My 91 FXR EVO engine

[curt]

sucks everything takes so long to get anymore

[railroad bob]

Truth right there...

Having problems finding the right gasket for the cylinder base.
Local independent ordered a set, but they were for S&S. ID was too large, but mostly the bolt holes were wrong locations

Terry Stewart said he can get the gaskets, but very expensive. And I'm not sure they would be right. Still searching.

No rush, I'm working an 8 week hitch up close to the Yukon River, so no way to work on personal projects for a while.

Still surfing for info and parts tho.

[railroad bob]

A few pix of the heads…
The order is reversed but they show the compression release from top and side, the material I’m considering for levers, and the position for operating the lever and release. I think the levers are from part of a light fixture, some scrap laying around.
Soft enough to bend and shape. I want to have an inverted cup shape above the releases and make a hinge that will mount to the underside of the head fin. Haven’t worked that out yet.

[budoka]

Hey Bob, loving the build! had any luck making progress in the last bit?

take care,
-dan

[railroad bob]

Hi Dan.
I got home a few days ago from a 6 week hitch. I was working up near the Yukon River.
Everything was on hold while gone.
BUT, I think I'll take the parts and a few tools with me next time up.
Sometimes I have some free time during and after work.
And there are a few good fabricators on the crew.
One guy is from Arizona. He does custom work, suspensions and body, when home.
Brian Bay at InclusiveMetal.com

Sharp guy.

I paid for the pistons, they're in the works. Having problems finding the right cyl base gaskets.
Everyone wants to sell me the S&S gaskets but the bolt pattern is wrong.
I have Delkron cases with an over sized cyl bore.
Piston arrival is weeks away, so no immediate need.

[railroad bob]

Through working this season, except for a possible short call out. Currently, I've been asked to be available for a project beginning mid to late February. Alyeska plans to replace a 48" mainline check valve. Considerable work. It's about 45 miles south of Deadhorse, so I expect 12 hour days because of the drive each day. They pipeline will remain in service, so there will be 2 bypasses required to maintain flow.

Current status of the engine rebuild:
Machine shop finish honed the cylinders for the new pistons. Could not find proper gaskets for the cylinders bases, so I'm gonna try out an unusual material. I've been told by a builder that he has used Garlock material, so I obtained some 1/16" thick material to use.

Not sure when I'll start assembly, other stuff keeps coming up. I'll have pics tho.

[railroad bob]

New pistons from CP

New pistons from CP

New CP Pistons.jpg (84.54 KiB) Viewed 62905 times

[railroad bob]

Picked up my cylinders from the local machine shop. One of several here. It's a new business started last year, but I've know the owner about 10 years. One of the finest welders I've ever met.

Cylinder.jpg (107.63 KiB) Viewed 62905 times

Cylinder Bore.jpg (85.33 KiB) Viewed 62905 times

[railroad bob]

This is the Garlock gasket material I mentioned in an earlier post. I'll use the thinner which is right at 1/16". These are about 6"x6" so I should have plenty to trim to size, as long as I don't screw up.

Garlock.jpg (68.63 KiB) Viewed 62905 times

Garlock thk.jpg (69.65 KiB) Viewed 62905 times

[hansgoudzwaard]

Thanks for the Garlock reference. Seems like a superior product.

You may be familiar with the following procedure.

I watch Allen Millyard's builds.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZvDnOMf8C0


https://youtu.be/ZZvDnOMf8C0?t=858

[railroad bob]

Thanks for the Garlock reference. Seems like a superior product.

You may be familiar with the following procedure.

I watch Allen Millyard's builds.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZvDnOMf8C0


https://youtu.be/ZZvDnOMf8C0?t=858

Thanks, great info. I watched the vid, now I'm shopping!!!

