Thu 10th Oct 2013

An email sent by Steve at Jaz started with the ominous sentence “Problem 148.”

Steve went on to describe the latest in a long line of problems with my engine.

When they’d started to assemble the bottom end using the new rod bolts, the crank was tight in the crank case and not turning freely. So they had no choice but to split the crank case again and Steve had to take it up to Oxford to spend a morning with a friend and his honing bar to sort out the now slightly misaligned crank case.

Engine man Dave tells me this is a problem they sometimes encounter with magnesium crank cases as there can be a degree of flex or movement in the 2 halves of the case over time. The solution is to bolt the halves together and use a cylindrical honing tool to trim down any raised bits on the front & rear crank housings.

My visit to check on progress was postponed for a week but thankfully Problem 148 was sorted.