Looking for ideas on building a engine run in stand. I have some misc steel, gages, rad, and other odds and ends. Any body have pictures or blue prints I can buy to build my own. This stand will be for V8 gas engines (GM, Ford, Chry, etc)
Thanks for looking and any info you can provide,
Ron Miller
Looking for ideas on building a engine run in stand
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Ron Miller
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bill jones
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-here's a link to what I use here in my crowded shop
http://ryanbrownracing.com/Bill_Jones_Page2.html
-The basic table is a a heavy plate of steel--5/8" thick welded to 3/16" thick wall steel tubing for legs--with castors added so I can roll complete engines from inside my shop----to outside my shop so I load them into a truck with my outside hoist-----but most of the time we just slide the engine off the table and into the truck.
-I have just that one small area near my porting bench where I have room to move around and about the run-in stand.
-The exhaust out the window required that I move the horizontal exhaust pipe over into the corner of that box fan and then out past the front edge f the fan blades--didn't like being behind the blades at all.
-The tall black cylinder was the beginning of making my small fuel tank---now has a 1/4 turn shut off valve at the bottom---a bolt welded out the bottom and then a hole is drilled into a plate that I C-clamp to the 5/8" thick steel table so I can attach it real easy.
-That allows me to move the fuel tank to wherever the fuel pump is.
-I also have a sight tube mounted on the outside of the fuel tank.
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-The gauges and radiator all mount as one unit---fairly easy to install & remove and to put away.
-I have a throttle bar that spans the width of the top of the radiator--with handles on both sides---so that I can operate the throttle real easy and still reach most of the engine.
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-Most people wonder about the engine and how it reacts sitting on top of that table---NO PROBLEM---doesn't do anything bad at all.
-The biggest problem is going from a SBC to BBC and then to a 2000 pinto or like this 428 Ford----having to change the exhaust and the square tube transport stands I use to sit the engine onto the table.
-I make those stands to fit each engine so the guy can haul the engine home with the engine sitting nice and sturdy in the back of a truck and just tie it down with ratchet straps.
-The roll around table is made about an inch or two higher than most tailgates on pickup trucks so that makes it real easy to slide the complete engine off the table and onto the tailgate and two guys can slide it right up into the truck.
-Never had a tailgate failure yet.
http://ryanbrownracing.com/Bill_Jones_Page2.html
-The basic table is a a heavy plate of steel--5/8" thick welded to 3/16" thick wall steel tubing for legs--with castors added so I can roll complete engines from inside my shop----to outside my shop so I load them into a truck with my outside hoist-----but most of the time we just slide the engine off the table and into the truck.
-I have just that one small area near my porting bench where I have room to move around and about the run-in stand.
-The exhaust out the window required that I move the horizontal exhaust pipe over into the corner of that box fan and then out past the front edge f the fan blades--didn't like being behind the blades at all.
-The tall black cylinder was the beginning of making my small fuel tank---now has a 1/4 turn shut off valve at the bottom---a bolt welded out the bottom and then a hole is drilled into a plate that I C-clamp to the 5/8" thick steel table so I can attach it real easy.
-That allows me to move the fuel tank to wherever the fuel pump is.
-I also have a sight tube mounted on the outside of the fuel tank.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
-The gauges and radiator all mount as one unit---fairly easy to install & remove and to put away.
-I have a throttle bar that spans the width of the top of the radiator--with handles on both sides---so that I can operate the throttle real easy and still reach most of the engine.
------------------------------------------------------------------
-Most people wonder about the engine and how it reacts sitting on top of that table---NO PROBLEM---doesn't do anything bad at all.
-The biggest problem is going from a SBC to BBC and then to a 2000 pinto or like this 428 Ford----having to change the exhaust and the square tube transport stands I use to sit the engine onto the table.
-I make those stands to fit each engine so the guy can haul the engine home with the engine sitting nice and sturdy in the back of a truck and just tie it down with ratchet straps.
-The roll around table is made about an inch or two higher than most tailgates on pickup trucks so that makes it real easy to slide the complete engine off the table and onto the tailgate and two guys can slide it right up into the truck.
-Never had a tailgate failure yet.
