used upgraded Kent cast aluminum valve covers

[Art Smith]

used upgraded Kent cast aluminum valve covers,
$500/ea plus shipping from 93555

Art
artesmith@earthlink.net

[mark elder]

At the risk of seeming very ignorant (easily done with my levels on knowledge), can I dare ask what all the plumbing is for?

Mark

PS; it turns out that electric water pumps are banned in FF in New Zealand (?why); the rule reads :"The water pump shall be belt driven by the crankshaft". Damn.

[Art Smith]

Mark-

keeping in mind you're the lucky guy that asked; a far more insightful and valuable question would have been: how do I "connect-the-dots" to understand the potential value, and/or objective, of your unusual hardware?? surely the chances of anyone sharing the truth or anything approaching the whole truth has to be extremely small; they invested their time and money in search of a compliant competitive advantage........... before getting to your very insightful intended question, a couple of observations (may or may not be true) that will provide an invaluable backdrop to your task of "connecting-the-dots":
1.) after 50+ years of worldwide development, all of the easy compliant Kent horsepower has been found and is readily available from most of the national engine builders.
2.) new technology (materials, widgets, OR better fundamental understanding of the physics) is almost surely at the root of any real new horsepower made with a Kent.
extracting more compliant horsepower from a Kent is no longer like a game of checkers or buying the latest magical mystery milk or widget at the store, it's much more like the abstract world of competitive chess or duplicate bridge!!!

the game of "connecting-the-dots" in many ways is like a structured/logical game of conjecture (aka: guessing). to do well, the player needs a working understanding of basic physics (mechanical engineering), a comprehensive knowledge of the GCR as written (NOT as preached by the paddock pundits), an eye for detail, a logical mind, AND a willingness to think "outside-the-box". in the real world, "connect-the-dots" is a great deal like putting a puzzle together without the solution AND with the possibility/probability that the player does NOT have all of the needed pieces.................. without the solution, the player's answer always includes uncertainty!! the true value of the game is the objective and critical thought process executed in search of the most likely answer!!

the upgraded cast aluminum valve covers posted for sale provide an interesting case study for an example. after careful examination of the pictures included in the post for sale AND others posted before, the "connect-the-dots" player is likely to conclude the upgrade hardware is providing extra oil to all of the rocker/valve interfaces or the intake rocker/valve interfaces. scaling of the pictures using known dimensions (assuming linear scaling of the images) suggests the center line heights are about right after taking into consideration the compressed thickness of a gasket. how does more oil under the valve cover contribute to more horsepower?? after consulting their rank ordered list of internal drag sources and concluding the potential benefit doesn't warrant the extra work that can be seen, the player would likely start a search for other explanations. eventually the player would ask the right person or listen at the right keyhole and learn that one of the most sensitive compliance measurements made on premium Kents is "maximum lift at the valve" (rocker tip wear induces additional non-compliant lift). having encountered a potential compliance concern, hopefully the player would review the applicable sections of the GCR in detail........... assuming an above average player, it becomes clear there's more going on than meets the eye: the intake and exhaust lobe profiles are specified, the lifter is specified, the push rod length and weight are specified, the rocker is specified but not the tip profile, the height of the rocker shaft is controlled, the length of the valve is controlled, the maximum valve protrusion into the combustion chamber is specified, and the lash is unrestricted................. a couple of quick taps on the calculator indicates that 1.5 (rocker ratio) times the maximum lobe lift is less than the allowed maximum lift at the valve.................. at this point, out of observables for consideration, the player would have to hypothesize the potential answer or answers:
1.) assuming a high crankcase vacuum (see three Atlantic rotor TDC pump posted for sale) AND the known poor splash lubrication under the valve cover, the additional oil is a means to maintain rocker tip wear rates.
2.) ditto, the additional oil is a means to run the tip closer to the compliance limit.
3.) ditto, the additional oil is a means to run the tip closer to the compliance limit longer.
4.) ditto, the additional oil is a means to cool the valve springs as the engine is turned quicker. exhaust posts from the seller seem to be showing shorter primaries and secondaries suggesting higher tuned engine speeds.
oil cooled springs are standard operating procedure (aka: SOP) in NASCAR.
5.) an elaborate miss-direction scheme from someone very experienced at managing observables.
6.) none of the above, needs more work

Art
artesmith@earthlink.net

ps: the "electric" part of the advocated cooling system is on the order of 0.1 HPc on top of an integer HPc improvement. a turbo-axial belt driven water pump supplying the same flow rate as the Stewart to freeze plug cooling fittings will net the same improvement compliantly with your rules without the heat soak operations concept options!! impeller flow rate vs pressure AND NOT employing fore-to-aft cooling flow in the block is where the real performance improvement is !!!

[BorkRacing]

Huh?

[schiconst]

After careful analysis of your engineering theory, I have come to the conclusion that the muffler bearings I use do way more than any of the widgets that you are using!
John Schimenti FF69 CFR LOL

[beachguy12]

I understand. Higher pressure oil helps meet the legalities.

[Daryl DeArman]

It's a combination of "I can run the lift closer to maximum, at higher rpm, for a longer period of time" while also causing you to "look here. instead of there". Suspecting the later, you spend more time looking "there" seeking what you are not supposed to find, when there's really nothing there. Now you have wasted more time worrying about the bird turd on the hood the other guy's running instead of concentrating on your own effort.

[EACIII]

Interesting in that most other race motors they are trying to limit the oil going top end.

I see what he is saying but having spend Sunday afternoon profiling a used set of rockers for max lift I didn't see much wear from last rebuild

[Art Smith]

more pictures for the players (that have been around for some time):
http://www.apexspeed.com/forums/showthread.php?t=46009

Art
artesmith@earthlink.nt

[Offcamber1]

Offerings to the God of Speed.