Well after spending the better part of the warm weather diagnosing the reason
my engine has turned into a oil sprinkler head (cracked piston ring on #3
cylinder) I've decided to pull the engine and do a proper rebuild. Reading
this list for the last 2 or 3 years has confirmed the wealth of knowledge and
experience out there. Although I have done 95% of the mechanical work on this
beast, sometimes twice, I haven't yanked the engine in almost 18 years (of
ownership, not years of driving). I'd like to rebuild it only once and maybe
improve a thing or two along the way. So here's some of the things I'd like to
know in a somewhat stream of consciousness order:
1) Greg P. has said good things about the BP Northwest "autocross" cam. Any
other suggestion for a "mild" improvement? Any problems noted about regrinding
cams and ending up with one that's too soft?
2) Speaking of soft valvetrain components, I heard there were bad lifters out
there. Anyone have a known good source?
3) Justin Wagner's valve cover gasket; Has anyone tried it on the aftermarket
cast aluminum valve cover?
4) Has anybody tried any of Kas Kastner's race prep suggestions to the head in
a fashion that can be used for street/autocross? I'm a little scared of
modifying the combustion chamber with today's fuels, etc and also afraid of
opening Pandora's box with other compensating modifications. How about just
porting and polishing the head instead?
5) There is a kit to convert the real main seal to a more modern lip seal. Any
comments on whether it's worth the cost and extra machining to convert?
6) Stainless headers; how well do they really fit? Is heat a problem?
7) Replacing vs machining liners? Without the special tool can a machine shop
bore the liners without breaking them loose or creating a gasket problem?
8) Cam bearing special tool; is this essential or convenient?
That's all I can think of now, but please feel free to share that wisdom so I
can avoid the common mistakes. The car is prepped and I'll have the engine out
tomorrow; still plenty of time to save me from myself as I begin the tear down
and start ordering parts. Thanks in advance.
Andy Amatruda
aamatruda@ti.com
Attleboro MA
1967 TR-4 A IRS
CTC72209
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