Kilo Racing 3 Rotor FD Conversion
I passed on doing an oversized stud kit, regerted it, and am now feeling ok about it. Thats for that 
. A CNC machined stud kit is on its way to market soon that is supposed to address some of the issues you're dealing with, but it costs twice as much and some machine work is still required. I might look into it down the road, but at this point I'm project'd out. When George is done with the reamer, I have a few places I want him to stop by on his way back to the machine shop 
. A CNC machined stud kit is on its way to market soon that is supposed to address some of the issues you're dealing with, but it costs twice as much and some machine work is still required. I might look into it down the road, but at this point I'm project'd out. When George is done with the reamer, I have a few places I want him to stop by on his way back to the machine shop
Three Pictures
Just a few extra pics of the ill-fated stud drilling process. We attempted to work with several components at one time. The plan was to ream each section, one hole at a time. Remember, the actual holes were already drilled via a CNC machine and we were trying to take out the last bits of metal that did not meet flush between each iron/housing.
The plan was a 5 step plan:
We assembled the first three parts, the front and middle/second iron and a rotor housing, using the dowel pins and bolts to hold the pieces together:
We then used a drill to ream out each hole. This actually worked for most of the holes, but not for three of them, including the one with the stud in the picture:
This is when we stopped and spoke with crispeed and Rohan from Xtreme Rotaries which led us to go back to the CNC machine shop.
The plan was a 5 step plan:
We assembled the first three parts, the front and middle/second iron and a rotor housing, using the dowel pins and bolts to hold the pieces together:
We then used a drill to ream out each hole. This actually worked for most of the holes, but not for three of them, including the one with the stud in the picture:
This is when we stopped and spoke with crispeed and Rohan from Xtreme Rotaries which led us to go back to the CNC machine shop.
Blithering Idiot
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 354
Likes: 5
From: NE Pa
David,
Sorry to hear about your latest setback. I was offline a few weeks knowing you hinted that something was up, but I didn't expect this. Glad to see you're sticking with it. Maybe you ought to re-title this thread "Keepin' the faith"
Sorry to hear about your latest setback. I was offline a few weeks knowing you hinted that something was up, but I didn't expect this. Glad to see you're sticking with it. Maybe you ought to re-title this thread "Keepin' the faith"
Rumor has it we're now down to one problem hole, bolt #16. The machine shop has ordered a special reamer for this and expects to have everything ready to do by this Friday so hopefully it will be full steam ahead on engine assembly this weekend or just after Christmas.
I'll be off-line for a week and a half so no new posts for awhile. Have a safe and happy holiday season and Merry Christmas to everyone.
I'll be off-line for a week and a half so no new posts for awhile. Have a safe and happy holiday season and Merry Christmas to everyone.
Full Member
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 108
Likes: 0
From: Yokosuka Japan
David i just got done going through 79 pages of up and down rollercoaster like comments talking about your car and everythign else under the sun. how do you feel about everything? i would love to see the hwole thing finished. good luck.
Full Member
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 237
Likes: 0
From: Saskatoon
i just cant believe that this project has taken a shop nearly 4 years to complete since you dropped off your car. im amazed at your patience. but really why has it taken so long? and it is all finished?
^So true. It hasn't taken one shop 3.5 years to finish. It's been to three shops, with the last, Gotham Racing, picking up the pieces and putting the car together the way it should have been done at the beginning.
Spent some time on the phone Friday with George from Gotham. He's got the stud kit hole problem fixed. Took some advice from Ken at RX7.com but he now has the studs sliding in comfortably. This was the major impediment so I'm happy the results are positive. So, let's cross our fingers for this week. The engine should be back together and reinstalled. I'll keep you posted.
Spent some time on the phone Friday with George from Gotham. He's got the stud kit hole problem fixed. Took some advice from Ken at RX7.com but he now has the studs sliding in comfortably. This was the major impediment so I'm happy the results are positive. So, let's cross our fingers for this week. The engine should be back together and reinstalled. I'll keep you posted.
I'm happy to have the ordeal almost over and to get a chance to drive the car again. George at Gotham has done a great job for me over the last several months of putting together and executing a plan that should give me success and ling-term satisfaction with the project. He's a fantastic resource and I'm happy to have him working on the car. Also props to Alex and Steve Kan at Gotham for the work done on the car when it arrived from sorry Wolf EMS USA. While I'm at it, much thanks to Crispeed for all of his advice, all of which turned out to be on the mark, Carlos Lopez for his very expert engine and dynamic balancing knowledge, CMonokar for sharing his experiences and thoughts on the conversion process (same three year process for us, just different shops that hosed us, right Chris?), and to Mirable and HWND for their advice and for listening to me bitch about something else.
So, hopefully we'll see the hoe thing come together now over the next few weeks. George says he's taking pics and I've asked for him to video the first startup of the new engine.
Full Member
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 237
Likes: 0
From: Saskatoon
^So true. It hasn't taken one shop 3.5 years to finish. It's been to three shops, with the last, Gotham Racing, picking up the pieces and putting the car together the way it should have been done at the beginning.
Spent some time on the phone Friday with George from Gotham. He's got the stud kit hole problem fixed. Took some advice from Ken at RX7.com but he now has the studs sliding in comfortably. This was the major impediment so I'm happy the results are positive. So, let's cross our fingers for this week. The engine should be back together and reinstalled. I'll keep you posted.
Spent some time on the phone Friday with George from Gotham. He's got the stud kit hole problem fixed. Took some advice from Ken at RX7.com but he now has the studs sliding in comfortably. This was the major impediment so I'm happy the results are positive. So, let's cross our fingers for this week. The engine should be back together and reinstalled. I'll keep you posted.
Yes, some. They finally have the stud kit holes fixed and ready. The ports have been polished and the matched to the exhaust manifold and gaskets. Today the center oil modification is supposed to be done as well as all parts cleaned. It's then on to reassembly this weekend or early next week.
David, doesn't it often feel like you're watching the car being built at the rate of one part every two weeks? As in, "well, David, we've managed to drill several very nice and straight holes this week. Next week we will test fit some bolts and perhaps static balance them the following week". You must have the patience of Job.
Gordon
Gordon
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 30,793
Likes: 646
From: FL-->NJ/NYC again!
Exactly, with Alex and George, you can't go wrong.....Alex is an expert FD mechanic (and one of the most honest guys I know) and George is supposed to be one of the absolute best tuners around 
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 30,793
Likes: 646
From: FL-->NJ/NYC again!
David, doesn't it often feel like you're watching the car being built at the rate of one part every two weeks? As in, "well, David, we've managed to drill several very nice and straight holes this week. Next week we will test fit some bolts and perhaps static balance them the following week". You must have the patience of Job.
Had to have the bracelet custom made cause a Jesus bracelet wouldn't cut it. Jesus would have lost his patience and gone postal a long time ago if he had to go through all the stuff David's gone through.
Ha. I love that! I'm trying to be more like David. I get impatient/annoyed with how slow my project is going (hearing "we're making good progress on the dump tube" for three straight weeks in December or--like now--no news at all), but then I glance down at the bracelet I had custom made reminding me "What Would David Do?"
Had to have the bracelet custom made cause a Jesus bracelet wouldn't cut it. Jesus would have lost his patience and gone postal a long time ago if he had to go through all the stuff David's gone through.
Had to have the bracelet custom made cause a Jesus bracelet wouldn't cut it. Jesus would have lost his patience and gone postal a long time ago if he had to go through all the stuff David's gone through.