My Phazer MTX Turbo Project Log

[kallholmen]

1. Nearby the garage there is a copper smelter, at the plant they use a lot of heat shielding. I got this for free. It's none asbestos and it insulates very good. Besides that I do not know. The plan was to transport all the heat to the turbo and not burn trough the gas tank.

2. In Sweden the police don't like modified sleds. So I tried to make it look as original as possible. So I painted the shields on the inter cooler and made this mesh thing. The paint is nothing fancy. Plastidip.
And it got scratched directly.


Skickat från min iPhone med Tapatalk

 

[DigitalFusion]

I got a couple parts delivered today. The Wahl Bros anti-stab kit and a BDX two wheel axle. I do not intend to keep this skid long-term, so a nice billet setup from OFT or some thing like that just doesnt make sense. I got to work putting the skid back together on the powder coated rails with the new Dupont hyfax. Once the anti-stab kit was on, I didnt like how the rail tips stuck out, so I cut 1/2" off and rounded all the sharp edges.

I found that my table saw stand, which was currently unoccupied due to setting the saw up for track cutting, was actually the perfect height to set the skid on and use my rolling chair.

I haven't even installed the two front wheels, or the two wheels on the cross shaft for the rear, and this pig already weighs 65 pounds without them! I was toying with not installing either of them, but I think I really need to install the rear one at least for support, not so much for the wheels. My long-term plans if I end up liking this sled as a mountain rig always included swapping this skid out for something else, and this weight is one of the reasons.

I also got the driveshaft installed and put the chaincase back together. This sled had a 19T top gear in it, which is what I have seen a lot of the turbo sleds do, but I assume that's trail sled setups? I had a 18T top from the 08, and a while back I ordered a 17T top just to have options. I wavered on this one quite a bit. After going with the heavier and longer 151, do I just drop one tooth and put the 18T in, or do I go back to the original 17T top the MTX's came with? After doing a little research, and contacting SBM, I decided to go with the 18T for now and see how it goes. I'd love any feedback, opinions, or insights anyone has on this because I am still not convinced that the 17T wouldnt be a better option.

I also decided it was about time to actually attach those running board edges and footwells, as they have just been sitting there slipped on for weeks.

My new 550cc injectors are supposed to be here tomorrow. I pulled the intake manifold and fuel rail apart in anticipation. I really do not like this setup at all. There are 3 small screws and this strange turnbuckle deal that goes back to plates on either side of the head that affix the boondocker intake to the intake manifold, with just an o-ring to seal it all up. I am going to have to do some digging on how MCX did theirs. I think I remember seeing it on @kallholmen 's build.

One of my bigger concerns is if these 550's will even work. The person from Straightline Performance telling me that it would be very very hard to get 550's to even run correctly, and seeing so many posts around various websites saying jumping up that much in injectors is a tuning nightmare, kept me second guessing everything. I knew it had to be possible, but that nagging feeling just wouldn't go away.

During my digging I discovered that Push Turbo kits for the Nytro now come with 550cc injectors and a PCV-VTI. This is yet another confirmation that you can jump from 324's to 550's and be able to get a solid tune with a PCV. I ended up contacting them, and Ken is going to email me the map they use so I can see just how much fuel they are pulling out for the jump. I have a rough idea between knowing the percentage difference between the two injectors, and seeing that sample map from Bikeman, but as a massive bonus I will also get to see what they are doing for timing and target AFRs on a turbo yamaha sled with the same injector jump. I am very excited to get my hands on that map!

 

[Snowmixer]

I'm really enjoying this project of yours, and had to thank you for doing all the research and posting what you've found. I have been working on my own Phazer project (very slowly, unfortunately) and as you know so well, one thing leads to another and...then it turns into a 'ground up' restoration/build. My project started out as a few mods (stretch to a longer track, etc.) and before I knew it I was designing a new tunnel and trying to remove as much weight as possible/practical. My progress on that aspect of the project has pretty much come to a stop at this time, and as luck would have it, I found a 2008 Phazer locally with only 375 miles...and a blown engine. I tried to resist it, but ended up buying it and swapping the engine out of my 2007, which was just sitting idle in the chassis waiting for a tunnel.

