JohnCh

Croc, I don't think I showed you my Ballistic Evo 2 battery when you were here. It weighs under 3-1/2 pounds and as you can see is tiny, yet it easily starts my car after sitting outside overnight in mid 30F weather. It replaced my PC680 (>11 lb heavier) and worked well for two years, then began showing signs of charge loss after the car had sat for a week or two. A replacement was installed 5 years ago. That battery is still working well, but I'm sure I'll be in the same boat as Supsersportsp in the near-ish future so I'm watching this thread closely. Two batteries that have mostly good reviews are the Antigravity and the EarthX. The EarthX is a little more expensive, but from I've read could be worth it. Anyone have experience with either manufacturer? Any good or bad experience with other Lithium brands? Thanks, John

I may have spoken with the Woodinvile owner at the party. He wasn't aware of this forum but had planned to check it out, although not sure he remembered the URL. It would be good to see him start a build thread as that kind of content is not only entertaining for those of us who have taken the plunge into se7en ownership, but can help push those on the fence over the edge. The more people we can corrupt into lightness, the better -John

Are all three cars staying in the area? If you are doing any of the builds, we won't object to in-progress photos along the way. Having been to Bruce's shop, I can say that it is a really, really nice facility, and the quality of his work is fantastic. I spent some time in December going over a car he was building and it was the highest quality I've seen to date. Outstanding attention to detail. -John

I was in a pedantic mood when I ranted about that earlier (damn bearing issue....) I think Caterham's current branding is fine and more useful than the old one since the sub models have weight differences (S vs. R, SV vs. S3). This system tells you the hp, or close to it provided you can divide by 2 in your head. I just think R&T should know better, particularly when they provide weight and hp numbers in the article that clearly don't add up to 310 bhp/ton. Kind of makes me wonder if they actually understand what that formula means. It's not blatantly obvious to many Americans who have trouble with the metric system and grew up with lb/hp, but I expect better from R&T given their history. Heck, they explained to us that a BMW 328 no longer means it has a 2.8L engine, but they couldn't figure this out? :jester: Sorry for insulting any marketers on the forum. Full disclosure, I was one for many years -John

Good article (link works for me). It was nice to see them use the word blat, although I suspect it confused some of their US readers I was less pleased to see them perpetuate the myth that Caterham continues to name their cars based on the hp/ton rating. That stopped a while ago and now they simply double the hp, round up to a nice number and call it a day. If it were true, the cars would weigh less than 500kg. Damn marketers...they should all be sent to remedial algebra. :rant: -John

Anker, I wouldn't worry about the crossflow. The SuperSprint spec is a well known formula for those engines and unlike the Duratec, the crossflow was designed to be rebuilt rather than thrown away when old and tired. Yeah, I was really surprised by the difficulty. Initially I assumed the machine shop was being lazy, but after multiple Internet searches (I have the blisters on my fingertips to prove it), calls to Clevite/Mahle, ACL, King, and various Focus tuning shops, I realized that wasn't the case. Duratec tuning in the US seems to focus on forced induction rather than spinning at high rpms, and people seem happy with the OE spec. It just seems to me that bearings aren't an area where you should hope they're good enough. The excursion to a winery sounds like a good idea, but a side trip to a place where they sell something stronger sounds better -John

Begin Part 2 This is where things really turned south and my propensity for swearing hit overdrive. Given I am building an engine that is safe to 8500 rpm, I don’t want to use OE replacement quality bearings. Yes, they might be fine, but after all the trouble and expense, this isn’t an area where I want to take chances. Looking at race/high performance/really special -- or however else you want to characterize them – rod bearings available in the US, I hit road blocks. Clevite makes them, but only in the standard size. If, like the main bearings, my engine needs under/over sized then I’d be stuck. ACL makes them in various sizes, but the standard size is out of stock and it is at least 2-3 weeks to get them. Longer if the factory needs to make another run. Apparently demand is low. King Bearings make the rod bearings in the XP range and they are in stock in the US. I spoke with both SBD and Raceline in the UK this morning. SBD sells King and said they’re fine, but added the Mahle Motorsport bearings at twice the price are the best quality. Ordering the Mahles from them is about $230 with shipping. Because they are in a blister pack, they are unreturnable if a different size is required. That would mean more cost and more international shipping delays. Peter at Raceline also uses the Mahle Motorsport bearings, but said he knows a lot of people who use the King bearings and has never heard of an issue, so thinks they’re fine. He only sticks with the Mahle because that’s what he knows. I then went through the runaround of finding a King Bearing supplier who would sell me a set. Some of the places I called only sell to shops. Others don’t deal with Duratecs and don’t want to special order, and finally some just don’t seem to answer their phone. I finally found a shop that was happy to take my money, but they are not allowed to ship to a location other than the billing address. That means more delays getting the bearings to the shop and more delays getting the car back on the road. I hope there isn't a part 3 to this story... -John

