Peppy_t92

Yea, I believe it is mineral, I'm using Joe Gibbs Break in oil, recommended for no more then 500km Still deciding what I'll run after that, I want to steer clear of any full synthetic stuff

The machinist recommended Threebond White, We applied a liberal amount to both sides of the gasket.. see how it goes

It was a big night last night, I got the motor/box in and most of the accessories, and spread out the wiring loom... I put it in with both manifolds on, all the accessory brackets, engine mounts, sensors, turbo feed and returns, and heater pipes.. Before putting the rocker cover on we primed the motor with oil... Dad modified an old gas cylinder, you pour all the engine oil in, tap into one of the oil holes (I used where the turbo feed connects to) then connect up some compressed air and open the valve!... I didn't film it bud it's awesome to see and hear the oil come out off all the oiling holes, obviously turning the engine slowly as you go, the lifters pump up, and it gets oil through the whole engine, then we just pumped the extra oil over the cams Ralphy and Tranna were right about it being tight, but we got it in... The rear end up about 300-400mm and the front about 200mm... The back of the rocker cover fouls on the fire wall, the sump then the balancer touch on the front radiatior sill, and the bottom of the box touches the crossmember haha... By putting a jack under the crossmember, and dropping it gave enough clearance to go in on more of an angle to clear everything... If you leave the rocker cover off it will probably make things easier again, and radiator out... Support the back of the box with another jack and creep it back as you lower the motor... Easy yea? I didn't take any helpful photos if the install, so hopefully my description makes sensehttps://vimeo.com/128194250

Actually I found him on Facebook, I posted on a Popular Page full of car enthusiasts and within 10mins a friend of his contacted me... But yea he will be a handy person to know from now on... Dad loved it, I suspect we may invest in one eventually

It's been a long couple of days, didn't get as far as I would of hoped but we are well underway! I didn't get a chance to take pictures of every step but I have a few.. I picked up the motor on Thursday or Friday, done all the usual checks, gave everything a final wash and started assembly.. What a difference the line bore made, it wasn't "hard" to spin before, but this just glides now, so it probably even picked up a few hp haha.. I used a Stretch gauge to torque the big ends The windage tray was almost pointless with the new girdle as it was about 0.7" away from the crank... So as screw driver and some improvisation goes a long way, bringing it closer to the crank, leaving about 0.15-0.2" away from the highest/lowest spots which is the big end bolts.. Dad touched up a few areas on the oil pump to help improve flow, and shimmed up the regulator spring about 0.1" Now, obviously with the thicker girdle, the pickup is sitting closer to the sump.. Some measurements and moulding clay came up with the closest it could be was 0.25", we currently had 0.15"... So I cut down the bracket and re-welded it in its position about 0.3" from the sump.. The head went together somewhere in between.. All the spring seat heights were measured and came up with no need for shims, and I re-checked the spring tensions all coming up within a couple of lb of each other at closed and full lift... The crow Race spring and retainer kit which was previously on it has known issues of the rocker touching the retainer, so some slight modification of the rockers was needed.. Isn't that a sexy look! Everything was going very smoothly from all the previous measurements and checks... Until... We overlooked the timing cover, obviously with alot of meat coming off the deck and the head it's all sitting lower and the timing cover stays where it was It was about 0.05" too high, the rocket cover gasket can't really take that up, and while we've done everything else properly I wasn't gonna skimp out on this.. I managed to get in contact with a local guy that has a CNC Mill in his garage haha... So he was able to machine it for me on Sunday... It was a long process because his machine wasn't tall enough to stand the cover up, we had to lay it down and run a fly cutter along it a couple of times... But it came up with a great finish and at the right height... Some final internal checks, and the sump and timing cover went on, then started adding pieces as I went I may be modest, but she looks farking angry!! I'll be trying to get it in tonight/tomorrow, get it started then I've taken some time off work, so I will have a good few days to get it run in, check everything then re-check to make it to Powerplay on Sunday!! Thanks guys

Has anyone ever installed a Barra and ZF in one go from the top?

http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&alt=web&id=281452110468

I tackled the valve body again last night, and just as I thought with a clear head it was just as easy as they claimed.. There's two halves, with a sandwich plate Inbetween, then the TCM.. I only got one half done last night, completely stripped it, gave it a Kero bath, blew it down for about 20mins making sure I got in every nook and cranny, changed over the factory plungers/Pistons for the Sonax ones with o-rings, then put it back together, and I'm feeling better about using new solenoids (not coz Bellend suggested it, but because I wanted to [emoji106]) Genuine solenoids $600 Genuine sandwich plate $117 Still waiting on the motor and dad spent 3hrs tipping the valves, still with 8 to go this afternoon.. About 0.03" had to come off each, not many people understand how crucial the correct Crush/lash is even with hydraulic lifters Thanks, Joe

