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Post by the_viffer on Jun 28, 2005 11:37:50 GMT
I broke up a car at the weekend. It was cheaper to buy a whole car than an alternator from the scrap man even taking into account the cost of having him come to collect the debris. It is also cheaper to buy an alternator with regulator than it is to buy a regulator. Funny old world.
Rather than see them go to the scrappy I retrieved the valve pushrods and valves (not to mention about 250kg of other bits to go into my spare parts store [or shortly to be making an appearence on ebay!])
Can anyone tell me they are likely to be made of and if I've much chance of machining them?
The engine was a Mazda HA 3 litre non-turbo diesel about 20 years old.
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Post by alanstepney on Jun 29, 2005 2:02:20 GMT
I would guess, one of the harder steels, perhaps EN24, maybe a harder grade, or possibly a slightly softer one.
The only ones I have machined, have been quite reasonable material to work with.
Valves are far more of a guess. Usually a fairly hard steel, but they can be quite exotic, even up to sodium filling. Often surface hardened too, so they might be fun to machine.
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Post by the_viffer on Jun 29, 2005 14:07:30 GMT
Many thanks Alan. A real politician's answer  It might be this hard but it might be harder or softer. Sounds like they are worth hanging onto no matter what precise grade they are. Fun as it would be to have sodium filled valves I doubt they are. The Mazda HA is hardly built for speed. I think they are rated at 60hp despite being 3 litre. I always supposed they were bullet proof too but the car was being scrapped since the owner had cracked the cylinder head twice. I dread to think what he was doing to it but with head gaskets listed at £200 I'm surprised he wasn't a little more careful the second time. I'll keep the valves for a bit and when I've a mo I'll try and machine one. I was flicking through my trade rag today and noticed that a Blue Plaque has been put up at 13 Bedford Sq London in commemoration of Harry Ricardo. |
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Post by alanstepney on Jun 29, 2005 19:00:29 GMT
He certainly did a lot to improve the IC engine and many people are unaware how great his contribution was.
As for "a politicians answer", if it was a later BMC, I would have expected EN24, but with these strange oriental things.......
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Post by the_viffer on Jun 29, 2005 19:54:06 GMT
As for "a politicians answer", if it was a later BMC, I would have expected EN24, but with these strange oriental things....... Does Peterborough count as the mystic East then? |
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Post by alanstepney on Jun 30, 2005 2:42:53 GMT
Nah, but as its north of Watford, anything can happen.!!
Seriously, I didnt know Mazdas were made over here.
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Post by the_viffer on Jun 30, 2005 11:47:06 GMT
I don't think Mazda cars are made in the UK but in the Netherlands. However Perkins had a deal with Mazda over some diesel engines.
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It might be this hard but it might be harder or softer.