DrFishbone Engine Build Thread 2017

After digging around and asking around for a two-bolt FPR, I found several other Ford cars use the two-bolt regulator (most Fords 1995-1998)....Dan Thornsberry (old_coot) hooked me up with a different one off a parts car yesterday. I changed it out last night and started the car up. At idle, it had 7-9psi more fuel pressure shown...so I'd say that one fixed it....thanks Dan! If it's dry outside tonight, I'll take it for a spin.
 
Sorry to hear about the passing of your Uncle. That's great that you have memories of him; keep them close!

Let me know when you need some turbo in your life to make you feel better. M90s wont help
 
Sorry to hear about the passing of your Uncle. That's great that you have memories of him; keep them close!

Let me know when you need some turbo in your life to make you feel better. M90s wont help

Thanks Casey.

Gotta at least see what the MPx can do on the dyno and 1/4mi before thinking about what may be next. ;)

Jacob needed some help with burnouts at the Shootout, so I drove his car a little bit and took it down the strip a couple of times yesterday. That Whipple sure is nice...... :D:D:D:D:D
 
Been slowing down alot on the SC, but I need to get it together to free up garage space and maybe get some more drive time in before the snow.

Got Dan's FPR on there and the base fuel pressure was a few PSI higher and it didn't leak fuel into the vacuum line anymore. I took it out for a spin and it still wasn't running right past half-throttle. I kept thinking it felt like a spark was blowing out or something, but at only 13-15psi?! :confused:

Checked again for boost leaks and found that one of the couplers on the FMIC wasn't clamped down well, so I adjusted the clamp and snugged that up. I also thought I'd check one last time to make sure all the plug wires were seated and found that #3 was NOT! Even looked like the boot had been resting on the exhaust manifold for awhile. :rolleyes: Got that seated more firmly and took it out one more time and I finally have WOT. :cool:

Still need to make a few tweaks on the IC piping fitment and also the FMIC. I really don't want the pipes rubbing on anything. Also need to make the weld beads a little taller in a couple of places (for clamps to grip) and fix several pin-hole leaks.....and grind down the welds.

So....WOT @ 4300rpm is 73% duty cycle on the 80# injectors, with alcohol injection using E85 with 50°F-ish ambient air at a commanded 10.98 (gas scale) AFR.....need more fuel for sure.... :eek:

Plan is probably going to be burn off as much E85 as I can, switch to 93, make sure my 93 tune is good and work out the bugs the rest of the way from there. Winter is coming anyway, when I would usually make the switch back to 93 for storage and and fuel system health/cleaning purposes.

Danielle reeaaaalllly wants me to get her 93 SC ready and pretty in time to do the Epic Drive 2018 with it (A/C being the main reason)....so maybe I can get back on this car later next spring after working out some more bugs. Maybe I'll make a thread for it too...it'll be more of a restoration before/after deal though.
 
Literally have had to fix things on all of our daily driver cars.... :rolleyes:

BUT....drove the SC for Thanksgiving on it's first trip of significant distance from home (about 45 away). It had the hood back on now, still no bumper cover though. I cut some sections out of the hood supports and the bumper to give more clearance for the new intercooler and existing TB (it has rubbed the hood for awhile now). I still need to eliminate a few pin-hole leaks and add a more bead to the pipes for the intercooler clamps/couplers to grip....a couple of joints still like to pop off...after that, I'll put the bumper cover back on.

Unfortunately, I did run into a few problems.

We go most of the way to our destination and I started noticing the car would cut out and go way lean after climbing hills and sometimes around turns....gas gauge was still on 1/8th tank....hmmm...but had been for awhile now! lol So I had to drive several miles (including the last mile behind a combine!), but managed to barely make it to the gas station....but no E85....I knew this though. ;) I brought the laptop with a good 93 tune....

Went to save the tune to the QH and got some weird error message on BE...three time....*gulp* Fortunately, restarting BE took care of it, and I uploaded the new tune. :D

Got out of the car and noticed a strong fuel smell....hmm...this is the first time I've filled up since having everything apart....uh-oh.... looked under the car to a small gasoline waterfall under the gas tank. :eek::( I had seen similar before (leaking sending unit o-ring), but there was ALOT of gas dripping out this time. I guess the o-ring DID need replaced after all? :eek:

My wife and kids (who drove the old Grand Cherokee, since the Navigator needs new camshaft phasers....:rolleyes:) pulled away "just-in-case" while I started the car back up and moved it after the waterfall has slowed to a drip and shut the Jeep off to check on the me and the Thunderbird. After priming the pump a few times, it started up GREAT on the gasoline. :cool: I moved it away from the gas pump, just in case again...wife goes back to the Jeep, turns the key and IT WON'T START. :mad::eek::mad::eek:

After looking at it for a couple of minutes, I decide the starter needs replaced or rebuilt....I had recently swapped a better-condition set of brushes into it to quick-fix it....I figured they'd last long than a week or two though. *sigh*