The engine rebuild gods have been messing with me lately and I need to vent. This will be long post with no photos to hold your interest, so I’m breaking it into two posts. After doing some research on bearings used in the UK for hot Duratecs and their US availability, I settled on Daido bearings sourced through Mountune USA. They had the various sizes (std, +1, -1) in stock and although not cheap, it seemed a painless option. My machine shop, however, uses the high performance lines from Clevite and ACL in their race builds (not Duratecs – and yes, this parenthetical comment is meant as foreshadowing) and was suspect of Daido since they had zero experience with the brand. They preferred to source the bearings from their suppliers. Given I didn’t want any finger pointing if a bearing-related problem arose down the road, I agreed. Fast forward to the start of this month when the shop called me to say their suppliers can’t get the bearings. We agreed to revert back to my original plan, and I placed an order with Mountune. The bearings arrived at the machine shop last week. On Tuesday they called to say (1) the main bearings are too tight and we need the smaller size, and (2) the rod bearings are wrong. They have a tang, but the rods have no provision for that locating mechanism. The size issue wasn’t a surprise. It seems that Ford has reasonably wide specs on the Duratec which can require fiddling with bearings at time of rebuild, hence the reason it’s important to go with a bearing that comes in various sizes. After investigating the rod bearing issue I realized either my reading comprehension or my attention to details is poor. As Croc will point out, it’s probably a combination of both. The Daido main bearings fit both the Duratec and the Ecoboost derivative. The rod bearings, however, are Ecoboost only. They don’t make the tang-less version for the Duratec. End Part 1 -John

Sounds like a great project. Was it already in the US when you found it, or did you import it from the UK? Thanks, John

Holy crap, how many hours did it take your lackeys to achieve that shine on your exhaust system?? That's impressive! -John

If it has been sitting a long time, you may need to add carb cleaning to the list. A passage or jet could be gummed up which would result in the behavior you're describing. This page has some good setup information. Scroll down close to the bottom for the section on setting the idle: http://www.s262612653.websitehome.co.uk/DVAndrews/webers.htm -John

I've had three different cars with twin DCOEs, including a 1700 crossflow similar to the Super Sprint spec. None of them had the chokes hooked up and all would fire from cold in sub freezing weather. When it's really cold, you need to feather the throttle to maintain idle until you're underway (and this is when a choke will help) but it's never been a problem to start using the procedure above. Let us know the outcome and welcome to the mad world of se7ens! Thanks, John

Assuming properly set up DCOEs and no issues, you shouldn't need a choke to start the car even in cold weather. Are you familiar with the DCOE cold start procedure? Let the the fuel pump prime the carbs (you'll hear the electric pump slow down when that's done), give the throttle 2 quick stabs to the floor, then crank with foot off the throttle. -John

Yes they are. In fact if they had shown up when expected, I would have been tempted to hang them from the tree BTW I meant to include weight measurements before. I haven't bothered to disassemble a factory piston/rod assembly, but the combined weight is 942 grams. A K1 rod with fasteners comes in at 518 grams and an Omega piston with rings and pin comes in at 410 grams for a total assembled weight of 928 grams. -John

Not much progress lately thanks to delays at the machine shop followed by even longer delays waiting for Raceline to ship the pistons. I like Raceline and appreciate the advice they offer via phone, but as long as I've been ordering from them (since 2003) getting things shipped has always been an exercise in frustration. Once the machine shop confirmed the piston size needed on 12/5, I called Raceline the next morning to place the order. Before taking my credit card number, they wanted to put together the package to establish an accurate shipping weight. This process took them until the 11th. Based on conversations, I expected it to go out within a couple of days, however, it didn’t ship until the 23rd. Fortunately there were no issues in customs and the pistons are now in the hands of the machine shop. Both SBD and Raceline sell the Omeg pistons, with SBD being a little cheaper (458 GBP vs. 475 GBP). However, I opted to go with Raceline since their tech support was a known quantity and there were a few minor maintenance items I still needed to order from them that would effectively ship for free if added to the order. Upon opening the box of pistons, I was a bit surprised to find a spec sheet from SBD included, and even more surprised to see the tops of the pistons stamped with both Omega and SBD branding. I guess there is no mystery about who provided Omega with the specs. I've been unmotivated to so some of the remaining small jobs, so decided to address something unrelated that has bothered me for a while. The standard Westfield boot box is a small item that drops down through the boot opening and is removable to assist working on the back end of the car. The problem with this design is that its dimensions are dictated by the size of that opening rather than by the space available in the tub. That space flares out as it approaches the fuel tank, mirroring the rake of the bulkhead in front, and the body to the rear. Wanting to take advantage of that space, I fabricated a custom boot box out of aluminum sheet that has a removable floor for maintenance, but holds roughly double the volume. It looked fine when new as shown in the photo, but over the years, that nasty, hard to clean, black oxidation that afflicts bare aluminum had firmly taken hold and would transfer onto anything left in the boot that slid against the sides. Given how I drive that car, anything in the boot is subject to a lot of sliding and thus a lot of black streaks. Sucking up the weight hit (~0.5 lb) I added some carpet normally used to cover subwoofer boxes. It looks good, is unbacked and much lighter than normal carpet, and it sticks to velcro meaning I could use that as the attachment method. We'll see how it holds up. -John