I'm with you captain, it's definitely not worth rushing, I'll still be going at the same pace, just putting in more hours if I can, that way if it makes it cheering, if not at least I tried, and there's no way I'll be taking it there if it's not run in 100% or if there's still issues... Barnz don't get me wrong, I am very much the same, I stoned each surface of the steels, and the two frictions had like 1% wear, plus this pack only controls Reverse, and low range if it were 4wd... I can live with that

Picking up the sandwich plate and solenoid kit this arvo, dad is going to our mates cylinder head shop again to finish off tipping the valves, to get the lash nice and low ... Hopefully pick up the motor today or tomorrow so yea I'm hoping to get it to Powerplay next Sunday, if I can get the motor and box in this weekend it gives me a week to run it in... Wishful thinking Thanks Ralphy, but D clutch is reverse from what I believe, plus with the little wear that it had im happy to give it a go like this, unless you know something I don't haha

Ran into a few dramas last night... I was up to Pack D, pull it out and the pack that came out had 7 frictions, 7 steels, top plate and the wavy plate, All up it was 29.75mm.. The exedy kit only contained 5 of each, then you use the top plate and wavy plate, which only came to 20.65mm as the steels were also thinner... There is only about 5.5mm of travel in the piston so there's no way that was going to work.. Looking over the pack that came out it was in good nick, two frictions were still the same thickness as new, and the others were only missing 0.01-0.02mm so the only logical thing to do was use the exedy frictions with the std steels, plus the two std frictions that were still new thickness... Put it all together and came it up good.. Then it was assembly time, gave the case a good clean, changed the rear seal, checked the bearings etc... That all went together smoothly, turning the shafts to align the frictions, making sure all the bearings and mating surfaces are lubed up, I just used atf.. Once it was all together, stil laying on its side I pumped more atf into each pack so it doesn't start up dry.. So at this stage I'm feeling pretty good about myself, my first auto back together and it happens to be a ZF... What do j decide to do next? Pull apart the farking valve body.. The Zip kit contains Springs, Seals, and Pistons which address the common pressure loss problems the 6hp26 run into over time.. It's great, it has step by step instructions, no specialty tools needed and is extremely easy to install... It's Not!! I got it all apart, and decided to tackle it once chamber at a time, it just wasn't working from the begging... It was getting late and I decided to call it a night and tackle it with a clear head I guess it was a productive night after all... But I'll be getting the solenoid kit and now also need a sandwich plate that goes in between the valve bodies

Don't worry, it crossed my mind haha, but at $640 for the set, not happening right now... And like you said, their easy enough to change... I have a feeling it will be out in the near future for a converter upgrade and I'm really not sure how it's going to behave with these clutches.. There's a few things I have noted that I will be doing differently if done again, I.e machining, some hardened washers installed in certain spots and possibly different clearances... So at this stage I just want to see how it performs the way it is Input $2295 (Niz) Clutches $1260 (motospecs) Seal kit $260 (motospecs) ZF filter $80 (motospecs) Zip Kit $235 (eBay)

I got the Niz stage2 shaft, a Sonnax Zip Kit, the Exedy stage 2 frictions/steels, and a ZF overhaul/seal kit... Wanted the Niz alloy pan but it's still getting made, might change it over when I dump the fluid after abit of a run in period... ZF fluid or Gulf? I was running the gulf before Fark jet, I was going to try and clean these ones up, coz their not cheap End play is about 0.005" I'm happy with that Skids, why do you ask

Good to see you on here Darryl, I'm very keen to try it out aswell, I'll definitely keep everyone posted..

Thanks guys... Yea I initially thought that, but I'm thinking the smaller hole creates/keeps higher pressure? Pm sent mate

