Four-Stroke Performance Tuning

Indycars

Indycars

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This is certainly one of the best book I have ever read! I bought this book for it's chapter on
exhaust, I'm still wanting to create my own headers, but have them built in stainless steel.

Don't let the title mislead you into thinking that it's all about ignition timing and carburetors/EFI
..... it's not. It's about the complete engine. It's really should be called "The Performance 4 Stroke
Engine Build" and how to select your components. It has tremendous detail, to discuss the Piston
and Rings takes 33 pages and the chapter on Lubrication takes 80 pages to cover. For example, a
V8 at 8000 rpm will have about 3 pints of oil going around with the crankshaft in suspension.
When have you ever seen anything with 5 stars on Amazon?

Of course it's not as cheap as the usually paper back books we normally buy, this is a hard back
book with 600 pages, therefore the cost is about $45 new. It's been reprinted 25 times, the last
one being May 2018.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0857331256/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05__o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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Everything is pretty well covered here on Grumpys I think.
Reading up on oil systems is always good.
I always understood at high rpms there is 1 quart of oil in each Valvecover and another quart running back to the pan.
4 quart pan that leaves 1 in the filter.
1 more in the engine block oil galleries.
If 1-1/2 pints slung around the crank that means there is Zero in the pan sump.
 
 
Some of those crank scrapers have been breaking off on the Pontiac V8 Guys.
Crank Counterweights never touched it.
Not going to chance myself.
Windage tray only.
Need 9 quarts of oil total at least for High Rpm Drag Race into the deep 10's.
More the better.
I always ran 9 quarts total in the past.
 
if some internal engine oil control components breaking,in engines, theres a reason,
and its frequently related to either inferior materials being used or component design,
not having the operational stress being induced taken into account in the design phase.
or the components not having been ,manufactured or installed correctly.

example
for awhile SBC oil pumps were breaking after the manufacturer,
tried to save some cash by reducing the thickness of the housing casting ,
this was a really stupid change that cost them a great deal, in customer confidence,
and potential future sales are word, of the defective pump, got around quickly
theres some vibration stress on any oil pump, and the manufacturer rapidly found ,
they were forced to revert to the original older design.
trying to save a few cents per pump so they could undercut the cost,
of the pumps of other manufacturers, and gain an advantage,
cost them rather dearly in sales.
as many of you gentlemen know MELLING CHANGED the casting on their standard M55 high volume oil pumps making them weaker and thinner
m55vsm1055t.jpg
M55tom1055at.jpg

sbcpumpgearxa.jpg

m10553vsM10552.jpg


OilPumpBrokeb.jpg

a few of MELLINGS THINNER CASTING OIL PUMPS have developed a reputation for
 
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Interesting info. Curious about the 10553ST pump with helical gears, is it worth the extra money? Any drawbacks?
 
from several reports the helical oil pump gears cause several issues,
ranging from excessive noise to more rapid wear and are NOT an advantage

SHARK-08.jpg


MEL10551STa.jpg

while helical cut gears will run smoother ,
( ESPECIALLY WITH THE STOCK 7 tooth SBC oil pump)
as you potentially have 2 or three gear teeth in various stages of gear tooth contact
(depends on the angle of tooth engagement)
and yes the design will reduce a tendency to produce a pressure pulse, I have not seen this as a major issue.
simply swapping to the standard volume and pressure BIG BLOCK 12 tooth oil pump in a SBC engine all but eliminates the pulse and pressure and volume issues a sbc oil pump has.
as a general rule as your engine oil viscosity is reduced the effort required to pump the oil thru clearances is lower and the pressure reading on the gauge drops, thats not necessarily an indication of lower bearing protection, as thats generally a function of oil quality and its formula, and basic components used, in its design, and generally its increased flow rate increases bearing cooling, a good quality 10w30 should ideally provide 20-22 psi at 800rpm idle (anything over 15-17 psi at 800rpm is fine) and 60-65psi by 5000rpm which is all you can use

the helical gears tend to move longitudinally in opposite directions ,
(one up one downward) this increases a minor wear issue, not found in the typical strait cut gear pumps (especially the BBC 12 tooth gear pump, where the standard BBC pump cam be used if more oil flow volume is required in heavily modified SBC engines, , but from several people Ive seen posting its a much noisier oil pump, that has not proven to provide any significant advantages

sbcvsbbcgears.jpg


bbbcpump.jpg


https://www.enginelabs.com/news/tech-video-unique-melling-billet-shark-tooth-oil-pumps-explained/



Small block Chevy parts are everywhere. Most have gone through some sort of improvement through the years, while others have stayed relatively the same. The oil pump is one of those parts that haven’t been through much change. Melling just brought some innovation to the game with their Shark Tooth oil pumps – which are based on a unique helical asymmetrical gear.


