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Re: Rod & Introduction

To: "pork.pie" <pork.pie@t-online.de>
Subject: Re: Rod & Introduction
From: Joe Amo <jkamo@rapidnet.com>
Date: Tue, 27 Nov 2001 21:10:03 -0700
Pork Pie, I hear your accent/dialect in all that you
write, its GREAT!!!!!

Thanks much for your input, hoping to hear more.

I had 5 yrs of Mech Eng. curriculum including
a grad class "failure modes and analysis" and when
you were rattling off your perspective at World Finals
on the rod failure, I couldnt keep up
I am generally very slow intellectually,
so dont apologize for your english and I wont apologize
for my crude thought process's

Please tell Ugo that Joe says
"partially" streamlined can be
artistic too :):):)

Joe :)


"pork.pie" wrote:

> Sorry, Joe,
>
> I done no introduction, also I didn't know how interest starts this kind of
> communication, I think I really miss a lot of fun, due to this that I was not
> involved before.
>
> At first I have to apologize about my bad English, I'm a German I and will try
> so good as possible, to find the right words (and sometimes - the right
> grammar).
>
> Joe, you request the "rod".
>
> If I understood you correct, than you mean the rod from Jim & Mary True, which
> Mary blew so wonderful (sorry, Mary - this was your first blown engine - but
> you done it the RIGHT way, wow).
>
> Both ends of the piece, which was broken out of the rod, shows special marks
> which tells what's happened.
>
> One side shows the beginning of the trouble. Along the outside contour of the
> rod "profile" there was possible to see a dark (black) thin line, much darker
> than the gray of the material. In this area was the molekular structure 
>changed.
>
> What's happened. it's start with a very hair thin crack on the outside which 
>can
> end, so as on this rod, that the crack is complete around the shaft of the 
>rod.
> In this crack (may be you call it also a flaw), the carbo sinters out of the
> material, means split out of the normal molekular structure. More and more 
>carbo
> moves to this crack and makes this area brittle.
> At last the cross section of the rod is not anymore strong enough to work the
> power from the piston movement out.
> A normal rod will need a long time, to come to this point.
> The cross section of a "hot" rod is very close to the critical cross section -
> as lighter as better.
> In the moment, when the pressure force from the engine is higher than the
> strength of the cross section, the shaft collapse in a fraction of a second.
>
> This collapse is shown as a sharp, not symmetrical, flash. This flash shows,
> different to the other material surface, a nearly polished (glossy) surface.
> This comes from the stretching of the material in the moment of the collapse,
> when the rod brokes and was bend (turned) sideways, from the still moving
> rod/piston.
>
> Normally, so as here, the other end of the rod shows a little bit rough 
>surface,
> but without special marks, so as a simple broken piece of iron.
> But what you can see, is, that the shaft of the rod is not anymore in the
> straight contour as it was original. On one side is the rod bend (twist),
> depense how the rod turns sideways, after he brokes. There where the rod is
> bend, is the inside of the turning (rotation) point.
>
> Short form:
>
> A outside damage creates a crack (can be a material failure or a handling
> damage), the crack grows and in the crack produced the carbo a brittle 
>material.
> Once, when the cross section is not anymore strong enough, it collapsed, turns
> on the most weakest point, the shaft sideways. If there is enough power, this
> part will be ripped off and will goes the easiest way - by Mary it was 
>straight
> out of the block. If it not happens during full throttle, the shaft will break
> and  one side of them will be bend.
>
> If you have bad luck, so by Mary, the piston stucks in the highest position, 
>so
> that the valves crash into the piston, which blocks the other valves moving.
> After some revolutions, the other pistons and valves will be also destroyed.
>
> To prevent you from so damages, x-ray the rods for so cracks and hair thin 
>cuts
> on the outside. If there is one, and he is not to deep, you can polish them, 
>so
> that he is gone. It will not effect the strength of the rod. Otherwise you 
>risk
> once killed engine.
>
> The rod which I saw by Mary & Jim, was a older damage. It needs a while to 
>get a
> so deep carbo mark.
>
> It's not so easy to explain something, without having the parts in the hand to
> show it to someone - see here and see here and there, yeah, you can see it....
>
> The other you ask, was a introduction - oh, man, I will try it in a short way.
>
> I went into speed in 1970 - starting, when I read a nice article about Gary
> Gabelich and the Blue Flame.
> Due to this, that in Germany, speed racing is not anymore popular - it was
> before and during the Third Reich, but this historie was destroyed with all 
>the
> bad stuff from this time. After the war the people was to blind to see the
> different between the speed racing and a nazi, very sad.
> For a short time there was some activities, pushed by Wilhelm Herz in 1956 and
> 1965. But since this there was only a small group of people (around 10) in
> Germany who shows interest in this sport.
> Two of them really serious - this was Ferdinand Kaesmann, he is now 73, and
> myself. Ferdinand wrote some great books.
> I start in the mid 70's, at first in Europe on a push bike, to travel around 
>to
> see all the racers and to meet the people, who drove or build this cars.
> Later, beginning of the 80's I travelled around the world, to see this one,
> which was outside of Europe.
> >From the beginning, I start to collect any kind of information about speed, 
>so I
> got today one of the biggest collection in Germany. But this collection is 
>still
> very small to this one from Ugo Fadini, the famous model maker from Italy, who
> is a good friend of mine.
> I was a little bit active in the Thrust II attempts (Richard Noble, later than
> also in the Thrust SSC. In the moment I be active with my great friends Terry
> Moreau and Don McBride, to be a tough competitor from Jim & Mary True (Jack
> Costella's 988). The True's done very well this year.
>
> If I have some time left over, I give Craig Breedlove a support to bring the
> record back to the states.
>
> I got the luck to meet all the big Speed Kings, not only the still active,
> also Art Arfons, Tom Green (Wingfoot Express - yeap, he is still alive), the
> late Gary Gabelich.
>
> Some more to my person.
> I'm a engineer in automotive design, specialiced in frame and body design, 
>with
> some experience in aerodynamic (trained). Also I'm trained in graphic arts and
> done a apprenticeship in coachbuilding.
> For a while I worked as a photographer in Australia and done pictures of the
> American Football (NFL) in the states for a European magazine.
> In the 80's a raced for five years in a series which used cars, similar to
> NASCAR - with 120 and 180 ci. I done it the olympic way, what means that I 
>never
> won a race. But it was a great time. I had to quite when my sponsors was 
>running
> out of money.
> During all this years I was also sometimes on the salt (most for a day) so as 
>my
> bank account and my short vacation time allowed.
> Since 1996 I'm in the position to stay for the whole time there. It was also
> 1996 when I joined Terry's and Don's team. Today I'm doing this, what you 
>folks
> will understood and knows as the need for speed.
> If I talk about this in Germany, the call the asylum....
>
> with fastest wishes
>
> Thomas "Pork Pie" Graf
>
> Ps. Pork Pie is my artist name

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