MODIFIED PLUG SOCKET It can be much easier to install and remove spark plugs, when space is tight due to header configuration, by notching out one section of a spark plug socket. This will allow for a better angle, and you can still use the hex head rather than a...
KEELINGS CRANE I use this lifting devise to move things around the shop. It works great for a one man shop allowing me to move blocks around, or anything that’s heavy. I made it from a pallet jack, a cherry picker and a 12- volt electric wench. It works great and can...
QUARTER-TO-HALF GAUGE FULL I picked up a Machinists’ Plug Gauge Set, in .250”-.500”, for scrap value due to its age. The uses are endless for the engine builder. Here are a few of mine: 1.) I use these as checking standards, or for set- ting a micrometer. 2.) They are...
BOLTS AS HANDLES Sometimes, the simplest thing can become the perfect tool. To properly install a camshaft doesn’t need an expensive special tool. A long bolt or 2 can make a great camshaft installation tool. Stack a pile of fender washers on your bolt for a...
CART HEIGHT=BENCH HEIGHT=HAPPY BACKS In our shop we seem to constantly be moving cylinder heads around. First from arrival at the door to a tear down bench, then to the jet wash, to a storage shelf, to benches to be worked on and then to benches to be assembled. We...
DON’T LEAVE ME HANGING When I build big cubic inch engines, I never leave all that weight hanging from a few bellhousing bolts. A screw jack under the front oil pan takes a lot of stress off of the engine stand. Place a piece of wood or heavy cardboard on top of the...