96blak54 on going projects

[96blak54]

Thank you. I scored of marketplace a 460 big block billet hei distributor for $50 brand new. ITS HEAVY and i dont think its idea to hang off a valve cover and not to mention its big too. Itll look way to dumb, but its a start with something

 

[96blak54]

Started all over. I already made one up but found out some dimensions were a bit off, so i grabbed another valve cover, repositioned the bolt pattern on the plates and began again.

 

[96blak54]

What you see is a driver side modular valve cover with 2 identical plates sandwiching the front flat area of the cover. The rear plate is drilled and tapped and meets the bottom of the cover. I had to set this all up with a valve cover gasket in place to get all the dimensions correct. I incorporated the aluminum hub to serve as help in alignment and ill place a few set screws around the outside of it to be used as clamps to secure the distributor in place once timed correctly.

I got the valve cover all assembled with screws i had on hand. They ugly, but work. Im not sure if ill switch to something better looking or not, because the big distributor hides them. Once assembled, i squared a cylinder head up in the horizontal mill, dialed in on the camshaft hub, bolted up the valve cover with gasket in place and then machined it. I had to break out the boring head for this one. I got it all dialed in right and machined out great. To my surprise the valve cover was extremely rigid to the machining. The cover had to be machined like this due to the very front of the cover having a slight angle laying back. Just bolting on the extras as pre-machined would had made the distributor oout of line. So now its perfect in line.

 

[96blak54]

Here is the distributor slipped in for a test fit. Good gosh is it huge!

 

[96blak54]

Their is a flat hei distributor available. This has the terminals facing outwards around the cap instead of upwards like this common one. Also the coil is remote mounted. I plan to buy one of them....possibly start all over again. Who knows.

Now i need to install a cam with bolt on sprocket and set the length of the distributor with the correct size socket for the bolt head welded to the distributor shaft.

 

[96blak54]

Turning the distributor body to length. The end needed trimming to bring the length and i needed the end to be square so why not chuck it up in the lathe.

 

[96blak54]

I also chucked up the socket to bore the hole a tad under 1/2", which took forever at 50rpm .002" fpm due to the socket being very hard material. Also the dizzy shaft was a bit long and had to be brough to length. I used the belt grinder for that process. Then i buttoned up the valve cover on the mock up head for test fitting what ive machined only to discover the distributor body need a tad bit more length took off, so i chucked up in the lathe again. With a delicate approach the part wasnt stable and flipped out of the chuck. Pretty much ruining the body

 

[96blak54]

I was chucking on this bronze bushing knowing very light cuts were need to prevent exactly what happened. Guess i gotta buy another one.

 

[96blak54]

Back to the cam grinder!

I wanted to make some degree indication marks on the cam pattern wheel to help me reference where i want to be grinding the cam lobes. These marks are 5degree increments.

 

[96blak54]

Then i made each 10degree mark a tad longer than the 5degree marks. Then each 90degree mark were made the longest

 

[96blak54]

With hand number stamps i stamped the 90degree locations. Now i need a stationary pointer. Probably make something hanging off the dead wheel bracket.

 

[96blak54]

I also made up a grind pattern for regrinding the stock intake camshaft lobes with a 270degree valve opening. Ill need to take .020" off the lobe base circle to achieve this and will need be lash corrected by either adjustable lasher or shims under the stock lasher so that contact of rocker follower mates to the lobe correctly. The focus here is valve action events and not necessarily ideal expectations of what a performance lobe should be such as aftermarket type cams.