Project Steph's 1978 Honda Civic 1200

[sobe_death]

You could also go with a slip-fit style joint with springs. Those are pretty much the lightest and highest-clearance method of joining the exhaust sections, and you'd just need to weld 2 tabs to each side of the pipe.

[Steph]

You could also go with a slip-fit style joint with springs. Those are pretty much the lightest and highest-clearance method of joining the exhaust sections, and you'd just need to weld 2 tabs to each side of the pipe.

good idea... I kept the slip joint that was crimped with a U-bolt, but instead of the U-bolt going back in, I'll go with some hi-temp silicone to smear around the 'male' end before I 'insert' it. I'll weld some V-shaped loops for the springs to hook on to.

[Steph]

Further reading and research revealed the existence of the double slip-joint that is used for turbo and other high end applications. I found Vibrant Performance manufacture a 1-3/4" 1.75" slip joint that seems perfect for the application. I'll still fit a couple of springs to keep it tight, but not sealant is necessary. I'll have to polish it up when it arrives...

http://www.summitracing.com/int/parts/v ... 4/overview

[Steph]

So I've been working hard (too hard) to get the exhaust finished. A while back I cut both ends of my mid-muffler/resonator so I could pack it even harder than I originally did, as it had a bit of a hollow sound IMO. Anyway, I cut out 2 more end plates using 1-3/4" and 2-1/2" hole saws in my drill press, and soluble oil in a sports bottle (like the ones you see on bikes with short silicone straw sticking out). If you can keep the hole saws cool enough, they will cut quite a few holes in sheet-type metal (at the drill's lowest speed). I used 1-3/4" perforated stainless tube internally, and externally it's a piece of 2-1/2" stainless tube that I've polished in advance. 2-1/2" is about the max height you can fit under the car. I've stuffed this hard with stainless scouring pads, the same ones I've mentioned in the past. The ones I use are the Butler brand and look exactly like the steel swarf you see coming off a lathe, etc.

Anyway, I welded it all up, just like I've posted pictures of the process in the past, then I spent ages sanding down the welds, then I welded a super cool turbo flex-joint I found on line auctions (back when I had money :P ), then I cleaned all the welds up with a rub with #400 grade paper, followed by some Nortons fabric-type #800 grade 'paper' which really works like nothing else I've been able to find in hardware stores. From there I went to the buff wheel on my Ryobi bench grinder (the thing just keeps on going!), and here it is. I have a 180 degree piece to make the transition between the secondary outlet, and the flex joint.

ButlersScourer.jpg (29.35 KiB) Viewed 229 times

[Steph]

...and here I cut a 180 degree 1-3/4" tube in halves, then I rotated one piece and tacked the two pieces back together.

Once I have the engine reinstalled, and the rest of the exhaust fitted, I'll cut the two halves down equally to obtain the exact amount I need to connect to the rear section of the exhaust system. I tacked the two pieces together mainly so I could re-polish them before finally cutting them to the correct size and welding them together.

This car is going to look so good from underneath... a real pleasure to raise up on the hoist.

[Steph]

I made a brace to go from the boss on the engine block to the somewhat heavy air filter base I made a while back.

With the brace in place I won't have to worry about the intake assembly braking off when the car comes down hard after being airborne... or accidentally running through a spoon drain, etc. :shock: :o :oops: :( :roll: (I tried to capture the different stages of acceptance using similes...)

...incidentally, the boss on the EB3 has been threaded by the factory (M10) so that made the job easier, and this intake assembly requires an asymmetrical bracket (different angles on each end), as the assembly doesn't sit at 90 degrees to the engine block (83 degrees from memory) which keeps the carburetor at the optimal angle (level) for a side draught during operation.

[evanosdelokos]

Nice work Steph!
The day I see mine as clean as this haha.

[Kman78]

Um. Wow. I'm 100% impressed. Your chroming and polishing compound budget must be through the roof.

[jsmythe]

The king of chrome. loving this build. gives me a ton if ideas for my 1G accords.

[Steph]

Final part arrived today thanks to Conny, and I couldn't wait to see what it looked like. I switched out the button head screws for the conventional type, because they match better with my camshaft bolt (same type).

The fit of the 2nd version of adjustable camshaft gear centers is outstanding. I don't mean it's good, I mean it couldn't have been done better by anybody. I'll go as far as to say I think there must have been a little fluke involved, because it fits as snugly on the camshaft, as it does into the outer part of the gear. Unbelievably close tolerance. Perfect fit. Mr Honda would have approved.

Oh yeah, they have the degree markings engraved into them now. 10 degrees each side, and an 'R' and 'A' for retard and advance, to make it easy for those who don't take kindly to being made to think.

I gave my gear a really light sand on the face ONLY with #800 grit, followed by some #2000 grit paper, and then some metal polish to get it looking really nice. It's 7000 series aluminum, and it polishes up better than any other metal IMO. I was surprised by how shiny it was after such a small amount of work. I'll go over it again tonight.