For the Challenge, the team...
For the Challenge, the team built this custom pan in hopes that it would pick up power over the typical Milodon A-Body pan. What they found though is that the Milodon pan with a windage tray made exactly the same power.
As a side note, astute readers will realize that both valves are going to be a little bit open when the piston is at TDC in overlap, but the piston is halfway down the hole when at max valve lift. That is why lots of overlap (aka tight lobe separation) and not maximum valve lift is what causes piston-to-valve clearance problems.
Hughes Engines is a name known in the Pentastar circle, and that was who provided the hydraulic roller cam and lifter set here. “I really like the hydraulic rollers. I’ve been putting them in everything,” Robinson says. He pointed out some things he was really impressed with on the Hughes lifters: “They were a true drop in, they oil through the pushrod, and they have the oil band in the right spot.”
SKMFX is attached to a larger...
SKMFX is attached to a larger industrial manufacturing facility and so has access to full CNC facilities. They designed and built the water pump mounting plate in-house and used a Moroso electric water pump centersection to move the H2O.
Once Robinson had decided where he wanted the valve timing events to occur, his next fight was trying to determine when to light the fire. The team had decided that though they typically run an MSD 7AL3 on their shop dyno, they would use MSD’s digital 6AL2 programmable ignition box. “What I did was mess around with the curve. I took timing out near peak torque and put it back in at the top and that was a solid 10 hp and 10 pounds of torque. Just with a little jag in the timing curve. I was really impressed with that.”
Once they had their tune-up perfected, they loaded up their creation in the back of the modern-day equivalent of the Little Red Wagon and headed to the University of Northwestern Ohio in Lima for the AMSOIL Engine Masters Challenge. Having tried several viscosities of oil in testing to see if one was better than another for a hydraulic roller cam, they selected six quarts of AMSOIL Synthetic 20W-50 oil to protect their baby, and strapped it to one of the university’s two DTS dynos. They fed the Holley carb a steady stream of Rocket Brand 91-octane pump gas and let her rip. As the rpm climbed, there was a sudden jump in the torque as the cam, intake, and headers all reached their happy spots and the horsepower gauge skyrocketed. The final number peaked at 519 horses. The torque was a stroker-motor-like 476 lb-ft. All from parts that were designed before man walked on the moon. Considering those ancient origins of their engine, Robinson, Joe Rutters, and Ron MacLean could not have been happier with their valiant effort.
Using out-of-the-box Shoenfeld...
Using out-of-the-box Shoenfeld headers, the guys were quite happy with the results. Time permitting, they would have liked to see how smaller 15/8 to 13/4 stepped headers would have performed against these monsters. As is customary with the street theme of the Engine Masters Challenge, the engine ran through a set of mufflers. MagnaFlow seemed to be the muffler of choice among competitors as they were on almost every engine at the ’10 Challenge.
Using a Performer RPM intake...
Using a Performer RPM intake manifold along with a four-hole-tapered spacer was the trick to making 476 lb-ft of torque. They did have to relocate the inner boltholes of the intake to match the W-2 heads, but Robinson claimed they only did a small amount of porting on the intake, indicating its effectiveness.
The team had not used one...
The team had not used one of the 6AL2 boxes before and were stunned how they were able to increase the power throughout their rpm range with just a couple of tweaks to the timing curve.
During dyno tuning, changing...
During dyno tuning, changing overall timing with their MSD Pro Billet distributor was a simple deal, as they had made small marks in the distributor housing to quickly indicate where a 2-degree change in timing would be.
The SKMFX team used the NASCAR...
The SKMFX team used the NASCAR staple 830HP Holley carburetor. No super-trick billet hoo-ha was added, since the carb performed perfectly with only jet and air bleed changes. For fun they had also tried another carb with annular boosters, but in this case the dogleg boosters just straight-out ran.
With their race faces on,...
With their race faces on, the SKMFX team showed up ready to turn up the wick. Once they pulled their engine off the dyno though, the guys turned into a trio of affable Canadians eager to share their enthusiasm for engine building with anyone fortunate enough to be nearby. We told them if they brought down a cold sixer of Canada’s finest ale, we’d gladly let them back across the border next year ...