355 F1 Engine is out!

The engine won out, did excellent in the 25 mi. run despite the 96F heat. Passed lots of roadies along the way But now I've got the bug, I'm tempted to get a road bike now and stretch out for longer runs...

 

And back to 355 updates...passenger side radiator is replaced. It was much tougher to remove than install for some reason, and more difficult than the 348 it seems. Space is tight with the air intake hose directly overhead and the gas filler line blocking the AC lines when you try pulling the radiator out. I went with a new radiator, silicone hoses, and replaced the thermostat switch just because they seem to go eventually anyway.
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Yet another 'while it's out' project, replacing a failed inner CV boot. I started a separate thread to figure out how to do this here:

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=200436

I first ordered some Porsche 930 CV boots but they really didn't fit the 355 well; both ends were quite a bit smaller than the stock boot. They might have stretched, but I didn't want to risk it. So I went with the aerodynamic boot from Pegasus:

http://www.pegasusautoracing.com/productdetails.asp?RecID=5549

This fits well, except you have to remove the cap from the halfshaft side of the CV joint also. The rubber boot side was again smaller than stock, but did fit over the shaft. I need to pick up a CV boot clamp tool, using pliers isn't working too well.
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I had what looked like a small leak, plenty of corrosion at the bottom of the radiator. No fluid leaking that I could see, but wanted to do this while the engine was out (and never hurts to improve the 355 cooling system)

 

So the last major step was the reason I took this thing out in the first place, replacing belts and setting timing. I checked timing using the WSM technique with a dial indicator measuring valve lift. It turns out it was pretty close as is, but not spot on (i.e. more than one pin off on the cam gear). Since this is all new to me...I just couldn't stomach the chance of reinstalling the engine and having it not run perfect. So for this crucial step I enlisted the help of Dr_Ferrari on Fchat, Jim of Pocono Sportscar. I couldn't be happier with the experience, learned a ton and can't get enough of his stories about test driving new F40's!

First pic is of the setup for measuring TDC, used a plastic rod through the spark plug hole, centered through a wrench on top. I used the same basic setup for measuring lift, except with an angled pin on the end of the dial indicator to contact the bucket and avoid the cam lobe.
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I went crazy with the heat shielding, here you can see the motor mount and alternator shields (titanium sheet with furnace lining on the bottom side) and the extra brake line / oil line shielding. Also pretty pic showing it ready to go in...
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Here it is, the infamous 2 jack engine out (being installed here) technique.
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Maybe a bit out of order, but here's the degree wheel I used - a .jpg printed out oversize and laminated. Used the bent wire to indicate TDC once I found it...
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look familiar??

Next step is connecting everything...right now working on the front brakes (stainless lines, painting, etc.) Also removed the leaking Interstate battery; it always worked fine, but replacing with what seems to be the best battery out there, Sears Platinum P1. It's an AGM battery with 880 CCA - good for F1 cars that need to run the pump for a bit before starting. Consumer Reports gave it far and away the best rating...not cheap at $189, but worth it for my 355

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_02850034000P?vName=Automotive&cName=Batteries+%26+Chargers&sName=Automotive+Batteries

 

http://savetheledges.org/test/AVS/images/tech/CrankDegreeWheel.png

Here's the link to the file I used, just save it to your computer and resize for how large you want to print it.

 

Front brakes are painted, rotors and calipers. Anyone else looking to do the same thing to their calipers? (pics of the rear calipers are a few pages back). I have 4 stencils left over, enough to do a set of brakes if you don't screw any up. And here's the trick so you don't make my mistake...spray on two very light coats first (for the letters; light meaning it almost looks speckled, not a solid layer), let that dry for about 5 min. Then spray on the finish heavy coat and take the stencil off quick before it dries, say within a minute or two. If the paint starts to dry you'll tear off corners of the letters when the stencil comes up. My finished product isn't perfect, looking close there is a little bit of bleeding and corner tears, but standing back looking through the wheel they are fine.

First Fchatter to send me a PM with an address can have the 4 extra stencils.

 

No question it was close, but did have clearance. I tried to crop and adjust brightness here to show the front...
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