mk e wrote:
On to the chain covers.
Bad idea. I'm waiting on o-rings that go in the sprocket bolts and parts to fix the chain tensioner....best to leave these covers off until everything is done.
So on to the drop gear case which is the last remain item I'd consider major and I have 20 hours planned for it....I think the 1st hour will be burned trying to remember where I left off.
As a re-fresh the V12 is longer than the V8 so the ends both stick out a bit. No real problem on the engine front, but at the flywheel the whole drop gear stuff becomes a mess. Using a hydraulic throw-out bearing and custom flywheel and then a matching shorter clutch shaft I was able to save about 1" but the rest had to come the hard way....cut and weld.
Since I was cutting and welding anyway this was the point I decide it was a good idea to also rotate the the drp gear case to allow the engine to sit about 3" forward and 2" lower than the V8 because the narrow 60 degree V gave me lots of room to the firewall and I planned to dry-sump it anyway so shortening the pan was not an issue....you know, since I was already cutting and welding.
I also needed to extend the trans shaft. Making a whole new one is a huge job so I decided to follow the Goldsmith lead and just extend the gear out. Now while he welded the gear to the hud and I heard had some issues with that setup, I designed a bolt together setup (that may or may not explode).
Now, on the blower engine with 450ish ft-lbs torque I found 1st gear pretty much useless and the V12 is supposed to make over 500 ft-lbs. So, as long as I was messing with the trans gear and clutch shaft I decided it would be a good idea to swap the the 2 gears and put the trans gear on the clutch and the clutch gear on the trans. This is good for a 23% change in drive ratio and puts 1st gear almost to where the stock 2nd gear was.
Great!...no wait.... that means the idler gear is in the wrong place so that has to move too, but whats a little more cutting and welding right?
It looks like I left off with a new boss welded in the the bellhousing/drop gear case and the center located but it needs to be machined for the bearing.
I also decided to add an outboard bearing to the trans gear so the cover needs bosses for both the idler and trans gears. I also looks like I left the trans gear hub oversized a few thou so that needs to be finished.
The 1st day of spring is exactly 2 months away
