Gallery

Horizontally Opposed 4 Cylinder -- Work In Progress10/31/2004, Complete 4/29/2005

I recieved the plans from Dale Detrich on Sept. 2nd, 04. After reviewing them and planning the order of construction, I ordered some stock items (gears, springs & mat'l) and then went to work on a cam grinding fixture for a surface grinder. The fixture works extremely well, and I can produce a cam in about 45 mins. The fanwheel was my first 3d cad/cam project from start to finish. It was made from solid aluminum, and took about 2 1/2 hours to machine from blank to finish. The connecting rods are made from tool steel and have an elliptical main bearing journal to accept elliptical brass bushing halves. I engraved my last name on the side for fun.

11/21/2004 Some people have been asking me about the cam grinding fixture, so here are some clearer pictures, along with my finished block and cyls.

12/2/2004 Here's a pic of my pistons, valves and cylinder head blanks. The 4 head blanks are made out of a block of aluminum and took over 1000 lines of CNC code to produce. They are one piece construction, (thanks to a tip from Dale), and shouldn't take more than an hour or two to finish. I am just waiting on some screws for the con rods and material (for the wrist pins) to complete my bottom end. In the meantime I'll plan the cam box construction. Things seem to be going well and I expect to have my first engine done by mid December.

12/16/2004 Here are a few pics of my progress, the fully assembled short block without screw holes on the endplates, and a 1pc cam box made from 6061 alum. I am planning on putting a removable sight window on the cambox, so you can see the cam while the engine is running. That will be added later since I want to get this running before Christmas 2004.

12/23/2004 Still a few hours of work to get it ready for set up. I might just make it for christmas!

Just a bit more fine tuning, and i'll tear down and plate/anodize&powder coat.

Click here for a video clip of the engine running, it needs RealPlayer.

4/29/2005

Here are a few pictures taken at the NAMES show 2005, thanks to Dale Detrich. I was a bit rushed to have the engine running since the chrome plater lost my dipstick mount... I finally got the bugs worked out and I fired up alongside Dale's masterpieces. I am extremely excited to have my first engine finished. This was a wonderful project! Thanks to Dale Detrich for being such a great guide, and thank you FAME for a wonderful group.

5/7/2005 Here's a front view of the engine, you can see the air duct I milled in the mounting block, it channels air to the cylinders from underneath. I've run the engine for 3 hours at a time, only stopping to refuel.

Here's a photo of John Snat's engine (the red one) running alongside mine. It turns out that John completed his engine within a few weeks of mine, and he lived just a few miles away. We got together 5-6-05 for a little runtime. John's engine has a "beefy" flywheel and it can run slow enough to make your jaw drop!