Putting the finishing touches to the SS100 engine rebuild.

Block now ready for assembly	Hanging rods on pistons
Measuring crank thrust	Measuring camshaft endplay
Installing oil pump drive	Oil pump pick up screen as delivered
Oil pump screen after spending some time with Jake in the Coachworks
Installing the cylinder head	Degreeing cam
Adjustable gear for precise cam timing

We have made lots of progress with our SS100 engine rebuild, although it has been necessary to fabricate and machine several custom components.

Custom rear seal housing machined to fit inside engine plate	Trial assembly of valve train
	Damaged pulley from front cover
Machining grooves for O rings
Custom seal race pressed into front cover	Installing the modified pulley
machining washers for head studs	Washers are grooved for O rings
	Repairing drain tap threads

We have been making steady progress with the SS100 engine rebuild. Parts availability is a real problem in a rebuild such as this. Our friend Alan Gibbins (SS Spares) in England continues to be an invaluable source of parts and information, providing the CJ machinists with lots of guidance along the way. Thank you, Alan. Your enthusiastic participation in this project is much appreciated.

Corey assembling the valve train	The cylinder head rebuild is now virtually complete
	We had new custom push rods fabricated
Kevin fabricated several new cylinder head studs	A precious and rare set of original bronze bearings supplied by Alan Gibbins
Just one example of several pieces of great advice received from Alan	Kevin machining custom washers to Alan's design

The finished article -  a set of custom forged SS100 pistons.

The following sequence of photographs show the new one piece rear crankshaft seal that Corey designed and fabricated, and the process of creating a piston mold from which we will manufacture a set of custom forged pistons for the SS100 engine.

New uprated one piece rear crank seal	Piston mold allows us to optimize the design of the forged pistons we will make for this engine

Huge thanks to Alan Gibbins of SS Spares in the UK who time and again has come up trumps when we have needed rare and obsolete parts for our SS100 restoration. Alan has also been kind enough to share his encyclopedic knowledge of the SS100 with me, which is very much appreciated!

One of our challenges with this particular engine rebuild is taking ancient old bearings and machining them to a specific 'eccentric' shape. This is not something typically discussed in modern engine building, although in vintage engine building it is sometimes necessary to take an oversized bearing and bore it until you have the desired clearance. This is a tricky enough operation to begin with, made even more so because the bearing surface itself has to be eccentric (not cylindrical). Half shell rod and main bearings do not have a wall of uniform thickness. The wall is thickest at the point of the split and tapers off a prescribed amount towards each parting line. This taper, or drop off, is called eccentricity. Eccentricity in the SS engine application is designed to promote oil film formation by creating a wedge shape in the bearing clearance space. In these circumstances, bearing clearances must be measured at 90 degrees to the split line.

I have included a short video clip below demonstrating how Kevin machined the bearings within the rod housing.

	Alan Gibbins at SS Spares in England came up with these ancient NOS bearings
	Non-destructive testing of rod bolts
	Checking rods for straightness
	Grinding rod caps square
Sizing rods
Identifying bearing center line	Click on the thumbnail to view a short video of the process
Setting up to surface cylinder block

Corey has been busy in the CJ engine shop machining your cylinder head back to pristine condition.

Intake and exhaust flanges surfaced on the mill
Surfacing the cylinder head deck surface	Deck surface and chambers literally as new
CC'ing chambers	Checking original alloy rods for straightness

Align honing the block, designing a one piece rear crank seal, damaged valve cover and oil filter housing...

Grinding main caps square
Align honing in progress
Unusual looking cooling fan	Oil filter housing is damaged
Note damaged lip on filter housing	Water pump will be rebuilt
	We have decided to fabricate an upgraded one piece rear seal
Plotting out center lines for new one piece rear seal upgrade	To be continued...
Kevin's notes having measured the camshaft and crank	Unfortunately the valve cover is damaged beyond repair
A replacement valve cover will be required	Original alloy rods will be rebuilt

Taking a closer look at the crank, rods and main bearings.

Magnaflux checking the block for cracks	Time to take a closer look at the crank
Part number 43055	Main bearings look to be in exceptional condition at first glance
Main bearing part number
Various stampings on the rods	Alloy rod part number

Engine tear down, continued....

Cam chain and sprocket
	Missing rod cap
	Oil pan baffle
	Rear seal housing
Crankshaft journals all standard
	Pistons are also standard
Interesting oil feed system on alloy rods	Separating piston from rod in order to remove it
Cylinder head tear down underway	Measuring stem height
	To be continued...

Almost time to get a much needed engine rebuild underway!

Examining the tool roll in detail: I believe the canvas roll itself is from a very early XK120, as are most of the tools. Unfortunately, I don't think any of the tools were originally supplied with our SS100.

As delivered, late on Wednesday evening	Lowering the engine into position
	Cylinder head and carbs installed
Original oil pan and radiator	Slimline chassis looks to be in great shape
	Original SS spinner holding the spare wheel in place
Original generator, water pump and oil filter housing	Note July 1937 date on the generator plaque
	One of the most beautiful and recognizable grills in the automotive world
A very full looking tool roll
Original top and side screens	Car looks rather better with the top and screen folded!
Original SS gauges	Glovers of Ripon apparently sold 49050 when new
The ceramic Glovers of Rip badge was attached in the center of the dash	Original data plate
RAC badge was installed on the left side of the dash
Starting to look more like a car	We look forward to getting the restoration of this very special car underway some time in the future!