The head was dropped off at the shop about 3 weeks ago with a target of mid-December completion. This timing would allow me to reassemble and install the engine over my break the last half of December, but delays with the different machine shop doing the short block work have thrown that timetable out the window. The good news is that my spot there finally opened up last week and yesterday I learned they can address the damage in #1 mentioned earlier with a minor overbore. Although they said 0.25mm would do it, the Omega pistons come in a 0.5mm overbore, which means I'm going big and increasing displacement by a whopping 22.9cc. Raceline is pulling together the package of parts that includes the pistons, rings, o-rings/intake seals for the Jenvey throttle bodies, and the various replacement items needed to rebuild the wet sump. Hopefully pistons aren't held up in customs and I can have the car back on the road by late January/early February. That's a perfect time of year in the PNW to break in a new engine in a se7en and do road mapping (note to those who are sarcastically challenged: yes, that was sarcasm). Also an update on the journal damage pictured in post #2. Before dropping the short block off at the machine shop, I took a closer look at those specific bearings and noted a very subtle matching stain on the bottom shell which I missed during my initial inspection. The theory is that this staining resulted from the engine sitting for an indeterminate length of time before purchase. The machine shop said it's uncommon, but they've seen it before and don't have concerns, although to be fair they still haven't measured it to be 100% certain. I've asked them to do this before keying the crank. -John

Pricey, but much safer than normal 4-points and comfortable. Unlike some of the cheaper brands, Schroth webbing is quite pliable and their 1/4 turn buckles are easy to use. For track driving I use sub belts in a 6-point configuration, but for street driving, I stick with the 4-point option. The ASM technology is actually very simple: an extra flap of material is sewn into the inner shoulder belt. In a collision, the stitching breaks, leading your torso to slightly rotate outward, thereby placing your inside pelvis over the lap belt and preventing you from sliding underneath. The big danger from submarining is the lap belt effectively rides up your torso and can crush your unprotected organs. This video spotlights the safety difference: [video=youtube;8nsg_ze-CG8] -John

Based on the photo, the sloping one doesn't appear to leave much distance to the back of the driver's head. Is the straight one intended for taller drivers? -John

So to summarize, you were wrong. Glad I could help clarify. Shane, it's your turn! :jester: -John

Croc, are you thinking of a different manufacturer (or perhaps started your Gin & Tonic vacation a little early)? I bought my first ECU from Emerald in 2004 and upgraded that to K3 a few years later. Neither ECU was locked, the tuning software was free for anyone to download, they provide a free starter map based on their extensive library, and offered to speak with my dyno operators if needed. Great support and the software is very easy to use. When I installed my Duratec I rolled my own engine loom, but replaced that a couple of years ago with one from Emerald. Wish I did that from the start. Very well made, fully labeled, and they'll customize it to fit your installation. -John

Don't tell me you're one of those round earthers? That explains a lot... -John

I checked with the Bintan and they assured me they have excellent internet access, so you'll be fine making your usual post next Sunday. Glad I could clear that up! :jester: -John

The Raceco silencer has steadily increased in volume over the years and was clearly due for a rebuild. Disassembly showed the packing in the back 2/3 was in near perfect shape, but grew progressively worse towards the inlet end, with a several inch long section completely burned away. Raceco covers the core tube with a very fine mesh which adds life to the packing material, but which also burns away over time. Replacing the packing,but not the core tube when needed, simply ensures that the replacement packing won't have a long life. In the case of my silencer, the core tube was shot and replacement was mandatory. As long as everything was apart, a minor cosmetic restoration was undertaken to clean away grunge from years of exhaust leaks and to sand down the road rash from the grit and gravel sprayed from the right front tire. As you can see from the before and after photos, it still won't pass for new, but looks far more presentable. Thanks to very tight tolerances, reassembly was a bit fiddly, but it's back together and ready to go on the car once the engine and exhaust manifold are reinstalled. Unfortunately I'm still a few months away from those events and even further from hearing how it sounds. -John

Um...replica of what? -John

Purely down to paranoia and cheap insurance. I knew that portion of the tub would be subjected to a lot of long term heat and I was concerned that over time there might be some discoloration or slight deformation of the fiberglass. I never would have done it if the primaries weren't snaked into that area so tightly. -John