got the patterns finish sized and smoothed...

Moulding it up...I did these two first as I was a bit tight for room to do the three at once...

Filled...

Turned over...

Raked out around edge radius to make sure It fills with sand ok since it was filled face down on a flat board some sand didn't make it tight around and under pattern...

Fitted a very crude sprue also!...

Vented...

Filled...

Charge ready for ignition...lining in smelter is holding up pretty well for home-made refractory...

Poured...

Moulding up the third part...same as above,

Poured...

Something like this>

Bit of machining to be done of course, and a few other bits made, back plate, mount brackets, but ya, that's them three parts cast and out of my head anyway.

Got the plenum sanded also, gave it one more light coat, that should do with regards final smoothing...Ill know tomorrow once its dry.

Brian.

[sdezego]

I don't want to keep posting this, but WTF, you are insane. ...and this is coming from someone who previously thought they were insane, LOL

Your talent and attention to detail is absolutely amazing. I am constantly watching your threads, so please keep it up.

Also, I am 1/2 Iti and 1/2 Irish with ancestors from Galway. So, if I ever make it that way I am looking you up and taking you out to get faced

[chippievw]

Quote, originally posted by sdezego »

I don't want to keep posting this, but WTF, you are insane. ...and this is coming from someone who previously thought they were insane, LOL Your talent and attention to detail is absolutely amazing. I am constantly watching your threads, so please keep it up. Also, I am 1/2 Iti and 1/2 Irish with ancestors from Galway. So, if I ever make it that way I am looking you up and taking you out to get faced

Ha ha!! Post away my man, thats what forums are for! .

Galway ya? Im about 20min from there, if your about sometime drop me a line sure, was out sailing on the Lough Corrib actually today, Im sure you've heard of it.

Few snaps, why not, its nice to get out of my cave once in a while

Ashford Castle bay>

Inchagoill Island>

Castle kirk Island and Castle>

Real craftsmanship and nearly 800yrs old, Irish weather included

And one last one

Enjoy, thats about as Galway/Connemara as you'll EVER see on Vortex

To everyone else, sorry for posting off topic pictures but the man has Galway connections, which is rare on here

Ill return to my cave now and resume my normal day to day fumblings
Sailing is great peace and quiet for thinking though

Brian.

[Issam Abed]

Brian,
You are truely an asset to the Volkswagen community. I have always loved your documentation and all I have to say is POST MORE!

[frechem]

Quote, originally posted by Issam Abed »

Brian, You are truely an asset to the Volkswagen community. I have always loved your documentation and all I have to say is POST MORE!

I agree with Issam. Keep it up.


Modified by frechem at 7:41 PM 4-17-2010

[sdezego]

Thanks for the friendly detour and amazing pics. Now, back to work

[chippievw]

Quote, originally posted by Issam Abed »

Brian, You are truely an asset to the Volkswagen community. I have always loved your documentation and all I have to say is POST MORE!

Nice to hear that coming from you Issam

Update, the ecu, megasquirt, want to give this a try for a change, Ill be able to play around with it which is good!

Opened it up to check soldering, these are hand built, its spot on>

The enclosure, Ill be binning this for a higher automotive spec enclosure, this one isn't fully sealed>

Loom>

One temp sender I got with it>

The knock controller>

The communication's cable>

Got the former almost ready for fibre, nearly all smooth now just to go over a few bits. I had hoped to fibre this this week, hopefully my vacuum bags will come in time so that I can.(volcano dust cloud holding up air transport)

Im going working on finishing the slide throttles now, there aint a whole lot left to do really so I better get them out of the way before I start the throttle to head runners(Which will be a pretty complex mould layout)

Brian.

[chippievw]

@ frechem, forgot to say thanks also, thanks!

@ sdezego, glad you enjoyed the detour, lol. Im back at it again now, youll be glad to hear!!

Brian.G

[MikkiJayne]

Quote, originally posted by chippievw »

Im back at it again now, youll be glad to hear!!

[sdezego]

You will love Megasquirt. It was by far the best thing I ever did. I am also running knocksense as you have and have and had a great experience with it.

[chippievw]

Quote, originally posted by sdezego »

You will love Megasquirt. It was by far the best thing I ever did. I am also running knocksense as you have and have and had a great experience with it.

Thats what I like to hear Im looking fwd to it too, and the flexibility that goes with it

[PeOpLeG60T]

..... im just blown away . like having hard time just breathing ... this thread is so full of AWESOME!!!! man i thought you were nuts when i saw you make the water neck, now it turned out to be a totally other game O_o

all of this made with relatively low technology and stuff hangin in most garages/shops. it's truly amazing. wood , rulers , chisels , i really like how you use the router and jigs/stencils to cut tje contours and shave the stuff , wow im kinda even feeling weird seeing all of this been done this way , then now just like it wasnt sick enought you are pulling out some mad trumpets and plenum.... woah never seen someone work this well . i mean there is alot of good fabricators on this website but it's just not the same arena

congratulations for the man you are , mad skills