Índex per Spring 2016 a Engine Masters

What makes an engine-building project a success? Like the old saying goes, “Ask 10 people and you’ll get 10 different answers.” And that is actually the right way to look at it. Really, if at the end of the day the engine does what you wanted it to, and comes together as planned, consider it a win. All too often it is easy to lose focus on the final result, leading to an unfinished project, blown budgets, or an engine that just isn’t what you intended. I was working with a buddy of mine on a dual-quad tunnel ram swap on a smallblock Chevy street engine. This combination was selected for the dramatic, nostalgic, look; the simplicity; as well as the powerproducing effectiveness. To me, this setup scored on all…

With the 2015 AMSOIL Engine Masters Challenge going to a five-class format, we essentially had a complete Challenge every day of the week. Competition was fierce, as competitors fought for position, knowing that at the end of the day a class winner will be announced. There was no sandbagging, as competitors had to let it all hang out during their one chance on the dyno. Here, engine performance numbers sorted them out, and five class winners emerged. In the Hemi Generational Challenge, Tony Bischoff and the BES Racing team proved indomitable, taking the crown by a substantial margin. Tony and his Gen III Hemi simply owned this one. In Spec Small-Block, we had the team from Almost Kaase come through with a convincing victory fielding a classic Ford Cleveland, based…

By virtue of some of the famed powerplants of the past, classic Chevrolets have maintained a mystique that has grown legendary. Looking back, perhaps no engine combination was more responsible for the legendary status of Chevrolet muscle than the Mark IV big-block. The Chevy big-block was introduced to the public via the Corvette model line, initially as a 396-cid powerplant in 1965, growing to 427 cubes in 1966. The 427 set the performance high watermark for a generation, and that storied past is relived today in the cult status of collectability these original vehicles retain. There were many variations on the 427 big-block theme, with the designation of the engine’s RPO option codes making up the lexicon. Two versions of the 427 debut in the Corvette line up for 1966,…

Going into the 2015 AMSOIL Engine Masters Challenge, the event was surrounded by unknowns. For the first time the competition was divided into five classes, each effectively representing a separate competition onto itself. Along with this came the need to declare a class winner each day. There was no room for error here, it had to go off like clockwork from the event staff, student assistants from our host facility, the University of Northwestern Ohio, and the competitors themselves. Each day had to include the full process that previously occurred over an entire week—preliminary tech inspection, mounting the engines to the dyno carts, dyno hook-up, running through the class competition, scoring, and finally the teardown tech verification to certify the class winner. There was a separate set of rules and…

Cylinder head porting can take many different levels, and in most forms of all-out racing, the porting is among the key considerations of an engine program. This should come as no surprise, since, as pro engine builders are well aware, airflow is critical to making power. Opening the door for better airflow through the strategic application of a carbide cutter isn’t something solely reserved for the pros. Even a basic street performance build can be seriously improved with judicious carving of the ports. The problem for most beginners is knowing where to start, what to do, and worst of all, not knowing how much the mods are helping. To illustrate what can be done, we decided to modify a latemodel Mopar Magnum head as an example. Some of the mods…

One of the changes to the long-running AMSOIL Engine Masters Challenge for 2015 was the move to a multi-class competition. This finally gave us the opportunity to introduce vintage and antique engines to the competition, an idea that had been floating around the Engine Masters office for several years. We thought it would bring out some interesting hardware, but we did not expect the enormous response the class ended up generating. While interest was high in all categories, surprisingly, the Vintage class was where the real action came down. We had very liberal rules, pretty much giving builders a free hand to bring what they wanted, and the freedom to build it just about any way they could dream up. Legendary Engine Masters Challenge Champion Jon Kaase went straight to…

Those familiar with the Engine Masters Challenge are aware that the competition format is changed on a regular basis. For last year’s event, we changed things considerably, dividing the contest into five classes of competition. For 2016, we are sticking with that format, with a new mix of classes. This lineup will open the door for an even wider variety of engines to compete, and far more exposure for our competitors in both Hot Rod and Engine Masters magazines. INTRODUCING THE CLASSES As in last year’s competition, each day will see a full class of competition, with the winner for that class announced at the end of the day. The classes include the “Spec Big-Block,” “Mod Motor Showdowns,” “Vintage V-8,” “Small-Block Shootout,” and “Nitrous Power-Adder.” All classes are naturally aspirated,…

We have always been fans of the rock-solid cam timing provided by the single idler Milodon-style gear drive. These systems are virtually indestructible when properly installed, and the cam timing is always dead-nuts on. The arrangement consists of a crank gear, an intermediate gear that provides a means of lash adjustment and allows the cam to turn in the conventional clockwise rotation, and the cam gear. The cam gear allows for cam timing adjustment via a two-piece Vernier design. The slight offset in the bolt pattern allows a very fine adjustment in cam phasing with respect to the crankshaft. What’s surprising is how many people have a tough time setting the cam timing with this type of drive. Part of the problem is the fact that there are no timing…