Solarsurge's Ongoing 2013 LSM Build

Ugghhh, I hate setbacks. I just got a call from the shop that’s reworking my head to inform me that the valve kit from Supertech only had 12 spring seats and was 4 short.


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[doublepost=1532471222][/doublepost]OK, false alarm it seems. The shop owner flogged his apprentice for misplacing them, but they've been found. On a side note, I spent more money today and ordered more shit. It's a good thing I'm not married, otherwise I'd be divorced soon lol

 

That was a crisis averted. There could be a chance that you could find someone that buys you car parts for your birthday and Christmas.

 

Do you think I should add that to my tinder profile?


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Just a little tease... not ready for the full reveal. That port work is money tho...




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I tried it doesn't work.

 

Well, bad news. My freaking thrust bearing has a burr right out of the box, so it looks like my build this weekend will be delayed if I can’t get a new bearing overnighted. This is EXACTLY why I was hesitant on going with the King main bearings. I really wish they still made Clevite H mains.


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On a side note... I put the South Bend box in this picture just for perspective. Inside that box is the flywheel and whole clutch assembly, so it’s not a small box. What’s in the big ass box under it, you wonder? Just 2 cp-e motor mounts lol. Sheesh!


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Setback #2:

South Bend flywheel ring gear was not fully seated. However, South Bend was absolutely awesome and is rushing me a replacement.




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Well, things went downhill pretty fast. I got my replacement flywheel and this thing looks like hot garbage and this ring gear is not seated either. I called South Bend to express concern and an individual named JP seemed to be both in disbelief that I was sent a replacement and that I even had concerns about it in the first place. I sent him these pictures and he was like “that brown stuff is a rust inhibitor and should be cleaned off with brakleen” and “those scratches are probably just from handling and will not affect performance” and “the ring gear being not fully seated is no big deal, get a drift and a hammer and bang it down.” He also made it VERY clear to me that if the ring gear is tack welded in place as my machinist recommended since JP seems a bit unwilling to resolve their machining issues, their warranty would be voided immediately. Complete polar opposite of the experience I had on Friday and JP is lucky I’m not his boss because he’d be jobless right now. At the end of the day, when a customer pays for a product that product should be ready to go and should not need to be “fixed.” Fuck that guy.






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Surprised you're not talking to "John" who was the original guy at SB answering all the questions. Also, who are you ordering from? I'd think Edge would help you with this problem if you ordered through them, for example. RPM too, I guess.

 

I just called their phone number. I forgot the first guy’s name I got Friday. This time I got “JP.” Trust me... I’d much rather have dealt with the same guy lol

Edit: My machinist is competent. We’re just going to re-seat the ring gear properly and roll with the first one they sent out since it was obviously not a mess like the second one. I didn’t want to mess with anything that could affect the warranty, but JP said to bang it on, so that’s what we’ll do. I’m sending back the hot garbage replacement.

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Very unfortunate what happen, i hope it works out for you and you can get to driving soon.

 

So, it looks like everything is working itself out. Got the flywheel fixed, got the internals balanced, all is well. However, in my infinite wisdom when I took the crank to be balanced and keyed, I may have inadvertently forgotten to bring my crank pulley. That might be a little necessary for the keying process lol. Everything should be done and ready for assembly by Friday. I'm excited!

 

Sheesh, even my low cost Fidanza was boxed better than that. Wasn't a scratch on it and the rust inhibitor they used was clear and just a little oily. Sucks you had the bad experience. How did you end up getting the replacement fixed? Hammering it down and tack welding it? I would hate to see that ring gear spin or something on startup one day...

 

Wow. That's a customer service nightmare!

 

My machinist’s concern is that the flywheel outer rim lip is flat and not tapered, and with the ring gear compressing that lip it’s constantly putting pressure on the lip and making it flex in. Over time and with heat, that’s a perfect setup for that gear to naturally want to pop off. That’s why he wanted to tack weld it.

JP says don’t tack weld it, it won’t fail. If it does fail, they’re going to need to replace anything that gets damaged. I addressed the concern twice. I did my due diligence.

 

That's true. Still no reason for this JP fellow to talk to you like that, especially being a customer. Completely disrespectful. Fingers crossed it'll all be okay.

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When my SBS3 came in, it looked similar to yours (bought though Edge). I got the same response from S.B., Ring gear was not straight and had to clean off the brown rust with a scotch pad. It installed fine and 12k Miles later, no complaints yet.

I can see how frustrating it is to pay, in my opinion, a premium price for a clutch but seemingly get a substandard part. I was pretty pissed myself, but I got over it. I still would buy the clutch and do it all over again, I absolutely love the way it feels/grabs.



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Yea, there's absolutely no doubt that it's a quality CLUTCH, pressure plate, and flywheel surface machining. All that is beautiful work and absolutely recommend-worthy. But the ring gear NEEDS to be inspected for proper seating for anyone who buys this and the lip design on the flywheel can be improved. (This is the opinion of a master machinist, owner of Ballos Precision Machine in Richmond VA, builder of bona fide competition racing engines in literally any class imaginable.)
[doublepost=1533240607][/doublepost]Another minor update. Spoke with cp-e about my silicone coupler on the turbo compressor outlet expanding under boost and they are sending me another one under the lifetime warranty. Now all I'm waiting on are my OEM injectors to be cleaned, exhaust manifold to arrive, and PI system parts, but the block should be assembled this weekend.

 

PSA for anyone who is looking to get their crank keyed by a local shop:

If they don’t have a EDM cutter, find another shop. Nearly all shops will attempt to broach the gears to cut the keyway. This is what happens:



I can’t fault the machine shop on this one since this is how nearly all sprockets are keyed. Freakin Mazda makes gears so hard they crack instantly if you try to broach them. Lesson learned. Luckily pre-cut gears are readily available through either Massive Speed or Speed Perf6rmanc3. Both of their gears are EDM cut.


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