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[TR] '63 TR4: It lives!

To: TR List <triumphs@autox.team.net>
Subject: [TR] '63 TR4: It lives!
From: "J.C. Hassall" <jhassall@blacksburg.net>
Date: Thu, 12 Jul 2007 20:08:33 -0400
I'm pleased to announce that after almost 14 years of silence, my TR4 
engine has once again found its voice, and sweeeeeet it is!  At about 
2230 3 JUL (we have very forgiving neighbors) it barked to life (tubular 
headers, no muffler yet) on the first crank.  A *huge* "thanks" goes to 
Dale Osterndorf, my buddy and owner of a show-winning TR6, for helping 
out and keeping me sane as the preparations neared completion.  The 
first run only lasted about 5 minutes due to a lean condition - the 
headers glowed red.  On 4 JUL we covered about 30% of the Weber throats 
to richen the mixture and ran in the Isky 777 cam for 15 minutes.  I 
kept a room fan blowing on the headers the whole time just to be sure.

Engine prep: re-profiled, ported and CCd the head (all chambers 1 0.2 
cc), 10:1 CR, port-matched the tubular header, 5 angle valve job, all 
seats hardened and blended into ports.  Unshrouded the intake valves and 
cut matching "eyebrows" in the sleeves (as an aside, I cut the head 
3/16" from the intake valve lip, which caused head gasket sealing 
problems); Jack Drews' custom head gasket saved the day.  Intake ports 
enlarged to match Canon manifolds.  Weber 40 DCOE carbs with custom 
throttle linkage.  Rods lightened, balanced dead nuts, magged and shot 
peened.  ARP rod and head bolts.  All pistons balanced dead nuts.  All 
rotating components balanced as an assembly (had it not been for the 
"racket" and heat, you wouldn't have known the engine was running - it 
was rock solid steady!), Aluminum flywheel with 6 ARP bolts.  Lip-type 
rear seal.  Alternator, extensive use of extra fuses, Crane XR3000 
ignition with Pertronix PS60 coil, Magnecor wires, NGK plugs. Clearanced 
the oil pump (had 50 PSI using a drill to pre-oil the engine, 100 PSI 
cold, 70 hot).  Competition push rods, lightened and balanced tappets. 
0.062 shims under the rocker pedestals to maintain geometry, radiused 
rocker arms.  Justin Wagner silcone valve cover gasket.

I'm sure there's more stuff, but this list is long enough.  This car 
will be about as close to my old DP car as I can get and still be street 
legal / driveable.  The rest of the drive train and the suspenders have 
been heavily modified as well, but that's for another email.

Yahoo!
-- 
J.C. Hassall
Blacksburg  VA
64 TR4 in autox preparation
95% finished, 90% to go
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