Modern Engine Blueprinting Techniques

Book excerpt: Engine production for the typical car manufactured today is a study in mass production. Benefits in the manufacturing process for the manufacturer often run counter to the interests of the end user. What speeds up production and saves manufacturing costs results in an engine that is made to fall within a wide set of standards and specifications, often not optimized to meet the original design. In short, cheap and fast engine production results in a sloppy final product. Of course, this is not what enthusiasts want out of their engines. To maximize the performance of any engine, it must be balanced and blueprinted to the exact tolerances that the factory should have adhered to in the first place. Four cylinder, V-8, American or import, the performance of all engines is greatly improved by balancing and blueprinting. Dedicated enthusiasts and professional racers balance and blueprint their engines because the engines will produce more horsepower and torque, more efficiently use fuel, run cooler and last longer. In this book, expert engine builder and veteran author Mike Mavrigian explains and illustrates the most discriminating engine building techniques and perform detailed procedures, so the engine is perfectly balanced, matched, and optimized. Balancing and blueprinting is a time consuming and exacting process, but the investment in time pays off with superior performance. Through the process, you carefully measure, adjust, machine and fit each part together with precision tolerances, optimizing the design and maximizing performance. The book covers the block, crankshaft, connecting rods, pistons, cylinder heads, intake manifolds, camshaft, measuring tools and final assembly techniques. For more than 50 years, balancing and blueprinting has been an accepted and common practice for maximi