So it's been a long weekend, the parents went away for the weekend, how rude, there's 13 days till PP... So I had to step up and take charge My Atomic gear arrived, Std links are made from ~1.3mm steel, Atomic are ~1.75mm.. Guide Pivot Drivers side guide, abit more rigid HD chain tensioner looks identical to the Nason one??? Possibly changed the internal spring 360* thrust bearing.. "Machined" to supply oil to the thrust side... The hardened crank gear speaks for itself.. still waiting for the larger head stud washers... I'm only really impressed with the chain, a little disappointed with everything else.. Anyway, moving on The good old ZF... I'm not going to do a How to guide or anything, just show some photos and give some insight, hopefully give use some more confidence... It's not overly complicated, if your mechanically minded and have some common sense you'll find your way around, if not, leave it to the experts... Here's some links that may help you get your heads around it http://www.apra-europe.org/dateien/downloads/APRA_Birmingham_Hans-Peter_Bach_ZF_Transmissions_with_Mechatronics.pdf http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-forums/x5-e53-forum/90167-zf-6hp26-teardown.html https://s3.amazonaws.com/sonnax-dev/uploads/pdf/pdf/12/2011_Presentation_AutoChoice.pdf So the whole reason this build was started is that out of the blue I started to hear a strange Whir from the box, then it started slipping into gears, then stopped engaging gears, and eventually went into limp mode, this all happened within 24hrs of casual driving to and from work 25km away.. I didn't take photos of every step, just general shots of stuff.. There were no surprises for me laying in the pan which was a relief, everything was actually extremely clean, and the fluid was still red-ish... Lucky I got the nizzer shaft coz my input had a nice little twist!! Surely it wasn't far off snapping Now the Intermediate will be the weak point but they don't make a billet shaft for the BF, only the FG which already has a thicker shaft.. So we'll cross that bridge when we get to it hey Basically with a spotless workbench I took it apart one pack at a time, to not get confused, cable tied each pack together and layed everything out in order of removal... Washed and inspected every piece, taking note of what each piece did, changing all the seals/o-rings, pieced it all back together then blowing compressed air into each hole to checking Piston activation and return.. Then doing all the measurements to check the packs etc Pack E controls 4,5,6 gears, it looked like it had a hard life, not a lot left of he Frictions and a few heat marks on the steels, and obviously the clearances were over the factory specs Pack A controls 1,2,3,4 and wasn't too bad actually, within factory clearance and the Frictions were in good nick.. Pack B controls 3,5 and reverse.. This was the worst, some of the frictions were almost non existent, plenty of hot spots on the steels and out of the factory clearances by miles.. I suspect this was due to all the WOT 3-4 shifts?? Pack C controls 2 and 6, it wasnt too bad either, within factory clearance and frictions looked alright I still need to remove pack D, change the rear seal and instal the Zip kit, but it was a constructive weekend Thanks Joe

Well I just caught up, didn't start from the beginning but I get the drift.. check out my build thread when you get a chance, you will get abit of an insight on what's involved... Keep in mind that machining is expensive aswell, so I'd say for the Pistons, rings, rods, bearings you mentioned allow ~$1500-$1700.. The machining will depend on how everything measures up, so worst case, hone, crank grind, deck the block, tunnel bore ~$1500... And $1000 for assembly is fair, considering all the washing, measuring, tools, knowledge and time involved, A full service of the head should be ~$600-$700 if reusing all your old gear Then you need things like a gasket kit, timing kit, balancer, new head bolts... Your budget of 17k should be more then enough to get it built... Good luck mate

That's pretty gay,

Haha luckily I still live at home with the parents, so I'm looked after [emoji108]

Your kidding me JVK, was it Rollmaster? I've installed a few of the single row ones in some VE cam kits I've done.. those flops love the limiter aswell, hopefully it holds out.. Anyway, more of an update, I just spoke to Brad and have purchased, the HD chain, HD tensioner, guide pivot, crank gear, driver side chain guide, and 360* thrust... The oversize head stud washers are currently getting made so I'll get them next week Looks like I won't be eating this week but I'll feel better that all of that is taken care of [emoji108]

Ahh Sold!

Hmmm it would be devastating to say the least... This has been mentioned to me before, we have compared them and the guides look identical, the chain has the same markings and links as factory, the tensioner does look abit on the cheap side and the oil feed is smaller then factory... Surely there aren't too many factories out there that make chains? And to what specs? I've never seen an atomic one but Brad has to get them made somewhere aswell? I know atomic develop some great products but even then everything he develops he has to get from somewhere? I've been to his shop and was disappointed to see a small, clean, half empty unit, I was expecting to see, motors, and lathes, and CNC machines, in a big not dirty but used looking shop?? Where does all his products get made?? (Not having a stab, just curious) My dad is an old wog, he is very humble and definitely not arrogant but he also believes that anything you can do, I can do it better.. Which he still amazes me with, hence taking on this whole project ourselves... This is the first time he has played with one of these motors, so we are yet to find all of its weak points, we have addressed most of the basic points of the engine but obviously can't find the weaknesses of things like the pump and timing set until it's under load, So basically R&D is needed... I guess this is the only thing separating someone like Brad from my father, it takes Time, money and tools to develop a product, it's hard to convince him that I can just buy a product that is already on the market and be done with it haha... I think I'll get in touch with brad tomorrow and just purchase the gear because I'm realising that I am my own Guinea pig at the moment and I can't afford to loose this motor because I cheated out on the timing kit [emoji106] Good hustle guys haha

Thanks mate, stock gears, Nason guides, tensioner and chain.. What was the go with your 360* thrust bearing story?

It's back at the machine shop... Getting the crank checked for straightness, caps machined and tunnel bored... On the positive side we should be starting on the box tomorrow.. I've also been doing my research on spark boosters... I originally wanted to go with the Kenne bell boost a spark, it used to have in cabin voltage control, which helps with dialing in the voltage... They have since removed the remote making it no better then the msd, or ice boosters... The JMS kit that Herrod sells has the voltage control, mounting brackets and a loom, so Im going to go with that one

My machinist originally recommended .004"!! And dad wanted .0015" so we compromised with .0025"... Anyway moral of the story is I shouldn't be putting the pressure on, just let him with at his own pace... And everything else will be triple checked... For the record, powerplay is 3 weeks away.... Not looking good