So after the kids crying, wife crying, wife yelling and me, me blaming the Thunderbird, we call my wife's grandparents (where we were going to Thanksgiving dinner) and had them pick up Danielle and the kids. I drove the Thunderbird. We had a nice Thanksgiving lunch with them, hashed out a plan to get us all home safely and a plan to fix the Jeep on Friday. :cool:

Amidst the stress, I'm thankful we were close to her grandparent's place, everyone was safe, and my car didn't explode or turn into a fireball. Which reminds me, I think I need to replace my fire extinguisher. :eek:

I REALLLY need to put some baffles back into the valve covers too...lol....after coasting or decelerating for a few seconds, it burns an embarassing amount of oil....lol. I'm sure the baffles with help immensely, since my theory is that the lifters are saturating the foam baffles that I added for the crankcase vents and then providing a significant oil mist down to the exhaust to be burned. If the baffles don't fix it, I may do a track/street setup or just go back to an up-sized PCV system....still glad I tried, even if it doesn't work out for street driving though. :)
 
So...haven't really done anything with the car since Thanksgiving except ponder and plan. Looks like a few S. Indiana and KY gentlemen are getting together in March to tear up their cars at Clay City...we'll see if I can get this thing ironed out and to the track.

Thinking back, I'm pretty sure I know why I had the big gas leak and erroneous fuel level reading..... Jacob and Dan helped me one evening with the fuel pump wiring rework...did a great job with everything and had it ready to drop back into the tank. I said "don't tighten down the locking ring for the pump/sending unit hat just yet - I want to take some pictures later....." I never took the pictures......I also don't remember tightening the locking ring before re-installation. :eek: lol So that should be an easy fix. I'm hoping that the vacuum leak caused by having the fuel pump hat being loose / bouncing around is what is causing or contributing to some WOT missing that still seems to be hanging around. Found a spark plug boot that was partly wiggled off at one point before parking it too though.

I think the plan for at least the first part of this year is to stay with 93 Octane, as my fuel system will need some major upgrading to continuing using E85. I have thought through a couple of different arrangements and will probably decide for sure later this spring. First off, I'll be looking for some new tires / wheels. I'd really like to do the Epic Drive, so some tires that ride like new are in order. :) Wouldn't want to run E85 on that trip anyway, so maybe well get an E85 vs. Gasoline straight comparison this year....if I can get to the fuel system later this summer.

Also, it's looking more and more like we'll be moving into our dream home later this spring....has a big, new three-car detached garage and two car attached garage out in the country....three car is gravel floor right now, but we'll likely get concrete poured and a car lift put in as we move in. Perfect place for local SC wrenching meets in the future! ;) My wife's grandpa built it a couple of years ago and doubled-up on the rafter spacing with the intention of installing a rail / hoist that could run the length of the garage. :cool:
 
That's awesome Matt! I will have the entire fuel system upgrade installed on mine next week, I am just waiting on a few fittings.
 
Also, it's looking more and more like we'll be moving into our dream home later this spring....has a big, new three-car detached garage and two car attached garage out in the country....three car is gravel floor right now, but we'll likely get concrete poured and a car lift put in as we move in. Perfect place for local SC wrenching meets in the future! ;) My wife's grandpa built it a couple of years ago and doubled-up on the rafter spacing with the intention of installing a rail / hoist that could run the length of the garage. :cool:

Congratulations! You know we have to see pictures of that once you move in.
 
Thanks guys. Yeah, I'll post some pictures up, especially of the garage. :)

David - were you wanting some help with the tuning after you get your fuel system done? I can't remember if you said you did or not. I wonder if your strategy file has that quick variable that tweaks all of the target AFR's in the calibration file. I think it was only added on the 89 GURE as an experiment....
 
Thanks guys. Yeah, I'll post some pictures up, especially of the garage. :)

David - were you wanting some help with the tuning after you get your fuel system done? I can't remember if you said you did or not. I wonder if your strategy file has that quick variable that tweaks all of the target AFR's in the calibration file. I think it was only added on the 89 GURE as an experiment....
Yeah it runs now but it will definitely need retuned.
 
I've gotten a little done on the car since the last update....life gets in the way sometimes! We did close on the house last Friday though…so we’re homeowners again! Won’t be moving until mid-May at the earliest though. The HotRod Garage is ready for concrete and a lift when we have some extra $$$. :D Daily drivers will have a garage now too...that will be nice.

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So, I found and fixed the fuel leak and fuel gauge issues….unrelated causes! The new upgraded terminals must have self-loosened a little bit during intial assembly, so I removed them, added a dab of RTV on the tank side and carefully tightened them down….a pressure test on the tank before and after confirmed the fix. :D The fuel gauge was hanging up on the goofy strainer that I think came with the fuel pump. It was alright before, but this last time I put it back in, apparently it got in the way of the float. Hopefully this “retainer” will keep it out of the way. I probably should have just found the right strainer, thinking back…. :rolleyes:

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I think I spend 5hrs total grinding down all of the IC pipe welds from last fall. There were several leaks that I’m thinking may have been enough to cause some of the cutting out under boost problems I had last fall. I’ll make another pass on the welds soon, grind, then leak test again I guess. Also need to add some more / bigger beads on the ends of the pipes to keep them from popping off.