There is a guy on E bay whose moniker is "1200HP" and he sells stands and plans in various stages. I bought a complete one from him and am very satisfied with the workmanship and his attention to a couple of small problems I had. There is also another person there who sells plans for a test stand based on an engine stand. Go to E bay and do a search for engine test stand.
Speedbump
"If it was easy, everybody would do it."
"If it was easy, everybody would do it."
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Masher Manufacturing
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Being you are going to all the trouble to build a stand, I'd be real tempted to add a hydraulic pump to the flywheel in order to load the enigne for ring break in. You wouldn't need to load the engine like on a dyno, just enought to build some cylinder pressure would be good.
You would need a large hydraulic pump , pressure relief, needle valve , tank and a cooler. The hyd pump could be one too worn out to work with a machine since all we care about is loading the engine.
You would need a large hydraulic pump , pressure relief, needle valve , tank and a cooler. The hyd pump could be one too worn out to work with a machine since all we care about is loading the engine.
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wbclassics
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Our engine test stand is built from 2" angle, plenty stiff if you build it right and keep the spans reasonable.
Ideas that I wanted in my stand and then designed in:
1) Had to hold a drip tray below the motor. A standard 24x36" oil drip pan fits right in. Catches any drips and makes it easy to spot leaks. Easy to remove for cleaning or storage as well.
2) Had to be on casters. I too have a small shop, so engines are completed inside, moved to the run stand, rolled outside to be run. As with Bill Jones, I can also roll it over to my truck when finished for easy loading (does require a lift here as the stand height is not as high as Bill's).
3) The bottom of my stand has enough ground clearance to roll under an engine on my conventional engine stand. This makes transfering the engine onto the run stand very easy after assembly as no additional lift or equipment is needed.
Kai
Ideas that I wanted in my stand and then designed in:
1) Had to hold a drip tray below the motor. A standard 24x36" oil drip pan fits right in. Catches any drips and makes it easy to spot leaks. Easy to remove for cleaning or storage as well.
2) Had to be on casters. I too have a small shop, so engines are completed inside, moved to the run stand, rolled outside to be run. As with Bill Jones, I can also roll it over to my truck when finished for easy loading (does require a lift here as the stand height is not as high as Bill's).
3) The bottom of my stand has enough ground clearance to roll under an engine on my conventional engine stand. This makes transfering the engine onto the run stand very easy after assembly as no additional lift or equipment is needed.
Kai
Masher Man., Have you seen a stand with the hydraulic idea you mentioned? I have a good stand and have been beating myself up with ideas to put a simple load on the engine for exactly the reasons you state. In addition to ring break in, one could also make better use of a wide band A/F meter which I purchased with plans to give the customer a reasonably tuned engine at idle and cruise. has anyone out there seen anything that could work for us guys that would love but can't afford a dyno?
Speedbump
"If it was easy, everybody would do it."
"If it was easy, everybody would do it."
You could use almost anything that created a load. A large generator feeding a resistive load to consume the electrical power. A large water pump to pump water in a circle through some sort of resistance. A motor boat propeller in a tank of water, even a small airplane propeller in a cage, etc. A 100 hp electrical generator would need to be about 75 KW rated output.
I have also seen some home built engine dynos that one of the tractor pull guys built but do not recall where the pictures are right now.
I recall many years ago seeing a picture of a back yard engine dyno some hotrodder built. I cannot remember what he was using to load the engine but I do remember that it was a very simple "junk yard special" setup he used to load the engine. It used a simple beam scale on a torque arm to measure the engine torque. Really crude but it probably cost him $100 in 1955 dollars.
http://www.eng-tips.com/viewthread.cfm?qid=84432
Larry
I have also seen some home built engine dynos that one of the tractor pull guys built but do not recall where the pictures are right now.
I recall many years ago seeing a picture of a back yard engine dyno some hotrodder built. I cannot remember what he was using to load the engine but I do remember that it was a very simple "junk yard special" setup he used to load the engine. It used a simple beam scale on a torque arm to measure the engine torque. Really crude but it probably cost him $100 in 1955 dollars.
http://www.eng-tips.com/viewthread.cfm?qid=84432
Larry
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Masher Manufacturing
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No, but I have seen many engines run a hydraulic pump as their lot in life. ( Street sweepers, car crushers )Speedbump wrote:Masher Man., Have you seen a stand with the hydraulic idea you mentioned?
