1 reply to this topic

[wobblybob]

im about to start my engien for the first time on sat , just wondering if theres anything special that i need to do?? (its a 1293, piper 270 cam, standard head(for now) HIF44 carb and stage 2 maniflow manifold,) if that helps in anyway? i dont have a rev counter as yet so when i start it up as i dont know what the carb is tuned at what happens if it revs high? do i switch it off or quicky ajust the idle?? i want to drive it down my street aswell so how long will i have to wait after ive started it? i know not to labour the engine and stuff when driving

thanks, Kev

(the time is NOW!!!!)

[dklawson]

I think both Keith Calver and Mini Sport have published articles on starting rebuilds. I won't pretend to present their info here. You need a succinct summary like theirs.

Since you have a new cam you are supposed to start the engine and bring it up to about 2k RPM and hold it there for 20 minutes to bed the followers and cam in. Borrow a tune-up tach if you don't have one so you can set and monitor the RPM during this period.

If you have doubts about the carb and its settings, keep an eye on the exhaust manifold/pipes during this 20 minute period. If you are too lean you can do damage. This will appear as pipes glowing very red during the break in period. If you see that happen you may want to try and richen the jets a little just to protect the valves during the restart.

by the way, keep a fire extinguisher handy and remember if things really get going out of control, you can always hook a temporary a jumper wire on the coil (-) terminal that you can ground out and use as a kill switch while you're watching the engine after re-start.