Might actually be able to drive it some if it ever stops raining and snowing around here!
 
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Using the incorrect fuel pump sock will contribute to fuel starvation which should be a big concern for anything that will be drag raced. If the sock does not sit flat against the bottom of the fuel tank then any exposed portion will accelerate fuel starvation by introducing aeration into the fuel. The correct sock is $7 at any parts store, don't risk your motor (or even a lost race) for such a small yet important component.
 
Using the incorrect fuel pump sock will contribute to fuel starvation which should be a big concern for anything that will be drag raced. If the sock does not sit flat against the bottom of the fuel tank then any exposed portion will accelerate fuel starvation by introducing aeration into the fuel. The correct sock is $7 at any parts store, don't risk your motor (or even a lost race) for such a small yet important component.

Thanks for the reply Dave. When pumping the tank out to drop it, I could hear the aeration well before the gas level was down near the bottom of the tank, which I thought seemed odd. Didn't occur to me that it was likely the strainer sticking up higher than it should have been. At least it's still on the jackstands....should just take an hour or two to put the right one on. I had two new spare ones in storage at the new house 45minutes away or I would have swapped them yesterday. :rolleyes: I've always kept the fuel level pretty high at the track, but you're right....that would be an expensive $7 mistake.
 
Yeah it's often overlooked. I have a customer who road races. If he filled his tank, he found he could not complete a 20 minute session without stopping for fuel due to fuel starvation on hard right turns, even though his tank was still over half full. Turns out the previous owner had made the same mistake when replacing the pump. Put the right one in and never had another problem.
 
I guess I just lucked out over the last few years when I initially installed it. Bought the right one last night....just need a chunk of time to install it now.

That access panel would be nice right now....lol....still not going to do it though.
 
Got the fuel strainer swapped out yesterday..hopefully the fuel tank issues are resolved for now.

I also found that somehow I missed one side of the transmission area exhaust hangers….since the exhaust is basically one-piece right now, I unbolted the transmission, and made it fit that way. :rolleyes:

I spent a good deal of time leak testing, welding, grinding on the IC pipes and go them to where there were absolutely no pinhole leaks. I didn’t grind down the final pass of welds on several of the pipe sections, since they’ll be out of sight anyway. There are still a few places that could use a little more material for aesthetics, then grind down and eventually smooth-out and hopefully polish. Problem now is that there are some areas where the material is thin, so I have to build-up before grinding down smooth….more time and more effort….later. I also made a couple of fitment adjustments on the piping. Solid SS wire works alot better than the flux core for these pipes. I think I could do a lot better job if I was starting fresh. I found that a hotter arc and more wire sealed up better than less power/less wire.

After everything was bolted back up and clamped down, I pressurized the intake tract and checked for any IC pipe leaks (at the couplers) and there were none. :D Car started up and ran good, but a bit rich. It did not stumble or have a hard time idling down from a rev, so it seems like it is running better than last fall.

Next, I’ll plan to take it out on the road and look for any more issues. Still need to see if the cutting-out is resolved. Next on the agenda is to check/set the hot valve lash…should be fun. :eek:
 
Got the car out yesterday - ran a good bit better with the IC pipes tidied up. I hadn't pushed it since switching to the 93octane tune, which turns out to be really rich. Rolling into 2nd gear spins the tires off at 30mph+ though!! I'll work on the tune and get the old fella dialed in a bit better and start chipping away at other drivability nuisances.....steering wheel is off a tooth on the Flaming River joint I guess....power steering still feels like it has air or another issue. Pulls a LOT harder even at 3/4 throttle....at 14 degrees timing.....:eek::eek::eek:

Should be a real beast. :cool:

Also, strangely....5th and reverse worked great! no grinding at all last night.... :confused::confused::confused: Hopefully that keeps up!
 
Hope its smooth sailing for you and the Tbird for the rest of the year, looking forward to your new personal best et's!!!
 
You gonna have that thing shootout ready? I will likely be flying by the seat of my pants myself since I have so much crap to do with the move coming up (I'm sure you feel my pain) lmk if you need anything
 
Hope its smooth sailing for you and the Tbird for the rest of the year, looking forward to your new personal best et's!!!

Thanks Tom! Like Jacob, most of the time I could be wrenching on the SC is now spent packing! :eek: The black SC doesn't need much to be driveable/raceable, but there are the issues with the freeze plugs and 5th/Rev still. Seems like temperature plays some effect on the transmission issue. I may or may not pull the engine/trans before the Shootout to address the issues. Definitely not before we move and definitely not before your heads are done though.

We should be moving this month, finally! Our first "household items" moving trip will be on Wednesday.
 
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