While you won't be able to drag the motor down like dyno, it will give you something to pull against. Be sure to install a pressure relief before the needle valve, a closed pump outlet will break things. A gauge would be a very good idea before the valve to gauge load. Load will change when the oil heats up but all we care about is placing some sort of load on the engine.
Also be aware a punctured pressure line can inject oil under your skin with very bad results so some sort of shielding is a good idea. If you keep pressures in the 2500 PSI range things are safe enough.
Ron,
Don't waste your time building one when you can buy mine that is already done!
)
I haven't used it in years because I end up dyno testing all my stuff, so I decided to remove the additional step in my process. Now I've got a pretty cool, well thought out piece of equipment that is totally in my way that needs a new home.
Let me know if you'd be interested in coming to take a look.
Don't waste your time building one when you can buy mine that is already done!
) I haven't used it in years because I end up dyno testing all my stuff, so I decided to remove the additional step in my process. Now I've got a pretty cool, well thought out piece of equipment that is totally in my way that needs a new home.
Let me know if you'd be interested in coming to take a look.
I made my run stand out of a 2x12 wood frame and some angle-iron bracketry to hold the motor up. I have small block Chevy bracket sets and a small block Ford set. For the Ford, I use an old C4 bellhousing at the back to hold the starter.
My stand has the radiator laying flat under the engine with a 20" box fan on top of that. This makes it easy to get to all four sides of the engine since there's no radiator in the way.
If I build any more bracket sets, I'm going to make them tall enough to pull the oil pan without lifting the motor up. I built low out of concern for torque reaction tipping the stand over if I blipped the throttle. It turned out to be a nonissue.
The stand doesn't take up much room; I stand it on edge and slide it between some equipment. However, the four tubs of "stuff" take up more room than I like. I have a starter, water pump pulleys, a belt, an idler pulley, a water pump, an electric fuel pump, an old point-type distributor, plug wires, an old two barrel intake and carburetor, radiator hoses and fuel line for the stand, exhaust manifolds, flexpipe, a pair of mufflers, hose clamps, heater hose, pipe plugs, all of the required nuts and bolts to hook everything up, spark plugs of various types, battery cables, and instruments. That's just for the Chevy stuff. I usually pull a battery out of one of the spare vehicles and use whatever gas is in the lawnmower can.
It takes a lot of bits to dress up a long block into something you can fire up on the run stand.
It takes me half a day to drag everything out, hook it up, run a motor, unhook everything, and put everything away and clean up. Now I understand why dyno testing is so expensive. The dyno pull only takes a few minutes; the rest is all the gruntwork you have to do to get there.
My stand has the radiator laying flat under the engine with a 20" box fan on top of that. This makes it easy to get to all four sides of the engine since there's no radiator in the way.
If I build any more bracket sets, I'm going to make them tall enough to pull the oil pan without lifting the motor up. I built low out of concern for torque reaction tipping the stand over if I blipped the throttle. It turned out to be a nonissue.
The stand doesn't take up much room; I stand it on edge and slide it between some equipment. However, the four tubs of "stuff" take up more room than I like. I have a starter, water pump pulleys, a belt, an idler pulley, a water pump, an electric fuel pump, an old point-type distributor, plug wires, an old two barrel intake and carburetor, radiator hoses and fuel line for the stand, exhaust manifolds, flexpipe, a pair of mufflers, hose clamps, heater hose, pipe plugs, all of the required nuts and bolts to hook everything up, spark plugs of various types, battery cables, and instruments. That's just for the Chevy stuff. I usually pull a battery out of one of the spare vehicles and use whatever gas is in the lawnmower can.
It takes a lot of bits to dress up a long block into something you can fire up on the run stand.
It takes me half a day to drag everything out, hook it up, run a motor, unhook everything, and put everything away and clean up. Now I understand why dyno testing is so expensive. The dyno pull only takes a few minutes; the rest is all the gruntwork you have to do to get there.