So that left me with a nice, fully functional Phazer MTX...and a 'project' sled without an engine. I had intended to turbo the project sled engine anyway but wanted to prepare the engine for boost first (just as you are doing), so I now have another engine (in pieces) waiting to be assembled. I have had many of the same questions/thoughts you're having regarding pistons, compression, head shim/no head shim, injectors, PCV management, fuel pressure, regulator, pump, etc. The only thing truly 'solved' so far is rods, which I acquired from Carillo.

I also did not want to run a head shim, and was debating whether to try to have custom pistons made, or get some from Wiseco and machine a dish into them to reduce compression. The CP pistons pictured in one of the earlier posts look much more like what I'd want in this engine, as I don't know how much deck thickness would be left if I machined them. Maybe we could get enough people together to make a 'group buy' of low-compression Phazer pistons from CP? I don't know how many others would be interested, but I feel like as used Phazers come available for decent prices, it's somewhat inevitable that there may be more boosted builds finding their way into people's garages. Sure, some people will say it's a 'money pit,' but not everyone gets enjoyment out of just bolting on everything the aftermarket offers and calling it a 'build.'

I wish I had more information to share to help you out at this point, but here's a few other things I've been considering that may be of some use. After researching the "Keihin NR-1" fuel pressure regulator used on the Phazers, I found that it is also used on some Honda cars. I looked at the regulator on my girlfriends's car (2000 Honda Civic) and the flange/bolt pattern seemed to be the same, so I ordered up an aftermarket regulator and it fits perfectly. This may open up some more options in that department, as there seem to be tons of people boosting Hondas already. Obviously Yamaha could design and build every component themselves, but why would they when they could source readily available parts like that from other vendors, many of which are also in Japan. In researching the injectors, I found that they MAY be the same as used on the Subaru BRZ, though I have not been able to confirm this.

Regarding the fuel pump, I know a lot of people swap in a larger inline pump of some kind, but I was hoping to stick with the simplicity of using a stock-type fuel pump. I have acquired a pump from a 2012 apex, but have not flow tested it yet to compare with the stock Phazer pump. My thought with this was that the stock Apex pump should support enough flow for the 150 or so horsepower of the stock Apex engine, and likely more. I do not know what 'horsepower limit' the stock Apex pump would be good for, but I'm pretty confident it would serve well at any level a boosted Phazer engine will produce.

In the event that this pump will not flow enough in it's stock configuration, I have been considering trying a "Boost-A-Pump" from Kenne Bell. This would require mounting the boost a pump unit somewhere on the sled, but sounds as if it would be able to increase the output sufficiently. Though I have not used one of their units yet, they have been in use for many years on some very high powered vehicles, with seemingly positive results. There is a good read on their site regarding fuel pumps, fuel rails, flow, etc.

I'm sure I'm forgetting something else at the moment, but I'll try to keep a closer eye on your progress and share any other info that comes to mind. Here's a few pics of the aftermarket regulator, installed on the fuel rail.

 

[Snowmixer]

Ask, and ye shall receive! A few pics of the MCXpress throttle body plate setup. I'm guessing the little 'turnbuckle' thing on the Boondocker setup is to keep the intercooler from pulling away from the throttle body/plate under boost. In my opinion, it may not solve the problem (if it was even a problem at the boost levels they were running), as the throttle body itself is held to the head with rubber boots and clamps.

 

[Snowmixer]

And in case you are running out of things to think about, I was just thinking how I'd love to know the Sidewinder cam specs (since I'd guess Yamaha did some research to match their performance to the turbocharged engine) so I could have some Phazer cams reground to match. I have not seen or read any published specs for the Sidweinder cams (or turbo Apex or Nytro either), but also have not researched it very heavily yet. Something else to dream about I guess, since "Anything worth doing, is worth overdoing."

 

[blueironranger]

ya, the Phazer skid is HEAVY, about 20# more than the cat 141" in my viper. I've thought about tossing a cat 141" in my phazer if I find one cheap at a swap meet. The front mounting holes are within 1/2" of each other when I measured the sleds side by side, the rear holes would need to go back almost 8" though. Just a set of custom brackets/bumper in the back and it would bolt in. The Cat 141 carries a lot less snow in the rails too!

