1st Engine Start

Well this was another major milestone. Test fired the engine for the first time this weekend. I did a fare bit of prep. The exhausts went back on, oil levels in the engine & gearbox were checked. Put some coolant in. I rigged up some temporary power for the Fuel Pump, Cooling fan, distributor and of course the starter and solenoid. I didn't bother about a temperature gauge as I was only running it for 5 mins and the thermostatic fan was connected.

Starter Panel

Oil Pressure Sender

I did make up a small panel with a battery shut-off and starter button to make life easier (pictured left). I also rigged up an oil pressure sender. Like many things, this was harder to connect than it should have been. The sender screws into a 1/8 NPT hole at the back of the block below the distributor but there's not enough space around the head to allow it in, so I bought an adapter but had to grind that off to get it to fit, as you can see below. I did consider priming the oil pump, there is some debate whether you need to do this or not. I decided against as I didn't want to upset the timing (priming the oil pump requires removing the distributor). I turned the engine over on the starter with the plugs out, oil pressure came up after a couple of cranks to around 40. We fired up the engine outside (fire extinguisher at hand), and it fired after a few seconds - no hassle. The sound is fantastic and the local petrol heads came to have a look within 60 seconds.I allowed the engine to come up to temp, checking for any leaks etc, and making sure the oil pressure was kept high (you're not supposed to let the engines idle when they've been re-built like this).

Sorry but you'll have to wait for the video to be uploaded due to technical issues - but it will come.