Escort Sigma 1600 Race Car

[Tristan]

Re: Escort Sigma 1600 Race Car

I always used an external circlip pliers.....and extreme care! lol

[Roadsport]

Re: Escort Sigma 1600 Race Car

Well hell if u guys are using one then I think I need to get into this arms race and get me one too. I'm tempted to buy one of them ARP ring compressors too.

The slight engine service has turned in to a real nightmare race against time. First it took 7 weeks for the piston rings to arrive. And when they did there was two rings missing. Them two arrived yesterday. I now have one week to assemble the bottom end, collect the head, assemble the engine, time it and install it.
Just to make things interresting I managed to fcuk up an big end bolt and need a new set. While I was driving around the country getting a set I got a call from the machine shop saying that I have a snapped valve spring in my cylinder head. Thats just about as interresting as I can take.

AMAZINGLY I managed to sort these out so that by monday I should have an ready to go assembled bottom end and a new set of valve springs... busy busy busy

[RWD fords rule]

Re: Escort Sigma 1600 Race Car

Best of luck with it, I HATE putting an engine together under pressure there are always litlte things to sort out which take up a lot of time, marking every bolt when tightened with a paint marker really helps assembly

[Roadsport]

Re: Escort Sigma 1600 Race Car

Now aint that the truth! The stakes are high when you assemble an engine in haste. Get a tiny thing wrong and it'll cost you dearly. I budgetted this to be a walk in a park service but how wrong was I. It was the Tran - X that gave me hard time last season. The engine ran like dream.

Note to self: dismantle the engine ASAP after the season. Order the parts emmidiately.

[RWD fords rule]

Re: Escort Sigma 1600 Race Car

Exactly completely agree, there is never enough time to do these things, the same thing happened me once with a ring missing, best to order enough rings for 5 pistons then at least you will be sure a full set arrives and no harm to have some spares sitting there, I have also noticed that checking the parts in every way to make sure they are correct is also essential, too often the wrong parts are sent out, anyway not what you want to hear right now lol, sure you have all the parts you need now and hopefully all goes together with ease

[Roadsport]

Re: Escort Sigma 1600 Race Car

I'm sure it will.

[Roadsport]

Re: Escort Sigma 1600 Race Car

Bottom end all ready. Now I i need a cap for it. Valve springs shouls arrive monday moorning so hopefully I have a head to put on the block by monday evening.

Manditory but otherwise futile pics ro prove I've done something today...







BUT, pay attention now. I think I finally caught a brake today. Even though I've changed the rear axle I believe I got away with my current prop. Its 27mm out but I think this is ok. What do you fellars think?



And thats not all. Burtons web site states a 110 lbs/ft torque spec for the drive shaft flange nut. That seemed awfully loose to me. 150Nm. Really? The stub axle nuts on std road cars are torqued to 200Nm's.
Why on earth would this nut need be left so loose? FOSSIE help me!!

[FOSSIE]

Re: Escort Sigma 1600 Race Car

Do you want an honest answer?

2 reasons why you shouldn't do these nuts up F.T. (f*cking tight):

1) you're likely to snap the end clean off the shaft; the steel isn't actually very strong.
2) there's no point really. The flange butts up against a wheel bearing, which is glass hard, yet the flange is soft steel. Doing the nut up tight will just peen/mushroom the end of the flange over. It'll do this with time anyway, but seriously, going OTT with the big nut just makes it worse!

Put a little graphite grease on the taper on the back of the nut, then loctite the threads, and give it 110 lb.ft. - you can't really do much more than that

It is worth keeping an eye on the nuts - as the inner face of the flange starts to peen over against the wheel bearing, you'll lose the torque on the nut. The nut won't have moved (your paint marks will still be in original place) but rather the flange will have "shrunk" a bit. Given the sort of races you do, and the surface you run on, I wouldn't worry about it - it's not like your wheel will fall off.

[Roadsport]

Re: Escort Sigma 1600 Race Car

Ah, ok didn't see that one coming. Best to check before the start while I check the wheel nuts too.

[Graham]

Re: Escort Sigma 1600 Race Car

the thing with hub nuts on things like focus's is that the big torque figure is needed to actually clamp everything firmly together, that isnt the case with an escort axle

[Roadsport]

Re: Escort Sigma 1600 Race Car

That is true Graham. I'm still wondering. The wheel nuts on S-max's / Galaxys are torqued to 170Nm's and they are M14 studs. But I over tightening stuff will only make things worse like Fossie stated. I just need to confirm the 110lbs/ft .

[FOSSIE]

Re: Escort Sigma 1600 Race Car

Really, 110 lb.ft. is fine.

[Roadsport]

Re: Escort Sigma 1600 Race Car

OK I'll take your word for it. Thanks again.

[Roadsport]

Re: Escort Sigma 1600 Race Car

Assembled, timed and ready to be installed.

[RWD fords rule]

Re: Escort Sigma 1600 Race Car

Looking good, best of luck with it

Where did you get that air filter looks like a proper job and easy to dismantle