Garagewarming and Gearhead Personalities

I've never really understood the point of showing the privat residence to friends and guests. Don't get me wrong, it nice to have friends coming by, to have a party or a dinner at home, but house walk-arounds where thing like;  -This is our bedroom…and here's our bathroom….never really struck a cord with me.

But when it's time for Garage warming then it's different. It doesn't have to be a party, not even filled with cool stuff either. Here's why;

If it's full of cars, engines and bikes and not the least parts, you can walk around and just take in all details. You can stay for hours and hear stories about a car project, or get an epic tale which end up with the purchase of a gas tank, a special crankshaft etc. It's like a flea market and a story telling session combined.

If it's empty, there will be plans told, the discussion will be forward looking and there will be dreams. Very often too ambitious and unrealistic, but still creative dreams. Some times you feel a positive envy too

On top of the above, you get to know personalities when visiting a workshop, a kind of gearhead analysis. Garage archetypes. The collector, the builder, the fabricator, the machinist, the polisher, the wild grinder, the pedant, the dreamer, the project guy, the artist...and sometimes all in one place in...in harmony…well, at least not in war.

Some clean every spot, buy a new work bench and paint the walls white before they take an engine apart. Other just push a way what's in the way and tear the engine to pieces without even cleaning it first. Some just buy tools, others use theirs every minute. But it really doesn't matter, it's the gasoline (or diesel) sprit that counts.

Garage visit are always nice, but when friends becomes garage neighbors it's even better. Annika and Ragnar just moved in close to Salt Slush workshop.
Their profile? This couple is a mixture of pedant, fabricator, artist, wild grinder and project man/woman. A good and complex combo.

Salt Slush welcomes Annika and Ragnar and wait for the party!



Chasing The Dream SSR 449 Part 2

A picture is worth a thousands words and there are a lot of pictures in our new movie.

It's about our adventure at Bonneville Speed Week 2018 at the Salt Flats. 

Check it out ! on You tube !

    

Just so You know, we aim to go there again 2019.........

Engines, Engines, Engines...Our Engines! Part 1.

No matter how many years I've been working with engine design and engine builds , no matter how much I know about these machines technically, it's still magic when fuel is converted to torque and power. The sound, the vibrations and the freedom that comes from the liquid nectar called fuel has always been amazing to me.

No matter size, age or machine type the energy conversion that happens in those cylinders is truly a mystery.

As well the mechanical part of an engine is appealing. The precision, the mechanical cleverness and the sometimes, the simplicity. Development in small steps over more than a century has change the internal combustion engine from crude to incredable. 

In addition to the energy conversion and the mechanical clockwork factor there are other important things when it comes to engines. Factors of more subtile type, I'm talking about engine characteristics, engine sound and not the least, the appearance. In summery; the coolness factor.


1. Our Race Engine - Volvo N3T
When we built our Landspeed Racer (The 449 Amazon) we were in need of a robust base engine with all the right bells and whistles that would make it suitable to perform at 300%-400% of the original power rating, without too much modification.

So, we choose the all aluminum Volvo T6 engine from around 2005 and combined it with a Volvo 960 engine from mid 1990-ties.

Since the T6 engine was already a turbo engine there were a lot of things for free. Piston oil cooling, forged crank, BIG main bearing (65mm) cast in iron liners and cast in main bearings, just to mention a few things that makes life easier as a tuner.

The only modified parts are the conrods (H-Beams), the conrod bearing (somewhat more clearance) and the camshafts (more duration). We built a new inlet manifold, applied injectors of appropriate size and added a BorgWarner EFR 9180 turbo with wastegate

Volvo N3T engine with 750hp/1000Nm (on pump fuel)

Yes, we're proud.

2. The Ardun V8
Before the amazing Chrysler Hemi was created the Ford flathead V8 was in production. A generally good engine in high volume production. But there's a couple issues with flatheads….due to the combustion chamber geometry it's hard to get a fast and efficient combustion and in addition the engine block might get overheated (when tuned) since the exhaust channels are routed through the engine block. Zora Arkus-Duntov realized that combustion could be faster, power could be increased significantly and the cooling problem could go away with a Over Head Valve conversion kit.

With this early man Hemi conversion kit the Ford Flathead moved from being a 100hp engine to 300hp monster (and more). This was back in 1946...

Since then the Ford V8 Ardun engine has been used in Swedish Racing (Nordisk Special) in Indy Race Cars, in Sports Cars and in Hot Rods and not the least in Landspeed Racing.

Besides, it's amazing to look at...iconic.  

In progress: Our Ardun V8 

Inspiration at Erik Hansson place

  

3. Our Supercharged LS engine(-s)

We cannot avoid it. We need to write about our LS engines as well. Our Supercharged LS engines. Modern LS engines from GM are perhaps not the most beautiful engines, but they are robust, small and light. Google the dimensions an be impressed. Google the weight of the aluminum version and be amazed. It's a push rod engine that revs up to 7000rpm. But there's another way...Supercharger!

Here's our take on LS...

Anders added a LS3 heads on a LQ4 and a Magna charger from Magnuson on top.  

I added LS3 heads too and a Magnuson Heartbeat supercharger on my LS2 engine. 

The result?

It's fast.

That's all for now… In coming blog posts we're going to write about…thing like.. 
The revvy 302 small block.

Here's a taste of a well build Chevy small block 302. Yes, it has push rods and two valves.