Melling’s new Shark Tooth oil pump.

The typical wet-sump oil pump uses two straight-cut gears to pump oil through the engine. Melling last year released a new gear design that resembles a shark’s tooth. The technical jargon for the new gear is actually a helical asymmetrical gear.

But as Melling’s George Richmond said, “That’s a mouth full!” What exactly is a helical asymmetrical gear? Here is the breakdown on what it is and how it differs from the straight cut gear.

Helical gears have teeth that are cut at an angle and are slightly twisted. Straight cut gears collide into full contact. Unlike the straight cut gear, the angled teeth on the helical gear gradually become engaged with one another. The result is quieter and smoother operation. Most manual transmissions have straight cut reverse gears causing a high pitched whine in reverse. On the other hand, ring and pinion gears are helical cut and provide much quieter operation.

Straight cut gears (left) were replaced by the new helical asymmetrical gears (right).

Asymmetrical refers to the sides of the teeth. Each side of a tooth is called a profile. When the profiles of a tooth are not identical, it is considered asymmetrical. The gears in an oil pump are always spinning in one direction. Therefore, one side of the tooth is experiencing higher loads for long periods of time. This side of the tooth is improved by degrading the opposite side of the tooth resulting in different tooth profiles.

The smooth operation of the helical asymmetrical gears has reduced pulse ripple compared to the straight cut gears. Pulse ripple is a pulse in pressure as the pump operates. Melling cites improvements in timing component wear, spark scatter, and less stress on the intermediate pump shaft as the result.


Melling improved the tooth to case seal on the Shark Tooth pumps. Notice the different tooth profiles.

Melling also improved the tip of the gear teeth to create a tighter seal with the pump housing. Melling states that this improvement has increased vacuum inside the pump resulting in increased efficiency and faster priming.

So far the new design is only available for the Small Block Chevy, although there are standard and high volume versions available. A billet aluminum version is also available for racing applications.
 
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Grumpy said:
if some internal engine oil control components breaking,in engines, theres a reason,
and its frequently related to either inferior materials being used or component design,
not having the operational stress being induced taken into account in the design phase.
or the components not having been ,manufactured or installed correctly.

example
for awhile SBC oil pumps were breaking after the manufacturer,
tried to save some cash by reducing the thickness of the housing casting ,
this was a really stupid change that cost them a great deal, in customer confidence,
and potential future sales are word, of the defective pump, got around quickly
theres some vibration stress on any oil pump, and the manufacturer rapidly found ,
they were forced to revert to the original older design.
trying to save a few cents per pump so they could undercut the cost,
of the pumps of other manufacturers, and gain an advantage,
cost them rather dearly in sales.
as many of you gentlemen know MELLING CHANGED the casting on their standard M55 high volume oil pumps making them weaker and thinner
m55vsm1055t.jpg
M55tom1055at.jpg

sbcpumpgearxa.jpg

m10553vsM10552.jpg


OilPumpBrokeb.jpg

a few of MELLINGS THINNER CASTING OIL PUMPS have developed a reputation for
Click to expand...
Some of the oil control parts available there is no Guarantee long term if used on the street.
Only way to know is try out yourself.
If failure occurs you Bit The Bullet.
Or you talk to other Racers that have used 1st hand.
Might be inferior materials.
Only way to improve is make it yourself or have a machinist do it for you.
Use A11 Tool steel.
4130 & 4140 Chromoly.
4340.
Cost will Triple or more.
 
quote "Only way to improve is make it yourself or have a machinist do it for you."


