Off My Trolley

This weekend was spent making my giant skateboard. Saturday I was off to EH Hassims to get some lumber and some bolts. The dudes kindly shaved the lumber to size.

Tah Daaaah!!!

I badly needed a spot to put the gearbox and bellhousing unit so that was the first thing to go on even before I took a picture.

Just to make sure of the timing I undid the bolt and removed the cam cover. I wasn't too keen on using the peg so I made a TDC indicator with a dial gauge. I bolted it to the camshaft caps and used a rod that was a perfect fit down the spark plug hole. The cams lined up - you can just see the 5mm allen keys at the back on the left and right. With the locating pin screwed into the pulley I cinched down the bolt and everything was tickety-boo.

Now the engine is properly timed and all that remains is the torquing of the crankshaft bolt. I don't have the special tool from Ford so I must borrow one or make one up.

I am thinking to make one out of tube with castellations milled out, then welded to a long pipe. This will mate to the Crankshaft pulley slots. Might work.....

Today I fitted the one thing that has puzzled me - the alternator. I couldn't figure what the spacers were used for and it turns out they are not needed. I just winged it. I couldn't get the right tension on the belt and after some searching found that the alternator body was binding on the adjustable tension bar. So that came off and ten minutes with a die grinder on the bar and I had the necessary clearance.