 

[DigitalFusion]

I'm really enjoying this project of yours, and had to thank you for doing all the research and posting what you've found. I have been working on my own Phazer project (very slowly, unfortunately) and as you know so well, one thing leads to another and...then it turns into a 'ground up' restoration/build. My project started out as a few mods (stretch to a longer track, etc.) and before I knew it I was designing a new tunnel and trying to remove as much weight as possible/practical. My progress on that aspect of the project has pretty much come to a stop at this time, and as luck would have it, I found a 2008 Phazer locally with only 375 miles...and a blown engine. I tried to resist it, but ended up buying it and swapping the engine out of my 2007, which was just sitting idle in the chassis waiting for a tunnel.

So that left me with a nice, fully functional Phazer MTX...and a 'project' sled without an engine. I had intended to turbo the project sled engine anyway but wanted to prepare the engine for boost first (just as you are doing), so I now have another engine (in pieces) waiting to be assembled. I have had many of the same questions/thoughts you're having regarding pistons, compression, head shim/no head shim, injectors, PCV management, fuel pressure, regulator, pump, etc. The only thing truly 'solved' so far is rods, which I acquired from Carillo.

I also did not want to run a head shim, and was debating whether to try to have custom pistons made, or get some from Wiseco and machine a dish into them to reduce compression. The CP pistons pictured in one of the earlier posts look much more like what I'd want in this engine, as I don't know how much deck thickness would be left if I machined them. Maybe we could get enough people together to make a 'group buy' of low-compression Phazer pistons from CP? I don't know how many others would be interested, but I feel like as used Phazers come available for decent prices, it's somewhat inevitable that there may be more boosted builds finding their way into people's garages. Sure, some people will say it's a 'money pit,' but not everyone gets enjoyment out of just bolting on everything the aftermarket offers and calling it a 'build.'

I wish I had more information to share to help you out at this point, but here's a few other things I've been considering that may be of some use. After researching the "Keihin NR-1" fuel pressure regulator used on the Phazers, I found that it is also used on some Honda cars. I looked at the regulator on my girlfriends's car (2000 Honda Civic) and the flange/bolt pattern seemed to be the same, so I ordered up an aftermarket regulator and it fits perfectly. This may open up some more options in that department, as there seem to be tons of people boosting Hondas already. Obviously Yamaha could design and build every component themselves, but why would they when they could source readily available parts like that from other vendors, many of which are also in Japan. In researching the injectors, I found that they MAY be the same as used on the Subaru BRZ, though I have not been able to confirm this.

Regarding the fuel pump, I know a lot of people swap in a larger inline pump of some kind, but I was hoping to stick with the simplicity of using a stock-type fuel pump. I have acquired a pump from a 2012 apex, but have not flow tested it yet to compare with the stock Phazer pump. My thought with this was that the stock Apex pump should support enough flow for the 150 or so horsepower of the stock Apex engine, and likely more. I do not know what 'horsepower limit' the stock Apex pump would be good for, but I'm pretty confident it would serve well at any level a boosted Phazer engine will produce.

In the event that this pump will not flow enough in it's stock configuration, I have been considering trying a "Boost-A-Pump" from Kenne Bell. This would require mounting the boost a pump unit somewhere on the sled, but sounds as if it would be able to increase the output sufficiently. Though I have not used one of their units yet, they have been in use for many years on some very high powered vehicles, with seemingly positive results. There is a good read on their site regarding fuel pumps, fuel rails, flow, etc.

I'm sure I'm forgetting something else at the moment, but I'll try to keep a closer eye on your progress and share any other info that comes to mind. Here's a few pics of the aftermarket regulator, installed on the fuel rail.

I had to run a background check on my folks to see if they didnt have some mystery child and you weren't my long lost brother or something!

What is it about these Phazers that make them so hard to turn away? There is just something about riding a Phazer that just has a completely different feel to it that keeps me coming back even though I have a perfectly good sled and I can only ride one at a time. Every time I sell 'my phazer', I end up getting another one to replace it eventually. This has happened three times now!

Not only are we doing similar things, but we have the same thoughts. Your comment about the Phazers becoming available for decent prices and the boosted builds becoming more prevalent is something I have literally practiced saying out loud while wrenching on the sled in hopes of some how convincing various companies to stop making things like this for the Phazer custom order. I swear if I hear another company say something about hardly ever getting an inquiry about X part that they make for every other sled for 1/4 of the price because "no one does that to a Phazer" I might end up on a murderous rampage. I understand supply and demand, however they already have done the R&D, if they want to profit off that R&D maybe sell the parts at a similar price point as other machines and the sales would increase?

