Could you find the acceptable ring gap for this engine - or is that an old school approach that may no longer be relevant?
 
Could you not check the ring gap? Can you find the acceptable ring gap for this engine? or is that an old school practise that's no longer relevant?
 
As said before if it were mine I would go with the rings supplied with the piston.
That's what I've done Hippo. The piston is in, with the rings that came with it, and I put my bearings in the rod that I got.
It's a full day's graft laying under the front to do this job, so it's not something I fancy repeating any time soon.

Having those balancer shafts under the crankshaft really adds to the workload, as they're heavy and awkward to handle, and drip black sludgy oil everywhere, every time they're moved.

I did manage to drop the block extension on my head, resulting in some blue language, and got some black stuff in my eye.

I also managed to get the correct sealer all over the place, but hopefully not in my eyes, as the text on the packaging says the stuff is bad for eyes, skin and causes cancer. :eek::eek:

I'm hoping that's with prolonged exposure though, rather than using it for a couple of hours. :confused:
Could you find the acceptable ring gap for this engine - or is that an old school approach that may no longer be relevant?

Modern manufacturing techniques have all but eliminated that kind of stuff. However no ring gap data seems to exist for these engines. It was hard enough getting the big end bolt tightening torque, which a helpful forum member found for me.:)

I did measure the bearing running clearance though, which was about 1.75 thousandths of an inch, which I'm pretty sure would be right on the bottom end of the clearance specification for this engine, although again I can't find any data for this.

At least the new (second hand) piston is in, and bottom end is back together. :)

Now for a couple of days rest from the car, as I'm aching all over just now. :(
 
AS long as the rings were positioned correctly you should not have an issue.

Did you deglaze the bore? or at least run a metal scouring pad over the surface?
 
AS long as the rings were positioned correctly you should not have an issue.
Yes. The rings were positioned, as per the manual.
Did you deglaze the bore? or at least run a metal scouring pad over the surface?
The bore was honed with my set of 60 grit honing stones.

I'm not concerned about the bore, I've more than enough experience building and assembling engines. ;)
 
Yes. The rings were positioned, as per the manual.

The bore was honed with my set of 60 grit honing stones.

I'm not concerned about the bore, I've more than enough experience building and assembling engines. ;)

be happy motoring then one heads on!
 
be happy motoring then one heads on!

I'm still working on the head at the moment, as the valve seats although appearing undamaged with the naked eye, have actually changed shape very slightly, essentially making them a couple of thou out of round. So this has made lapping the valves to a good seal, into a very time consuming process. I've actually been using what I call the "marking out fluid transfer technique" to mark where the seat needs cutting back, then used wet n dry paper strips to slowly cut the seat at the marked points. This is a slow, painstaking job, but is essential if the valves are to seal up tight. I've done both exhausts and the main intake valve, with just the tangential to finish cutting in. I'm hoping to have the head finished and refitted this weekend, which means I can start the reassembly process.
 
I'm still working on the head at the moment, as the valve seats although appearing undamaged with the naked eye, have actually changed shape very slightly, essentially making them a couple of thou out of round. So this has made lapping the valves to a good seal, into a very time consuming process. I've actually been using what I call the "marking out fluid transfer technique" to mark where the seat needs cutting back, then used wet n dry paper strips to slowly cut the seat at the marked points. This is a slow, painstaking job, but is essential if the valves are to seal up tight. I've done both exhausts and the main intake valve, with just the tangential to finish cutting in. I'm hoping to have the head finished and refitted this weekend, which means I can start the reassembly process.
It ended up a bigger job than you had hoped but should be a great car for the money when you're finished.
 
It ended up a bigger job than you had hoped but should be a great car for the money when you're finished.

A bit bigger Ali, yes. I expected it to be a dropped port deactivation flap (swirl flap), so was expecting bent valves. But a nut in the cylinder wasn't expected, or desired. :eek:

However I'm luckily in no hurry, so I can do a bit here and a bit there, slowly working my way through the issues as they crop up.
The piston is in, and I'm making good headway on the valves, so hopefully the head can go back on this weekend. Then it's just a case of reassembling the engine, which I'm hoping I can remember where all the parts go.:confused:
 
A bit bigger Ali, yes. I expected it to be a dropped port deactivation flap (swirl flap), so was expecting bent valves. But a nut in the cylinder wasn't expected, or desired. :eek:

However I'm luckily in no hurry, so I can do a bit here and a bit there, slowly working my way through the issues as they crop up.
The piston is in, and I'm making good headway on the valves, so hopefully the head can go back on this weekend. Then it's just a case of reassembling the engine, which I'm hoping I can remember where all the parts go.:confused:

They're just a big jigsaw cars really, as long as you stacked the bolts/parts in order you'll be fine.

