What's that saying about the best laid plans of mice and men, or perhaps more accurately, the best laid plans of car projects and men? Since putting in the Caterham order in May, my plans have been to build the engine over my Christmas break. The head, cams and all the Raceline bits were ordered in mid July and the short block in early October. The Raceline bits save the all important cam chain tensioner arrived in time, the cams still have no ETA, so the head work can't be completed, and the short block which was on track at the end of November, still isn't here. At this point, the only part that I have no confidence in ever arriving are the cams. The backup plan is to order the RDL270 from Raceline. I'll call them on Monday to ensure they can supply them within a month, then call Esslinger. If they can't guarantee them (doubtful given the delays are at the cam grinder) then I'll make the change. Not optimal for a couple of reasons. First, I prefer an asymmetric setup given the flow differences between the intake and exhaust sides of the heads. And second, the Raceline cams are only available in the Kent blanks that use their own adjustable, but unmarked, cam gears, while I have a nice set of adjustable verniers that only fit the Ford OEM blanks. Oh well...
Since I am bored and can't do a lot over my break on this project, I decided to move a few things around the garage to see if I can make everything fit when the Caterham finally arrives. That comes in a crate the size of a car (obviously) which will need to stay in the garage for about a week. That means instead of the usual four cars in the shop, I will have the equivalent of six. A little juggling and...
Since I am bored and can't do a lot over my break on this project, I decided to move a few things around the garage to see if I can make everything fit when the Caterham finally arrives. That comes in a crate the size of a car (obviously) which will need to stay in the garage for about a week. That means instead of the usual four cars in the shop, I will have the equivalent of six. A little juggling and...
...there is plenty of room for the crate and Caterham in the space usually occupied by the Westfield and Elan. For reference, the width from the front of the cabinets to the ramp for the midrise lift under the 993 is nearly 21 feet. Once the crate is broken apart and ready for disposal, I'll put either the Elan or Westfield in its place and store the other car in front of the 993 (i.e. where the Westfield is in the photo above.) Something to be said about small cars...