There is a lot more that I have learned that I have yet to post or share, just as I assume is the same for you. For one, I would never buy a turbo 'kit'. From what I have learned and hope to share in-depth eventually, is that a person could easily do a low-boost turbo on one of these for 1500-2000 by piecing the parts together and either fab'ing parts themselves or having them fab'ed. I didnt want to post too soon without all the information, but the turbo the boondockers kit came with is a turbo that is found on a few different cars. I needed to research the trims, but CHRA's are like 100 bucks. A guy could get a junk yard turbo from a you-pull place and a new CHRA and be into the snail for a few hundred bucks for a basically brand new turbo. I learned from some other poor soul that you need a minimum of 22" primary length for the header/manifold if going with a rear mount,otherwise there is an issue with back pressure and you start grenading motors like clockwork.

The side mount style of the boondocker is the optimal placement, but not the cheapest. You need a good mild steel manifold as Outlaw discovered on their 30K shop sled that no thickness/alloy of stainless was enough to keep from cracking. I assume this is due to the crazy heat cycling these things go through. They are going to see such high extremes in cycling versus a car. if you are doing hard pulls up a chute or go nuts in the deep for a while and then stop to catch your breath and watch your buddies, its nothing like running to the local 7-11 to grab a bag of doritos in a Honda Civic If/when I end up with a custom manifold I have spoke to the fabricator about building a jig to make more. If one costs $500, then the rest will be cheaper with a jig. Either that or I will tack one up myself, have my buddies TIG it up, and if it works share the info. The catch with a side mount is that you have to have a custom oil can regardless if its up front like the final prototype of the boondocker kit, or at the side like the earlier versions (on the Outlaw Phazer for example).

Thats awesome that you got rods. I have been playing email tag with Freddy at Carrillo for weeks. They have one rod in stock, and according to their database no one has another one. He said the 'code' on those rods is MTO which means they do not stock them, and only do a run on a per-order basis.If you dont mind sharing, what was the price you paid for those and where did you get them? I was told $292/rod or $584 for a set. Again, I get supply and demand, but a set of 4 Carrillo rods for a B18 Honda/Acura motor is $400.

The price of $750/set for custom pistons CP quoted me was "retail", which they don't actually sell for unless you buy from one of those shops that hears you say custom pistons and starts seeing dollar signs instead of another human in front of them. The price drops dramatically to $566/set when going from two to four pistons, I assume that the drop continues to be dramatic as the number of pairs increases. If we did have a vendor that would be willing to make a larger order if there were at least a couple of us who wanted them right off the bat, that would be amazing.

Thats very interesting information on the FPR. My turbo/tuning experience comes from my days of imports in the late 90's/early 2000's when I built my own 'kit' for my B16 powered Civic and I still have boxes of parts in storage, I might even have an adjustable FRP up there. Having said that, I dont know if we need one if a person has larger injectors and the PCV. Although a low boost kit could get away with the stock 324cc injectors or at the least 380cc apex injectors with the pressure increased. I also found that the 1800cc FZR jet ski uses 480cc injectors and is supposedly a direct fit and would be the perfect size. It would be great to get a database together of injectors that are a direct fit since this information would be able to be shared with all yami 4 stroke models.However, that might not be worth it as brand new injectors from DeatschWerks are $180/set whereas the used injectors will set a guy back 100-200. I have also asked DeatschWerks to see what size options there are for the phazer now that they know the injectors for it are the same as the Nytro.

I feel the same regarding trying to stick with the stock-type fuel pump if possible. The MCX 140hp kits do not replace the fuel pump, and people have pulled 160+ hp on the phazer with those kits, so the stock pump should be fine? The part numbers for the phazer fuel pump do not cross reference any other fitment, so if they are the same form factor as the nytro and/or apex I assume its just the flow rates that are different. I also found an aftermarket pump for the phazer that claims a 20% increase in flow. I swear I bookmarked it but I dont see it now.

 

[DigitalFusion]

ya, the Phazer skid is HEAVY, about 20# more than the cat 141" in my viper. I've thought about tossing a cat 141" in my phazer if I find one cheap at a swap meet. The front mounting holes are within 1/2" of each other when I measured the sleds side by side, the rear holes would need to go back almost 8" though. Just a set of custom brackets/bumper in the back and it would bolt in. The Cat 141 carries a lot less snow in the rails too!

