As with any down-time, it affords one opportunity to alter the original plan and take a slightly different course. From the onset I wanted to employ the services of 300 Below Cryogenic Processing in Decatur, Illinois, to our engine. By bringing the engine parts to minus-300 degrees F and then controlling the warm-up rate to ambient temperature, the molecular structure of the metal is realigned. This provides not only the opportunity for more power and better performance, but enhanced reliability and less internal engine wear. What good is power if it does not last? Having worked with Bob Reed, Motorsports Manager of 300 Below, before, I know first-hand that his service works. I am glad the delay caused by our misfortune allows 300 Below to become part of this exciting engine build.
Since all of our editorial deadlines for this project are in the tank, I decided to pull one more rabbit out of my hat. Did you ever wonder if engine coatings on pistons and cylinder heads really work, or are they just voodoo? Well, I am a big fan of coatings and have used them before, but have found that not all coating companies are the same. Also, the usual turn of events has the coatings bunched in with a number of other changes to the engine, so it was impossible to determine what the chemical application was exactly worth. If this question has burned in your belly like it did in ours, you will finally get your answer. Dan Swain of Swain Tech Coating in Scotsville, New York, is a long-time friend and ceramics engineer. He volunteered to provide his service for a back-to-back dyno test. With the enthusiasm of RaceKrafters, we plan on building and dyno thrashing this engine twice-once without coatings, and a total disassembly and coating job by Swain. Dan feels confident enough in his product to allow us to do this and print the results. We are excited about the ability to offer this kind of in-depth research to our readers, even if it does mean twice the amount of work. To keep things fair we will leak and compression-test the engine before disassembly and after the coatings are applied to make sure the ring seal has not deteriorated and put the coatings at a disadvantage from lower cylinder pressure.
Then as one last hurrah for grins and giggles, we will spray the damn thing with a Barry Grant Inc. Nitrous Works kit to see what we can make on juice. Since we are all addicted to power, we do not care where it comes from, as long as it comes!
All of us involved in this project apologize for this slight delay in our forward progress. But as you can hopefully see, the information you will gain from our set backs will be invaluable. As they say, "Good things come to those who wait."