Quote:
Originally Posted by NoDOHC
Usability is in the eye of the beholder. If I had the rotor in my hand and I wanted to put an engine together that weekend, I would take a hammer and tap the face of the rotor about 1/8" away from the groove in the place where it was too wide until it was the right width all the way down, then I would use it.
I have done this numerous times with no ill effects at all. A friend who builds more rotaries than I do told me that I could do it, so I gave it a try with great success.
If you are not confident of your machining (or open-die forging) talent, then get a different rotor (as I see you already have).
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I'm a little confused but think I'm understanding you. You are saying go 1/8" from the groove and tap it back in?
This is my first rebuild and extensive engine work. I've always been a perfectionist and loose sleep over tiny details. As long as I'm understanding what needs done I'm confident I could get it right...but the idea of taking a hammer to engine parts does seem counterproductive
Quote:
Originally Posted by RETed
I've seen worse off rotors than that used in turbo 13B's with no significant problems.
Personally, I wouldn't hesitate to use that rotor (although I'm more of a 8.5:1 junkie  ) in my engine - take it however you want and standard disclaimers apply here.
Good parts are just getting harder and harder to come by.
The FD is already hitting 15 years old since last production ran.
You tend to get a little looser in your standards when parts start to get harder and harder to find.
The apex seal should have enough support as long as it passes clearances spec.
The apex seal is ductile enough to handle most "normal" combustion loads.
400hp should not be a problem, as long as tuning, fuel, and ignition timing are spot on.
This is assuming at the very least Mazda OEM 2-piece apex seals or better.
Once the motor detonates, all bets are off - you might be a little bit more safety margin from a rotor with better grooves, but IMO it's not that much more than most people think.
-Ted |
That's an excellent point about the age of parts we are talking about. I had considered that exact thing. Maybe the one I get won't be any better or have other issues the one I have now doesn't have.
I checked clearance on my original rotor. IIRC the difference from the good corner of the apex groove to the bad was like .002 to .003. All I did to test was put corner seals and plugs in with apex seals. First found the feeler that fit the bad corner and slid it towards the good. Then compared that to what I could slid on the good corner.
I did the same for the rotor I bought but for the life of me I can't remember the numbers and didn't write them down. It was better than my old one. I had been planning on checking it again before sending it back. I'll report back once I have those figures.