I can reorder the sequence but that would take longer than the cutting. It would only be worth it if i were making thousands of them.

Here they are after the first coat of paint.

Made my head gasket today. I made a fixture from some 1/8 inch aluminum. I was able to sandwich some teflon sheet between the 2 pieces of the fixture and drill out the holes and used a razor blade to slice the holes out for the cylinders. Figured while i was at it I would make a spare. Now that the template is made it takes just a few minutes to make a gasket.

I have made the rings and the fixture to George Trimble's specs. The article is layed out over 3 issues of Strictly I.C. numbers 7-9. Covers a ton of theory and all the math to design the fixture. The fixture changes with the size of the ring.

There is some newer theory about the temperatures used to stress relieve the rings. Lower temps are used but have to be controlled between 475 - 525C for as much as an hour. I'm going to go that route because the lower temps almost eliminate the need for anti scalant.






The oven made it here friday so the rings are progressing. I split all the rings with a pair of wire nippers. They work very well and give a nice clean crack. Then I loaded up the rings on the fixture.





There are 2 methods that I have read about. One is to heat the rings to a glow and let cool. This method requires that an anti-scalant be used to protect the rings from forming scale on the surface. The second method is to heat the rings to just below 1000 degrees for about 30-60 minutes. The lower temp will keep scale at bay but requires an oven with temp control that most people don't have. It is said to be less destructive to the rings to heat to a lower temp.

The first batch I used some brown paper and aluminum foil as the antiscalant as a test. The second batch went right in with no protection. Other than a slight color difference, I could not tell a difference in surface finish. I cooked the rings for 1 hour at 950 degrees.




I have some work to do still. I need to make a small tool to hold the rings and polish the sides and then do some gap setting. If these work well, The peewee may end up with a new set also.

I have the rings completed. I got the ring gap set and installed all the rings. I only broke 2. One I broke just to see what it would take and the other when i tried to remove it.

I played around with an abrasive wheel today. I got a plate finished and broke the wheel half way thru the second one.

Good day in the garage!!

I managed some progress today. With the rings being fitted I pressed the pistons onto the rods. Then the pistons were inserted into the cylinder bores (not without a fight) and the head got bolted to the block.




The crankshaft was done but i spent some time drilling and pinning the individual parts together.







The assembly sits on the oil pan for safe keeping.

Did some tinkering in the garage today. I installed the timing case. Then the cam boxes and shafts went on. These 2 camshafts took many nights to make. I use to cut 2 or 3 lobes a night. I used a 67 oldsmobile cam as a template so the exact specs are unknown.




Next goes the timing gear. This equipment might get replaced with some bevel gears and shafts. This way i can drive the water pump and maybe some day, the blower. When I started this thing I would have never been able to pull off something like that so the belt was within my skills.




All the covers go on.




The intake looks alot like the original in the photos that i have. and the blower will be fake.



The exhaust is put together with the wrong solder. When it falls apart I plan to reassemble with silver solder. There will also be a horizontal pipe to collect exhaust from the 2 vertical pipes and send it to the rear.



Cheers!

That should bring you up to speed. The NAMES show (modeling show) is 2 weeks from today. I will get an electronic ignition unit for the project. I also have the motor mount code finished so I might get the mounts, plates for the pan and oil pan modifications done this week.

Glad to see you back on line!!!

Cheers!

Steve

Thank you Steve!

I just quickly checked the forum this morning, and your update is great! Eye candy for the Bugattist!

Did the downtime of the forum force you into the workshop? If so, it might be a good idea to have the server crash every now and then...

_________________
Vive la Marque !!

Don't be crashing nuthing!!!

Thank you Herman. I have been trying to get out there at least twice a week.

Cheers!

Hate to say it but this project is offically dead. I have had another hard drive failure and all my backup data is no good. I dont think i will draw this thing a third time. I think it is time to throw in the towel.

Sorry!

Steve

Oh no!

That would be a real shame. Why not shelf whatever you have, and let it rest for a while.

If all else fails you could turn it into a static display, but that would be a shame.

What would you need to finish it? All basic components are there, I believe?

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Vive la Marque !!

Ignition system, motor mounts, inspection plates for the oil pan, 2 more emblems. I will not let it die. Just seem that everytime I start making good progress, something goes haywire.

Send me the drawings once you have them. The only way to protect data is to spread it out.

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Vive la Marque !!

Hello Herman!

Just wanted to check in and let you know I'm still lurking around here on occasion. I'm still honing my skills. I'm thinking I might start redrawing some of the Bugatti parts and get this thing going again. Still not sure what I want to do but I would like to revisit the build.

Cheers!

Steve

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwVfNobk8r0

Nice work!

And indeed, please do come back to the Bugatti engine. It must be a pleasure to hear and see it running.

_________________
Vive la Marque !!