So I'm finally getting my K1800 ready to run.

Someone had said "sounds tappetty" so I thought I should check, and I found most of the inlets too tight one was 0.007", instead of 0.010" and both exhausts on 0.025" instead of 0.012".

Not a great start.

I reckoned I could do the re-shimming without lifting the head, as I'd just got very good leakdown results.....so clearly no valve problems or HGF. This is a race engine which was supposedly freshly rebuilt shortly before I bought it back in 2007, since which it's done almost nothing.

So I removed the cam ladder and the mechanical followers, and one of the shims fell into #10 spring well. I could see it, but when I tried to fish it out with some brazing rod it slid into an oil drain between #9 & #10....


So I bought a cunning tool, so I could remove the spring with the head in situ.

This involves inserting about 70cm of hard nylon cord into the cylinder and bringing to piston up to compress it so the valve can't be pushed in when the collar and spring are pushed down.

It works very well, and I got the spring out easily, unfortunately losing a collet in the process.

I should have covered the rest of the head with a cloth, so as to be sure I hadn't lost the collet, which is TINY, down an oil drain, but retrospect is an irritating thing.... and in fact that's why I dropped my Pace dry sump and discovered it has no oil strainer, so it's silver lining really.



I probably should lift the head, as it's highly likely that it has the ill-conceived plastic dowels, which can split longitudinally, break round the circumference, or both, plus actually melting down the oilway....and in all cases causing HGF.



More of the kit....

Sounds like you've been having some real fun!

Eugene

Well yeah. The head is now having new longer Colsibro valve guides, new seals, some porting mods, and general tidy up plus machining for future use of Piper 1444s and water temp sender in head.

I nearly went berserk ordering all new Paul Ivey valves in larger sizes, but then realised how pointless this would be....I'd rather see how the thing feels with 220bhp first, and just go for better torque and reliability.

I got a shim set from the USA so will be doing my own shimming when the head comes home.

Turns out to be a unique development engine for the PTP EVO220LC, of which there was only 1 other built. There were only 6 EVO220s of all types!

I had no idea it was such a rare beast.

I've just finished the shimming. Kiwirog (Sabre Heads, Wisbech) did a fine job, replacing all the worn guides with extra length Colsibro guides, which then need special valve seals, seats and caps, he relieved the exhaust cam side for future use of a Piper 1444 cam, the inlet side was already done when he built the head at Janspeed in 2000.

Rog did some light port modification (the ports had been done pretty well in 2000, it flowed well enough and produced 213bhp on KV6 throttle bodies.

It now has Titan Phantoms and so the inlet face and tracts were reworked to suit.

It needed a further 3thou skim, so it's now up to about 45thou, but has no signs of porosity that I can see. I'm using the SAIC gasket anyway just in case, but with OE long bolts and oil ladder.

Turbosport 6 bolt verniers, can be bought in improved form througfh Sabre Heads.

The shims are Hot Cams kit, get the ones for a 450 and up KTM in 10mm diameter.

I found this on the EVO 220: http://www.espritengineering.co.uk/menus/main.asp?PN=PerformanceEvolution

Eugene

Yep....I did spend some time researching this engine, initially just to find out what the proper spec was, as for instance it came with no flywheel. Initially I fitted a QED lightweight flywheel and full race clutch, then decided I didn't fancy another full race clutch on a non dedicated race car....they aren't very pleasant on the road.

So I fitted the OE clutch and an R500 flywheel instead.

Initially I was going to book the head in with Dave Andrews, but I had a change of plan when I realised that Roger Fabry (Kiwirog) of Sabre Heads had actually done all the original work on the engine when he was working for Janspeed, under a contract from PTP.

I'd discussed with Dave fitting all new larger Paul Ivey valves and Piper 1444 cams, but then in another change of plan, decided this was a step too far, for an engine I hadn't actually enjoyed in its original form, so I just asked Rog to futureproof it by doing the machining on the exhaust side for a high lift 1444....the inlet side having been done for the full-race Kent cam back in 2000, when the head was built.

Rog fitted all new extra length Colsibro guides, tapped the rear of the head for a water temp sender, and did some tidying and improvement work on the ports. He found irregularities in the flatness of several thou on the inlet side of #1 and 4 cylinders and had to take another 3 thou off.

Valve seats obviously needed reworking for the new guides. Everything is now to spec valve play, before it was pretty floppy!

He also advised me to fit stronger (single) springs on the inlet side as the VHPD springs aren't really up to dealing with such a pointy high-lift cam.

He fitted special valve spring seats and caps, special valve seals, and KV6 blanking seals on the rear of the cams instead of the normal oil seals.

I was in touch with the then director of PTP who had driven the car for 2 seasons endurance racing with this engine all over Europe, before it was decommissioned and rebuilt by John Wilcox in 2002.

It turned out that this was the development engine for the PTP Evo220 LC variant, of which only one other was built. There were only ever 6 Evo220s of both types, in total.

Not surprising, I recall seeing them on the old PTP site priced at £12,500!

The LC had stock liners and a Chambon forged (not steel) crank,plus Rover KV6 throttle bodies on the swan neck induction, I suppose, and was cheaper than the full-fat Evo220 which used Titan Phantoms, the steel crank, and some very trick interference fit ductile steel liners from Perfect Bore.

Peter Carmichael bought the engine probably in 2004 or so, in the Trinity/PTP race Caterham, hauled it out, played with it to try and get it running properly, assuming it was mostly ecu mapping problems which caused its poor running, and I bought it in either 2006 or 2007.

I discovered that the head had never been matched to the Titan Phantom TBs, and it ran a lot better once this was rectified, but I'm hoping it'll be a lot better with the shimming done properly....it was way out, plus the play in the guides was worrying.

I suppose 2 seasons of endurance racing might be responsible but it doesn't say much for the 'top & tail' rebuild "using all new parts" done by Wilcox...as apparently Peter Carmichael never opened the engine.

I will be keeping a close eye on it once its back together!

Here are the original test results for PTP engines Roger built at Janspeed, including mine.