DDK - Die Deutschen Klassiker

final viewing before heading off to Garry at visualFX.
Still needs final polishing stages to completion, but currently happy with the result...





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Engine back from Redtek ready to be put back together.
Incl. rebuild kit, new high comp Pistons, rebuilt carbs - £9.2k...


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Prep, prep and more prep



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Good on you for DIY on the engine!
£10k is a lot, so hope it snaps together for you.

Progress on engine build... If you spot anything I've done wrong please, this is a good time to let me know!!

JB weld up the pins


Clean, clean, clean


Seat bearings


Oil pump in


Bend up tabs on nuts... Had a bit of issue here actually, threaded a bolt and turned the bolt in the engine case. I cut another to size to keep going - wasn't a great start though.


Installed pump


Crankshaft bearings


Journal bearing - needed a bit of help


Bearings in...


Crankshaft end rubber gasket


Crankshaft ready to be dropped in - assembly lube and sealant as per dempsey instructions


Crankshaft in





Now for the other case half


Now for the case half engine sealant - it was so cold the stuff just didn't run - a few goes it took... some shots look a bit light but we did add more... Dempsey has you spreading it, but Nick Fuljames specifically said to bead it... we defer to Nick Also none in the centre of the case, only around the edges.. as per Redtek build video...




Together and quickly nip up the outside nuts


Then through bolts and torqued up


then torque outside case nuts


Hmmm... satisfying orange ooze out of all the right places... note used engine case sealant for through bolds as well, again trying to avoid using silicone anywhere that might be inside the engine...


Next long studs




...and chain ramps. Again Nick says here to make sure ramps are seated evenly and not pushed down too far and crooked. apparently you get a false tension reading later... reckon they right to me...



Short block done


Ready for the next stage... next weekend I hope

Great write up . thanks

I have been sand bagging a bit as noticed these... Embarrassed by the evidence.




It is clear the o-ring ruptured when I torqued it up. I was very careful, only turned the nut head, not the bolt but the evidence is clear. I can only think I didn't push the o-ring up far enough up the bolt head. Nick Fuljames assures me it will be fine if I used Loctite which I did, but I am here so I might as well fix it. New o-rings ordered.

I have also been extremely paranoid about my 'Draper' range of torque wrenches. They are brand new but something I just don't trust.

I sent my 10y.o Snap-on 20-100nM torque wrench off to a company called Caltec http://www.calteccalibration.co.uk/ to recalibrate it... can't recommend them enough. £25 and 12mth certificate and peace of mind...

Now back to it.

It's either incompetence (most likely) or an old thread on the case but for the second time I've had a nut turn in place on a thread (refer to the above post... getting paranoid).

The first time the oil pump wouldn't torque properly on one its bolts, I had to take it out and fashion a new one - fixed.
This time on torquing down the crankcase breather I've got a nut spinning before it hits it's final torque value - damn.

Also (definitely my fault this time) I over torqued the blanking bolt going into the crankcase breather and threaded it! I figured being an ali washer I would need 25N to get a decent seal - later I am told closer to 7 - whoops.

I figured I'd JB weld the bolt in to seal it up - apparently no, JB weld isn't stable inside the engine at operating temperate. Ok then, new crankcase breather acquired. Bolt splitter acquired. Start again... Keep going, don't lose confidence!

Using grinding paste I mated the barrels to the heads... You can see those two lines on the heads, that means job done.



Check the ring gap...



Read, read and then read again where the ring gaps are meant to go on the piston. Basically the instructions say one thing and Nick's video says a very slightly different thing... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNccz8b ... 8D1F46E235
Defer to Nick... Here is the result...



In a ring compressor...


Gently press it down into the barrel, checking and checking again that the long fins are pointing down along with the smaller value indent on the piston...


and repeat...



Will have to clean out that engine lube before get go, but it certainly helped getting them in there...

...and now for something completely different...

Received these from Just Dashes - they took months but the result is pretty stunning. I can't believe they are the same ones I sent off...
Now just to claim back the VAT that was charged on import despite clearly marked packaging... sigh... how frustrating.

I took a through bolt out to check the o-ring this is what I found...

The edges had been taken off...


and quite alot of o-ring showing...


Given the state of the remaining o-ring I have decided to leave the rest.

Now onto checking deck height...

cold bluetac huh? Well here goes...

piston mounted


bluetac on...


...and a second time just to be sure... getting consistent readings of 1.25mm which I believe is just right, just. Will double check... number 4 piston another time using a different method otherwise I am sticking with it....

Great Thread

Yep - great thread - keep it up!