Unless like me when on the spanners once dong a clutch on a ford focus, left it over night on the ramp with everything in order ready to go back in when the clutch arrived next morning only for the new cleaner to sweep all the bolts & parts up into a pile by the side of the ramp :mad:

Suffice to say, management made sure they weren't new for much longer!
 
They're just a big jigsaw cars really, as long as you stacked the bolts/parts in order you'll be fine.

I'll be fine I'm sure. I'm going to save myself some grief by fitting the exhaust manifold to the head, before I fit the head to the block.

The valves are now cut in good enough to seal, so tonight I'll put the valve springs back on, in readiness for the reassembly to start over the weekend.

I've got all the components assembled in groups, along with the fixings, so no issues with cleaners sweeping everything into a pile.:eek:

Fingers crossed it'll be running for next weekend. I can then move on to the brakes which I'll be replacing completely, with Delphi parts of course.
 
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I'll be fine I'm sure. I'm going to save myself some grief by fitting the exhaust manifold to the head, before I fit the head to the block.

The valves are now cut in good enough to seal, so tonight I'll put the valve springs back on, in readiness for the reassembly to start over the weekend.

I've got all the components assembled in groups, along with the fixings, so no issues with cleaners sweeping everything into a pile.:eek:

Fingers crossed it'll be running for next weekend. I can then move on to the brakes which I'll be replacing completely, with Delphi parts of course.
Of course you need the brakes which make you happy, but I just replaced all 4 disks and pads with these :
https://www.britpart.com/parts/repair-and-service-parts/braking/britpart-xs-brake-discs
I was very impressed and I am sure they are by Delphy
 
on subject of brakes i can advise that a good combo i have found are EBC green stuff pads combined with Mtech drilled and grooved discs, better than any standard set up I've ever used
 
So this morning I decided it was time to get the head back on, as I'd finished the valve lapping on Thursday.
I degreased the head, and fitted the exhaust manifold to the head, as it's basically impossible to fit once the head is on the block, as it hits the turbo, and I wanted to avoid removing that unnecessarily. Makes the head heavy though. :(
20200905_162755.jpg

I cleaned and degreased the block, which also had a small amount of corrosion on a couple of parts, which required removing.
20200905_105528.jpg


I oiled the cylinder bores sparingly, and turned the crank backwards about 30°, so the valves don't contact the pistons, when the cams are fitted.
20200905_162847.jpg

Once cleaned, the new HG was removed from its packaging, and placed straight onto the cleaned block, locating it on the dowels.
20200905_105802.jpg

Once the head was in place, I went through the head bolt torque procedure, noticing that a couple of the bolts needed less effort to rotate them the number of degrees specified, so I took the decision to rotate those rouge bolts up a few more degrees. :eek:

Once the head torquing was done, it was just a case of bolting the turbo back up to the exhaust manifold, and fitting the heat shield. I also rested the EGR assembly in place, using some salvaged bolts, as the originals were missing. :(

I then set about bolting the ancillary bracket back to the head, and refitted the PS pump. I also refitted the thermostat, it's pipes and the harness carrier that shares the bolts for the thermostat.
20200905_154250.jpg

That's where I left it for today, as I need to install the cams next, and I need to clean lots residual sealer off the cam ladder frame first.
 
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Good stuff, looks to be going to plan. Hope it continues!
Thanks Andy.

I'm going to get the cams refitted tomorrow, which will close the engine to the atmosphere.

I'm waiting for the timing belt kit and I've had to order a set of glow plugs, as all were dead.
Unfortunately the plugs are impossible to do with the inlet manifold in place, so that will need to wait until they arrive, but the rest of the engine can go back together tomorrow.

Fingers crossed that the engine is running next weekend. :)
Although I've still to discover if the display showing CRASH will stop it starting.
 
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With the amount of valve grinding, will the hydraulic lifters (or whatever it has!) be able to accommodate the valve clearances ok?
Just a thought for my info really??
 

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