I felt it was time to give a little more background on what we have going on behind the scenes at our disposal. With the following equipment, its clear to see why we have industry leading 3 year/36,000 mile warranties on all PPP blocks that leave the building. 5-Axis CNC Milling Machines - we use these for cylinder head port and machine work and intake port work. From Prostock to street, these machines can convert a raw cast block to a completely machined head in about 7 hours. Originally designed for aerospace work, there are few machines like this, and we have 2 of them. Heavyload 5-Axis CNC - same as above but with extra size and power to handle bigger and beefier parts. 3-Axis CNC Mills – we have 5 of these, mainly for prototyping of small parts. 3-Axis Bed Mill – features a custom rollover fixture for block machining. Fully conversational, it generates code on-the-fly, not raw code and tool path input like many machines. Can be used like standard 3-axis machine if needed. 2-Axis Computerized Lathe - custom tooled for us, it is used to cut pulleys: including both v-belt and serpentine. Manual Lathes - we have 2: one for piston cutting with custom tools; and one for manual turning and prototyping. Manual Mills - we have several of these, many with custom attachments built in house to do work on specific applications. They all have digital readouts for precision custom work and all of them have pneumatic (air powered) tool changers. Crank Balancer – this machine is computerized, like most on the market today. Our difference in this area is the experience of our people who run this equipment. Renishaw Digitizer – this machine is used to “reverse engineer” and generate workable computer models from a physical prototyped part. Most often used for cylinder heads and intakes, but can be used on any parts. Head Surfacer - grinds down the deck of the head to obtain the correct cc’s for proper compression within the finished engine. Newen Epoc CNC Valve Seat Machine - this cylinder head machine utilizes a single tool to contour valve seats. It is phenomenal at cutting the extra hard valve seats in late model heads, but otherwise is used primarily for R&D because of its superb accuracy. At the touch of a button you can change the angle or radius on a specialized touch screen computer interface. Whereas a manual machine can cause deflection and uses a single cutter to do all angles, this machine cuts 1/300th at a time for almost no deflection. Manual Seat and Guide Machine – cutting seat pockets and boring out guides are sometimes still done the classic way. There are some things machines just can’t do, and that is where our professionals, their rock solid skills and their proven experience take over with this older-style Serti 100 machine. We cut special applications by hand, for that personal touch. Guide Hone - this custom-made machine uses liquid jets to hone the valve guides to 1/10000th inch accuracy. Valve Grinders – these precision instruments are used primarily in valves for street machines and stock engines. Our precision engine builders use them to achieve increased seal and efficiency. Interestingly, we don’t use these machines to grind race valves, because our race valves are manufactured so precisely, grinding them on this machine can actually reduce the seal and efficiency. Spring Testers - we have 3 of these machines, which are used to test forces the valve springs produce. We test our springs before and after usage to ensure uniformity through the entire compression and depression loading of the spring. We also test for load loss after heavy and light usage and abuse on our dynamometers and the track. Vertical Head Honing Machine - controls the size and finish of the cylinder head; bores vertically only. We have 2 of these - one uses water as a lubricant, the other uses oil. Both are computer controlled. Horizontal Borer - bores cam tunnels and main lines, this is also used to repair badly damaged blocks and create custom blocks from scratch. Connecting Rod Machines - used to speed up process and improve productivity. We have 2 in house: one set up for large end, with automatic or “power-feed” to aid in manufacturing an even shaft; and one for small end, which is manual for more precise adjustments on the smaller end. Cap and Rod Grinder - used primarily to repair badly damaged heads, or to customize stock heads. Magnaflux - uses UV light and checks for cracks or imperfections that decrease the life and performance of the part. Magnetizes particles that cling to imperfections and cracks. Flow Benches - we have 3 Superflow flow benches. Highly customized from their factory specs, these are set up to measure airflow, swirl & tumble. Vigorous tests allow us to pinpoint flow problems within the head and improving the efficiency of the engine, intake manifold and throttle body or carburetor. Using these techniques we created an engine that at one point in its efficiency curve had a 100% combustion rating! Wet-flow Testing Booth – Our exclusive, this process is so secret the only thing we can tell you is that it is in a special room under a black cloth in the corner of the shop. This test can aid in visualizing flow through the complete intake track at running position. Hardness Tester - we have portable and bench top models. These measure the hardness of the materials and check for inconsistencies through those parts and from part to part comparatively for uniformity from one part to another. Coordinate Measurement Machine - the main piece of machinery for quality control that we use. This machine can measure every angle and deviation of surface down to 30 millionths of an inch (!!!) on any kind of part from valve seats to whole engines. Can also be use to digitize parts for solid modeling. Valve Train Design - We can test valve train components all the way to destruction. We conduct this testing on our spintron, collecting data in the process. The data identifies the point of failure, which gives us the information needed to redesign the part. Harmonics Elimination - We measure harmonics on the spintron by cutting open one of the cylinders and shining a laser against a mirror placed into the cylinder which reflects light up to the valves which are going up and down to a rhythm. Imagine the following beat (clapping with your hands) clap-clap---clap-clap-clap. The laser identifies an inconsistency in the beat or clap – which gives you clues as to where to look for the problem. Parasitic Loss (Engine Friction)We’re very good at finding ways to reduce parasitic power loss in the engine. The idea is that once you achieve very high volumetric efficiency the only place you can go to “make power” is to eliminate places where you lose power, essentially that means reducing friction. We can define where losses are occurring in the drive train and identify methods for eliminating. Digital Part Prototyping and ReplicationWe have the capability of digitizing any part, on one of our 3 digitizing machines. If a customer has a unique custom part, even one he has built by hand, we can replicate it precisely. The deliverable on this work can be: a paper drawing; a CAD drawing; a 3D Model, or an actual part. Custom CAM shaft developmentDo you want to make power from 6800 to the redline; or would you rather your power comes on at 4500 and peaks at 6800. Either way we can do it. We can put max power in the engine wherever it is that you want it, largely due to our knowledge and skills at CAM development and design. Real-time Performance Data AcquisitionWe hook up and measure engine telemetry on the track at the NASCAR level. Distributor DynamometryWe have an unusual, almost arcane, piece of equipment, a distributor dynamometer. Few street machine enthusiasts will ever need this, but it is an absolute necessity for NASCAR work. Chassis Dynamometry We can run a full car in our chassis chamber, with simulated racetrack load conditions and controlled-atmosphere conditions year round. Our custom made SuperFlow edy-current equipment has 116 instrument channels for measuring power, torque, speeds, incorporate pressures, temperatures, analog and digital inputs. We can measure normal and acceleration speeds as well as coast run to determine drive line loss during deceleration.
That's gawd damn impressive. I own a 9V cordless drill, claw hammer, two drill bits and three sheets of sand paper.............:tooth:
Andy did they ever get their 300 426 down the track? last time i talked to them they hadnt made a good qtr mile run.