  

The Buick Nailhead with Hillborn al'a Magnus

 …. 

The 354 Hemi by  Kalle !
...
 The Experimental Fourbanger !

 ...

The ZZ4

...

Flatheads.

...

Stovebolt (-s)

... 

Odd balls...and more

Stay tuned!



What's the next step?

Let's face the facts. Your current progress doesn't matter. You might be young or old, good or bad, you might dwell in close proximity of heaven or hell. Still, there's no way to escape the inevitable. I'm talking about The Next Step.

The next step could be a brutal reality or a dream fulfilled. It could be unrealistic and unreachable or achievable and natural.

All I know is that it's of vital importance to think about a next step. At least one more next step…

Here's our current position. The Salt Slush Team is planning. We've learned that engine calibration is of great importance. Hence a first trail run at El Mirage is needed to understand if additional wrenching or calibration will be needed prior to our next BIG challenge, the Bonneville Speed Week 2019.

Recap: The 2018 Trail run at El Mirage. 

Lesson learned: We've should have taken calibration serious at this point.

The cure: The Westech treatment. Ok? To be confirmed in May.

Presently, while waiting for the next big challenge on dust and Salt, all team member are working furiously on private projects. Here's a glance...

The Ardun engine: From one angle... 

...to another. 

Commando Carina and her odd ball old Lawnmower that sooner than soon will make a difference in the lazy world of robot mowers.

Naked and alone. Kalle's Vespa. A Mod balance to the Camaro -67 project that any decade soon will eat up the road.

Spanking? Nope, just Anders El Camino bucket seats that needs proper brackets... 

...to handle the Supercharged iron LS engine.

Meanwhile Magnus is praying for eternal life and endless resources in order to be able to complete 50%  of his on-going projects.

Coming back to next step...we need a new Big Project. What to do after to The Final flat out speed feast, without misfire, on Bonneville Salt Flats?

We don't know, but we're thinking. Here's what's on our mind right now.

Build a back to basic race/sport car?

Race at Pikes Peak?

As always, the future is unclear. But we know one thing for sure.

Once you've bitten the apple, there's no way back.

Our advice: Take a bite.



The Power of Animated Cartoons- A Celebration!

There were no chance in hell. Ever. Except on Christmas Eve. We were begging for it, dreaming about it and if we just saw a glimpse of it we got influenced.

I'm talking about animated cartoons and the opposite effect of political positions. There were times when young Swedes were feed from the TV with grey still pictures of labor. There were times when we learned that capitalism and freedom was a bad thing.

But the State made one big mistake. They allowed Donald Duck on Christmas Eve. The sense of colorful freedom that was coming thorough the screen one time per year, this smell of another world, gave kids hope and eventually changed the society to something better. Forever.

More regulations gave birth to an opposition, which eventually opened up TV, the market and not the least made sport cars and hot rods and choppers and race bike legal. (Göran Ambell and Sture Torngren = Our heros) The thick air was getting easier to breath.

So, let's forget about the dark period and go back even further and enjoy some animations connected to cars.

Here are the topic's:

Thrust and communication

Death is not the end

Automobubbling

That's all Folk's

The Flash in the Pan.

I have to admit. I couldn't see the problem coming. Tell me I'm naive, but it all seemed so harmless. So easy to solve. But apparently I should have been on my toes. Because dealing with any French-American cooperation that stretches through decades is a towering task.

 

I'm not talking about transatlantic deals, Lodi or Languedoc, Lille or Los Angeles. Nope. It's when Henry F. meets French Army girls in a post war dance that things starts to get complicated. Let me tell you... 

...how it goes. 

Take one. The 1st main bearing in the French block couldn't find room inside the strict Ford oil pan from the 1930ies. It had to break loose after years surrounded by aluminum walls.

Take two. The French army oil pan does not fit on-road vehicles, hence the surge (-pipe) comes from US of A (Vanpelt) in common global fashion.

Take three: New (main bearing) boundaries were shaped in white paper...

…but eventually, hard walls were formed. 

Take four, I grabbed the welder to make the preliminary, permanent

All in all, what first seemed like a done deal was in fact a tough task in need of

action and attention.

Good start, but I'm not ready yet, cause the deal's not yet sealed.

Watching paint dry while feeling blue.

It's February. According to Swedish goverment statistic, the second flu peak is coming up. Simultaniously the same source show that the winter womit bug is heading towards its peak in a couple of weeks. Meanwhile wet snow and cold nights serves as changing guards. In short, it's gloomy.

Did I mention that all money is spent too? 

So what to do?

1. Go inside.

2. Wash your hands.

3. Use your germ free hand to do something creative in the garage. 

4. Practice contemplation.

I'll try to illustrate all except no.2 above with a couple of pictures. In the wrong order, just to keep you awake.

1. It's February. Go inside. It's depressing outside. 

4. Watch paint dry can be really exiting. Here's the Ardun V8 oil sump (Thank's Lars!) in wet paint…

...and here's the same sump when dry. No, it's not the camera. It really shifts color. This means that something has happended while we were in trancendence.

Dry upon wet. Shades of blue.

3. Men with germ free hands pointing finger. Since there's more than one solution to this superchager pulley dilemma a creative garage debate is needed. 

3. Carina's lawn mower corner is germ free too. Because their ain't no bacteria in hell that survives a her constant mist of Bräkleen.

That's all for now.

Be careful out there!