ANTI-VIBRATION TOWEL When machining or lightening a flywheel on a lathe, vibration and chattering will often cause a poor surface finish. To dampen the vibrations and achieve a nice smooth finish, soak a bath towel in water, wring it out and wrap the damp towel...
CAP MILLING I like to mill my main caps instead of grinding them, when possible. The milling process gets them very flat with accurate stock removal. This “Vice Adjuster” makes it quick to set tilt and I use a precision level along with an indicator to dial-in side to...
HEAVY METAL When adding heavy metal to crankshafts, you always want a nice clean installation. I start with a slightly heavier slug than required and machine the center of the tungsten like a barbell to bring the crank into balance, instead of running it short in the...
CRANK BALANCE SOCKET If your shop has a particular crankshaft design you tend to balance on a regular basis, we recommend using a crankshaft snout socket as a locator on your magnetic attachment for rpm and position on your balancer. This allows you to quickly remove...
STUD INSTALLER We use an old roller rocker arm adjuster nut and put a used rod bolt in place of the Allen jam bolt. I use this assembly to install main and head studs when they do not have a hex in them. Terry Dowker Dowker Engines Charlotte, MI MARCH, 2021
GOOD TO BE FOILED Keep a roll of kitchen aluminum foil handy in the shop. It is useful for many things including shimming chuck jaws, wrapping parts to keep shavings out, protecting parts from weld splatter, covering mill or lathe ways when machining abrasive cast...