From knowing nothing to having a Thunderbird supercharger on an m20b27i

[The Dark Side of Will]

If it were mine, I'd go with bungs. Aluminum is pretty soft. In terms of potential thread damage, you're pretty safe with a bung, but it's much easier to damage/strip threads in a relatively thin piece of aluminum. I think the bung is the lower risk way to do it, especially if you're going to install plugs now, remove them later and then install sensors.

However... I'm an overkillist for that sort of thing.

Either way, do it now, so that you won't risk getting chips into your manifold after it's installed.

Are you interested in the autorotor?
I understand being on a spending freeze; it's been on the shelf for years... I'm not in any hurry to sell it.

[LJ851]

Since this is 1/4" plate, I shouldn't need bungs, right? The welder said I could just tap the plate and it would be fine (in theory).

General rule of thumb is thread depth 1.5X bolt diameter. So an 8mm bolt would have 12mm of threaded hole and more than 1.5X in softer materials (like aluminum)

I don't think 6mm of thread is going to cut it long term or maybe even short term.

[The Dark Side of Will]

General rule of thumb is thread depth 1.5X bolt diameter. So an 8mm bolt would have 12mm of threaded hole and more than 1.5X in softer materials (like aluminum)

I don't think 6mm of thread is going to cut it long term or maybe even short term.

I've heard 1x diameter threading into steel and 1.5x+ into aluminum.
I would *NOT* go bigger than 3/16 screw if I were attaching something to the manifold.

However, a pipe thread is different than a bolt. A bolt tightened up tries to pull the threads out perpendicular to the surface. A pipe threaded fitting tries to stretch the hole bigger.

I agree with you in that I don't think it would work well. It would probably hold once, maybe even twice, but tapping 1/4 aluminum plate for 1/4" or 3/8" pipe threads is not going to be good fur durability.

[LJ851]

I've heard 1x diameter threading into steel and 1.5x+ into aluminum.
I would *NOT* go bigger than 3/16 screw if I were attaching something to the manifold.

However, a pipe thread is different than a bolt. A bolt tightened up tries to pull the threads out perpendicular to the surface. A pipe threaded fitting tries to stretch the hole bigger.

I agree with you in that I don't think it would work well. It would probably hold once, maybe even twice, but tapping 1/4 aluminum plate for 1/4" or 3/8" pipe threads is not going to be good fur durability.

I was thinking about actually mounting the supercharger, my mistake.

A pipe thread for a fitting would probably do ok in 1/4 inch aluminum, just don't tap it too deep or remove and install it a lot.

[MaxBell]

Maybe use something like this?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2003-03-04-Mustang-Cobra-Eaton-supercharger-manifold-intercooler-4-6-dohc-99-01-/310846177607?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item485fe04147&vxp=mtr

For people in the future: It's a 2003/2004 Mustang Cobra Intercooler that sits on top of the manifold, which the Eaton sits on.

[Ether-D]

That one is about 4 times thicker than the one I have. It wouldn't fit in the space. It does appear to be similar length and width. I wonder how many cfm that cobra flows.

[Ether-D]

Just got my p/s spacer! It fits perfect. Thanks Alex (Thatphysicsguy)!

[AlphaE]

ha! i love the "eh... im gonna just try this and get er dun. If it dont work i'll reinvent." mad props for just makin it happen. I am w the guys that worry about the thing tearing off... Maybe a strut w a rubber dampener (think tiny motor mount) to the block or something like that. and the belt tensioner sounds like a good idea to.. But... what the heck... maybe what you got will run great for years to come!! heres hoping! happy building!

[Ether-D]

ha! i love the "eh... im gonna just try this and get er dun. If it dont work i'll reinvent." mad props for just makin it happen. I am w the guys that worry about the thing tearing off... Maybe a strut w a rubber dampener (think tiny motor mount) to the block or something like that. and the belt tensioner sounds like a good idea to.. But... what the heck... maybe what you got will run great for years to come!! heres hoping! happy building!

Thank you. What a compliment!

After I read your comment, I dreamt all night about bracing possibilities. I've had plans to brace it, but nothing specific. I came up with a bunch of ideas in my sleep that I'll check out today. I'm shooting for March-ish for a first drive.

[Ether-D]

Alright, today I got a few things done.

Intake with holes for s/c, bypass valve, and intercooler stub-outs and cover plate:

[Ether-D]

It's not all that pretty, but I added a bit of extra support on top:

[Ether-D]

By the way, Thank you R3v. I would never have even attempted this without this fantastic group of people and their info and opinions. Not ever in a million years. I know this kind of speech is usually reserved for after it gets bolted on and works, but I know it will work, largely thanks to this community. Internet group high-five!

This project has been so much fun. I may go back to college and try a few engineering courses.

[Zacm829]

I don't know how I missed this for so long, but It looks like your making some great progress. I really like your approach of solving problems. Hoping to look this baby over at the spring Brodeo!

[Ether-D]

Werd-up Zacm. It should be running properly by then. Fingers crossed. I read your v8 build the other night, looks good so fa.

[Ether-D]

Got the power steering pulley spacer installed last night. I just had to drill the holes and bolt her on. I also worked on finalizing the pulley alignment. My idler was a bit askew. I re-skewed it and now it's perfect. I'll put more reinforcement on the bracket today.

What's left:

-Throttle cable lengthening solution. I haven't looked at how it attaches to the pedal, but I figure it should be relatively straight forward.

-IAT sensor. I think I've read that there's a GM part that is pretty cheap. I haven't read up on how to plug it into the system (electrically). Any help on this would be super neat.

-Wideband O2 sensor. I haven't purchased this yet, but it should be no problem once I allocate the funds.

-Finish plumbing the intercooler, pump (+wiring), overflow tank, and external heat exchanger. But I may save this for when I actually pull the trigger on the final install. I was wondering if I could make the MS2 control the cooling fans on the external heat exchanger. I would kinda like to turn them off and on automatically, according to vehicle speed. Does anyone know if it can do this? There are three of them and they are 12V/DC. Or is there some simple solution that I'm just not thinking about?

-Tune…tune...tune... After reading "Advanced Tuning and Engine Management" by Gregg Banish, this is far less intimidating. I would recommend that book for anyone who likes messing with cars.

Thanks in advance for your help!
-This is my new favorite emoticon.