« Previous Entry | MAIN | Next Entry »
March 13, 2004
James...
Anything you can do to "cool" a motor which is otherwise running at a
normal
temperature extends service life.
Yesterday's petroleum oils got by on viscosity more than film strength.
Today
they get by on both, more or less, while
synthetics go more with film strength than
viscosity for superior lubrication, inclusive
of their ability to maintain superior film
strength at higher operation temperature
than the most modern of petroleums.
Oil which is "overcooled" does not perform as well as oil running at
"proper"
temperature...thus the oilstat. However,
one must monitor the oilstat for proper
operation and thus, an oil temperature gauge really becomes a must when
an
oilstat is utilized.
Why did "they" remove the oil pressure gauge? 'Cause it saved them
money! :)
The engine is not mated to the "wrong"
gearbox, though the stock Spitfire (or
later Spridget equipped with the 3.7
diff) could certainly have used an overdrive or fifth gear for modern
highway
cruise speeds, for sure.
The chief drawback (as I understand it from fellow listers) is a
propensity for this
motor to "drop" it's crankshaft thrust
washer(s) when sufficient crankshaft
fore/aft travel develops over use/time.
Evidently, these are not "pinned" in place
in the stock application, and is well worth
attending to at overhaul time. This is the
only real weakness of these motors, as far
as I know.
Me? I'm a 1275 Series "A" kinda guy but
from what I hear from fellow 1500 listers,
the Spitfidget 1500 is a good motor less
the foregoing caveat.
Cap'n. Bob
'60 :{)
PilotRob@... 30774
Posted on March 13, 2004 08:55 AM
Posted to category(s) Drive Train | Engine (external) | Engine (internal) | Exterior | Gauges | Lubrication System | Miscellaneous | Restoration | Transmission
