Australian Belly Tank

[Reverend Hedgash]

Are you volunteering Crispy?

The Megasquirt. I took the time to build it when I was working in the Middle East as I was away from the Bellytank and it was one of the few contributions I could make during that time.

The problem with buying a complicated piece of equipment and getting to know all the ins and outs and assembling it a couple of years ago, is that my muddied brain has to try and remember everything I once knew back then.

The other problem is that it is all acronyms and similar ones at that tax my bad with names brain at the best of times.

Finally it is designed to be used on ANY engine and so the variables are endless and not being a engine management expert, navigating through what we need is a course of find the acronym, work out what it means, work out is that we need, move on to the next acronym.

But that in the end isn't what slew me on the weekend. I can handle step by step processes, I have the patience of a cricketer and the training of a stop motion animator, and I know with the right data we'll get there in the end.

What is currently the bar from progress is that it seems that there is an error in my wiring or a failure in a component of the thing as we are not getting the RPM readout we should from the device in test mode. Cripes!!!!

I cannot work out yet if it is the Megasquirt, or its testing device "the stim" that is malfunctioning. With only two weeks to go I had hoped we would spend tuning the unit, not only getting it attached and running.

The purpose for having this unit is two fold, firstly so we can maximise our power tand running smoothness. Secondly, and perhaps most importantly, we don't know what the existing computer will do when we go over its natural limits of rpm...

So I am going to research that latter question this week whilst trying to resolve our megasquirt issue. Fingers crossed that one will pay off.

dik

[Dr Goggles]

But that in the end isn't what slew me on the weekend. I can handle step by step processes, I have the patience of a cricketer and the training of a stop motion animator, and I know with the right data we'll get there in the end.
dik

he's not exagerating on the patience front......    and if yr gonna do this stuff ya need a bit of patience......

Set 'em up, tear 'em down, and complain to the Pre-stage official if your out of toilet paper.  That's easy enough.   

Wait a minute - is this a trap?

Yes , its a trap..........the whole sport is a trap..... "I'm just gonna take this little thing out there and see what she'll do, not get carried away or anything, just have a bit of fun "..........seven years, a few jobs, relationships, savings plans, a lot of metal......bravado, a few bytes..............I'm trapped...


Still , I'm not standing here yelling " GO BACK, IT"S A TRAP, NO!....GO BACK" am I?......... the sirens of the salt are calling and we're all swooning along.........Me?, jeez I read the news that the salt is as good as it's been in years and years and nearly ran a victory lap around the house...........

ha, ha ........man I'm excited.......  I did hear the other day that there's more than 150 entries.....

[Dr Goggles]

9 days to go ........

Not having the time to dyno the motor we are in a little bit of a spot...we are getting two versions of the ECU set up . we had a memcal chip in our computer last year, that has been sent to one tuner to have the rev-limiter lifted and we have sent another whole computer to a different tuner .

One was recommended to us by an engine builder and the other said he can do the memcal cheap........

So , all the specifics of the motor and the cam sheet have been sent off ....we'll see what we get ......

we've also found someone who has the Stim unit we can use to check whether our MegaSquirt is functioning properly...that's been posted to us ....so if we blow the motor up on the first pass we'll at least have heaps of gadgets to muck around with.........

[SPARKY]

Don't you try that blow the motor up on the first Pass with me BOZO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[grumm441]

so if we blow the motor up on the first pass we'll at least have heaps of gadgets to muck around with.........

We will have more time to sit in our pits and drink
G

[Milwaukee Midget]

Ya know, Sparky, this engine's a clean sheet of paper.  Earlier they were debating as to whether or not to run the old one, and then SHAZAAM - whole new game plan.

I wish I had that kind of guts.  

[grumm441]

I wish I had that kind of guts.  

Yep
although i am still looking forward to  at the lake

G

[Dr Goggles]

Ya know, Sparky, this engine's a clean sheet of paper.  Earlier they were debating as to whether or not to run the old one, and then SHAZAAM - whole new game plan.

I wish I had that kind of guts.  

well I got tied to the rack about "how much time has been spent this year on that thing" .......finger nails got pulled off, couple of electric shocks and then some water-boarding but I didn't tell ALL of it .....

be afraid Rev, burn or shred all calenders..................................

[Reverend Hedgash]

Shuduppppp mannnnnn SWMBO frequents the board...

exney entionmey the ostcays.

rH+

[Milwaukee Midget]

I had a Literature professor in college who would hand out a sheet of paper with questions on it regarding assignments we were about to hand in.  It would let you get your excuses clearly laid out before he sunk your effort. 

The one constant question, and always the last one on the list, was, "If you had another 24 hours to prepare this paper, what would you do differently?"

By the end of the semester, that question was drilled into my head, and it had the effect on me of getting my assignments together faster, and more thoroughly.

Come the last paper of the semester, and the last question, I was able to confidently answer, "I already built in the extra time".  I got an A in that course.

I think you guys are on the same path. 

200+ it shall be.

If we don't chat before you take off, best of luck to the Spirit of Sunshine.

[wobblywalrus]

Have you guys checked the bonehead simple stuff, like making sure all of the earth connections are proper and putting in a new battery?

[grumm441]

Our biggest problem at the moment looks like the road in to the lake
keep in mind that it is about 100 miles of dirt
G

http://www.transport.sa.gov.au/quicklinks/northern_roads/area3.asp

[Dr Goggles]

Have you guys checked the bonehead simple stuff, like making sure all of the earth connections are proper and putting in a new battery?

We've done a full reassemble, battery is good and the alt makes 14v at idle, there is a stainless bolt welded to the frame as the earth and the rest of the loom has been refitted......apart from a few things the engine/trans section has been completely checked......just hoping we get the new ECU's by the weekend for a start up.

[Stainless1]

Surely there's a stretch of deserted road that you could do a little test and tune.... it's a big country....

Don't over worry it, prepare the best you can and give it a go.  Remember to have fun, be safe and go fast. 

[Dr Goggles]

Our car is less than two inches off the deck, we have to put boards down to get it out of my shed and along the driveway, no shinola it's a nightmare to move it ANYWHERE other than on the salt, the only jacking point other than the axles is the rear radius rod boxes...I'd never take it out on dirt ....but we will get to run it on the test track.............

Last night I was reading back through some of our diary on the DLRA site and found some of the first discussions between us and Scotty who we got this bottom end from.....he used to turn it to 7000rpm when he ran it N/A on the quarter. we have a wet sump but we do have a crank-case vacuum system that pulls some pretty serious vacuum.....my only concern is whether we are gonna stuff the rocker covers full of oil and starve the bottom end.

Hey Bob I also noticed a post from nearly three years ago where you were encouraging us to do some back road testing ....don't worry, I grew up in the bush and had my share of "paddock-bombs" and did my tyime doing "circle work"..........

Any suggestions on oil management that people have will be gladly accepted but at this point we are pretty muchon the delivery path and we ain't pullin' out now.