Want to rebuild my first engine

[Ian_UK1]

PeterBurgess said:

A few years ago I was really excited to sell some MG parts to the owner of PAW engines, I could only look at those through the model shop window in York when I was a lad and yearn! I was never any good at flying the control line stuff as I got dizzy so I was a race mechanic/pit crew to one of the sixth formers who flew combat whilst we were at Grammar School. It is amazing how we forget the things we used to do
I never got into marine engines but a few of my customers have.
Peter

PAW - was that Progress Aero Works that was based in Macclesfield or nearby? Some of the lads at my Grammar School used to use their engines in Control Line models - I think they were available in 1.49 or 2.49 cc, if my addled memory still serves correctly!

Edited by Ian_UK1 on Thursday 19th October 15:49

[brman]

texaxile said:

A lot of good replies and advice here, but if you want a "scrap" engine which you might want to pull apart to see how and why it's scrap, as well as get an idea of how it all bolts together then I might be able to get you a busted Impreza WRX engine to play with. It is currently in kit form anyway.

You'll have to pick it up from Ipswich though , but that's how I found my way around an engine, back in the day I brought 3 old crossflows from my mate who ran a scrappie and made a good one out of the three. Back then the average crossflow was pretty much bksed after 80k so there was a market for rebuilt heads and engines. Nowadays people tend not to buy rebuilt engines unless it is for something specialised, but then they would be going to someone with a decent reputation for it.

It's a good idea and method to get a working knowledge of an engine , but as for making money out of it then I think it might be a tall order.

That is a generous offer but a word of caution. I have rebuilt an engine that came in bits and it was a right pain trying to work out what went where. Not the big bits obviously but the odd little fastener or bolt that wasn't easy to identify. I had rebuilt a few engines before this one so knew reasonably well what I was doing.
Much easier if you were the one taking it apart so you can set up your own method of recording what goes where (I find my phones camera pretty good for that......).

I'd agree on something like an old lawnmower or similar to start with. If not that then a bike engine, if only because they are small and light and so easy to move bits around.
My first rebuild was a honda 250 twin 4 stroke. I stripped it to bare metal,l cleaned everything (in the kitchen sink.....) and rebuilt it. It didn't run any better afterwards and it seized 12 months later. But at least I learnt something, not least that mothers do not like their sinks being used to clean engines!