[railroad bob]

An update: I worked until Nov, 2023, a few days that month and some in Oct. I started having back problems with sciatic nerve pain, could barely walk, fell few times. Some chiro treatments turned me around but I was n't able to do anything ot travel until Feb. I went to TX to work on property there, and in Mar realized my knees were so painful I wouldn't be able to return to work. Long story short, I checked with 5 clinics, had Both knees replaced and did the recovery and rehab in TX. Returned to AK in June 2024, back to work. Needless to say, I haven't gotten anything done since last post.
Well, I did place the bottom end in the frame. The Delkron case has a square inspection plate on the bottom and the left side contacts the frame tube by about half a bolt hole, which prohibits installing bolts in the motor mounts. I think I can remove part of the frame tube, the upper inner quadrant a little longer than the case bottom. If I do it carefully, I can flip that piece so it becomes concave and weld it back to cover the tube cavity. Same material, thickness, etc.

Placed in Frame.jpg (116.91 KiB) Viewed 8461 times

View From Front.jpg (66.03 KiB) Viewed 8461 times

Mount Hole.jpg (57.17 KiB) Viewed 8461 times

[railroad bob]

My engine has Delkron cases with a square inspection opening and cover plate on the bottom. It's a little wider than stock cases so it contacts the left bottom frame rail. With the engine in the Santee frame there is about a half hole of misalignment for the front and rear mount holes. I marked the frame at contact points. I'm considering different approaches. I pulled all parts of the frame and will take it into my friends machine shop and see what he recommends.
In the top view the tube from the sharpie line to the inside is in the way. The marks across the top mark the front and rear edges of the case. The case does NOT sit on top of the frame.
The sharpie line on the bottom inside running front to back is the bottom of the case WITHOUT the cover. I realized it after I pulled the engine out. So that line should be another 1/4 to 3/8" lower which puts it right at the bottom of the rail.
Right now I'm thinking a cut straight down from the top to bottom full length would remove enough material to fit the engine into the frame.
Undecided about how to add strength back into the frame. I considered adding a flat plate into the cavity, or flipping the removed tubing and welding back in (same material and thickness). Thought about coping the ends of the cut to prevent stress risers at intersections of the cuts. Thought about slugging the tube.
Not taking action until I'm comfortable with expected results and the fab method.

I bought a chopper project with this frame 2008. It's pretty heavy. My friend misplaced the MSO (Mfg statement of origin). I checked the rake tonight with my new degree gauge, with bottom rail at zero, the neck comes in at 33 degrees.
And does anyone know why the frame has the flat spot on the bottom left rail?

Thanks, Bob

[railroad bob]

Spoke to my go-to local welding and machine shop. They modified my heads for the comp releases and bored the cyls.
Owner can modify the frame to allow mounting the engine properly but likely wont have time until the coming spring.
I might take a stab at it, not sure. I have some higher priorities.
Looked at the cyl gaskets again, took measurements. The spigot hole is at 4", order 4" gaskets, they dont fit, bolt holes are all wrong.
Measured the gasket hole, it is 4-1/4", pkg label says 4". I learned yesterday that my local independent friend has encountered mislabeled parts before also, it is not unusual. I went to McMaster-Carr and ordered 2 copper sheet 0.027" thick, 6x6" square. Thickness same as the wrong size James gaskets. Shipping to Alaska was more than the material. I'll have it in a few days.

[railroad bob]

No progress to report. I did receive the copper sheets, should work fine for base cyl gaskets. Have been dealing with extreme sub-zero temps and record snowfall this winter. I did finally complete work on my rental duplex and have both units leased. I evicted tenants end of July and the lower unit tenant left end of Aug. Had 2 people come in to do minor repairs, paint and clean. They took months to do a 2 week job. Had another come in to remove some carpet and replace with laminate flooring. He was fast but left some gaps below floor trim. Had another group come in to complete things missed or ignored by first group. They finished some stuff, missed some. Decided to do the rest myself so both units were empty for way long. Loss of income for such a long time made this a priority.
Now it's down to Texas for a couple months before work starts up again.
I bought a 75 shovel chopper last year and it has a springer that is crooked. I'm taking one from Alaska to Texas when I fly. Bought a hard shell rifle case on wheels to pack it in. Be interesting to see what TSA thinks about that.
Gonna overnight in Vegas, hit Fremont St for some roulette play.
Hope everyone had good holidays.