Startup video

Lots more to do (fuel pump, injectors, fuel pressure regulator, manifold leak, air filter, tuning, intercooler)

But here is a startup video.

Manifold problems

Tried to finish the manifold, but when I welded the collector (this is where the pipes come together) it came together alroght, but the the heat (actually the cooling) caused all the pipes to point in the wrong directions and not match up with the exhaust ports.

Damn, all my work for nothing. Planned to cut off the flanges and start again. At least I was getting a little better at welding.

In the end I decided to cut and weld in extra metal to make it fit. Not pretty, but I can always build another manifold next winter. So, I did that and it fitted the head again, I bolted it up and started up. Very loud.

Lots of gas escaping between head and manifold. All the pipes fitted the holes, but the faces were not 100% parallel, so were not sealing.

So, I built a frame to hold the manifold, and filed down the ends so they were all parallel. THen I checked for leaks, and found loads (20 maybe), so I welded all of those up, and.... guess what, the manifold doesn't fit the head again. This time I used brute force and ignorance to cold work the pipes. Then I had to file down the ends again, and then eventually bolt it all up.

These short paragraphs took me 2 complete weekends. This is ridiculous as all the problems were completely self inflicted. When making manifolds, make the collector first, and then check for leaks, if no leaks then join the collector to the head. Alternatively, tack is, and get someone with TIG to weld it up (less heat, less distortion, neater welds). That is what I will do next time.

Anyway, I bolted it all up and I still have one small leak between head and manifold. I will file it a bit more, and get new gaskets. They are the crush type, so should compensate for any small inaccuracies.

Here are some photos of where I am;