BINGO
 
not if its carefully welded into the side wall of the oil pan rather than sandwiched between the block and oil pan

http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/whats-a-windage-tray-do.64/
409crankscraper.jpg

many engine builders use a contour gauge to custom fabricate a crank scraper that matches the rotating assembly rotational arcs outer profile
cranksc1a.jpg

cranksc2a.jpg

cranksc3a.jpg

cranksc4a.jpg

cranksc5a.jpg

0804chp_12_z+pan_crank_scraper.jpg


cranksc6a.jpg

contour.jpg

BTW a contour gauge makes fabricating an effective oil scrapper far easier, and having it welded to the oil pans windage screen after careful fitting helps also. its not mandatory but its useful, the object of a crank scraper is of course to restrict oil leaving the pan by being dragged around with the counter weights , having a crank scrapper shears off the oil forcing it to drop into the sump, oil flowing across a windage screen surface tends to get thrown with centrifugal force thru the windage screen where it quickly drains into the sump.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Marshallto...MI-PfHu7bz3wIVk4TICh3WEgiWEAQYBCABEgLbVPD_BwE
 
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cranksc2a.jpg


I like how the oil pump pickup is captured.
Forward oil control jamming on the brakes.
A weak link I found on the Milodon Pontiac V8 Drag Racing oil pan I have.

May buy a new pan to modify.
Thinking an 8- quart Moroso Drag Race.
Have time yet.
Goal is to have it up and running Fall of 2019.
Drag race main goal so hence the Drag Pan.
 
Think about a crank scraper yet.
Once in the car the bad thing you can not see if any oil control mods held up or broke off.
Break off its too late.
Kaboom.
Everything has to bullet proof.
 
I want a Moroso Oil Accumalotor on this build also Grumpy.
My Old neighbor used on all his past SBC & BBC Drag Car builds.
 
a considerable enhancement too any wet sump oil pans efficiency to oil control can be made ,
through the fabrication of a semi circular perforated
sheet metal, oil control windage screen welded above , the oil control baffles in the oil pan,
located about 1/8" out from the crank assembly rotational arc,
you can weld tabs to bolt the screen into the oil pan making it a removable component. (use fine thread bolts and nyloc nuts) or weld it permanently into place
look carefully at the linked pictures below

READ THE LINKED THREAD
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/building-a-custom-wet-sump-oil-pan.65/
perforatedg.jpg


https://www.industrialmetalsupply.com/Products/perforated-sheet#1

https://www.industrialmetalsupply.com/perforated-steel-sheet/pss164848375

Perforated-Metal-421x295.jpg

I generally buy 12" x 24" sections of perforated 16 ga to start a windage screen project , but salvage yards at times have old scrap computer cabinet doors with perforated metal doors that can be purchased cheaply as a good source

BTW don,t go nuts trying to fabricate the perforated sheet steel, cutting and test fitting, metal, its far faster and easier, too use scissors and poster board and tape to do the test fitting and clearance checks to make an accurate pattern before you cut the perforated sheet steel
Image11a.jpg

it would be rather useful to find a cost effective high volume oil pan and matching oil pump pick-up matching your particular application before jumping into the purchase of related parts,
don,t blindly grab your credit card and start purchasing parts think things through, measure accurately and you'll find you save yourself a great deal of wasted time and effort
fabricating a custom built windage tray like this if properly done will more than likely be cheaper AND more effective than many you could purchase
I generally use perforated steel, stainless or mild steel, galvanized or aluminum can,t be safely or easily welded into a steel oil pan, with the common mig welder, galvanized won,t weld easily and gives off toxic fumes, you can,t weld aluminum to steel
I generally buy a 12" x 24" sheet like this and make a poster card board , pattern and tape it with duct tape in the oil pan to test fit before I cut the metal ,that way I don,t screw it up before I start to cut and fit and weld it into the oil pan, the cost will generally be under $20 an oil pan
one more in an endless list of reasons to buy a decent welder in their garage shop

windage%20screen%20005.JPG

windage%20screen%20006.JPG

windage%20screen%20009.JPG

yes one more in an ENDLESS LIST OF REASONS TO OWN A MIG OR TIG WELDER
 
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The only advantage I see to using the helical cut gears besides the quieter running, which I don't consider that a big deal but more of a side benefit is that it increases the load carrying capacity which will make it a stronger gear. A lot of this technology was used by GMC and the exhaust scavenging they had on their diesel engines. You might have seen them, they're old school superchargers.
 
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