Last year before I snapped my wrist in several places, I was toying with making that 08 an MTX. The thread I posted had some great responses in regards to different skids that might fit as well as some weights of various skids from @Mtnviper 's website:

@Snowmixer 's 144 Phazer Skid ... 65lbs

Arctic Cat XF7000/Yamaha SR Viper stock 141" ...43lbs

2014 Arctic Cat XF7000 with 153" rails, BDX swing arm kit, 2 idler wheels removed and ice scratchers added...38lbs

Yamaha pro-action Viper (w/136 Mountain Max rails)...74lbs

09 Yamaha Nytro XTX 144", stock (all idler wheels attached)...74lbs

Timbersled Nytro 144", ice age rails, Float X rear shock, 2 wheel axle, (stock 8" Cat wheels), stock Yamaha upper wheels and skid mounting bolts...36lbs

Timbersled Nytro 144", ice age rails, Float X rear shock, 4 wheel axle (stock 8" Cat wheels), Yamaha upper wheels and skid mounting bolts...37.5lbs

Arctic Cat 153" with float shocks, minus boggy wheels, with ice scratchers Thanks to hugger70mtnmax for spec!...43lbs

Yamaha Nytro 153" pro-mountain, all stock, including stock drop brackets....74.7lbs

Yamaha Nytro 153" pro-mountain, same as above, includes front shocks...78.7lbs

Timbersled Nytro153" Yamaha rails, Timbersled drop brackets, Includes Fox Float 2 front suspension shocks. Thanks Lone Viper!....46.2lbs

Yamaha 2010 MTX 162", stock including factory ice scratchers...58.5lbs

Timbersled 162", Wahl 4 wheel anti-stab kit, sidekick scratchers, 2 wheel kit Timbersled upper wheels...34.6lbs

Timbersled 162" same as above, except with Exit piggy back front shock, (4.3lbs)remote resi rear shock (7.0lbs) Thanks to tapex_07 for 162" specs!...45.9lbs

Note: weight specifications were measured using a digital scale. They are for general information purposes only. Specifications may vary from sled to sled and may change without notice.

Edit: Ha! I just noticed it was @Snowmixer posting in that thread. You have been toying with your poject Phazer for a long time!

 

[DigitalFusion]

Ask, and ye shall receive! A few pics of the MCXpress throttle body plate setup. I'm guessing the little 'turnbuckle' thing on the Boondocker setup is to keep the intercooler from pulling away from the throttle body/plate under boost. In my opinion, it may not solve the problem (if it was even a problem at the boost levels they were running), as the throttle body itself is held to the head with rubber boots and clamps.

That seems like a much better setup. It took me a while, but I found the image I was thinking of in @kallholmen s build.

Between that image and the one you posted, it would seem that the MCX kits have a plate that connects to the intake manifold, and seals with much more than just an o-ring.

 

[DigitalFusion]

Maybe we could get enough people together to make a 'group buy' of low-compression Phazer pistons from CP?

So I reached out to Dave @HURRICANE . He said he could do 'about' $350 for a set of pistons if we could get a couple of orders together.

 

[Snowmixer]

You are correct, the picture you posted above shows the plate attached to the intercooler with hose clamps, whereas the pictures I posted show the plate attached to the throttle body. The blue 'gasket' you see in the groove around the perimeter of the plate in the picture you posted above is blue RTV silicone, which is what MCX suggested using to seal the plate to the throttle body (and hopefully eliminate any air leaks), if I remember correctly. If you have their installation instructions, I believe this information is in there. I tried to remove the plate from the throttle bodies a while back, and even with the three screws removed I was not able to break the seal of the silicone so it seems to be a viable way to seal off the area. I'm sure if I needed to remove the plate (I didn't have a need at the time, just wanted to take some measurements) I could get it off, but it was sealed very well.

Regarding the Carrillo rods, I purchased them from Race Engineering in June 2017. There was a date on the box that suggested they were manufactured in 2015 so I assumed they must not be selling many. I also remember reading somewhere (possibly on the Carrillo/CP website) that certain rods (including the Phazer) were only sold in pairs, so it seems odd that they'd only have one. I placed the order with Race engineering online and expected to hear something like "Sorry, we had them advertised but they are not available anymore" or something similar, but heard nothing. A week later, a box showed up directly from Carrillo and it was the rods, so my guess is that Race engineering may not actually stock the Phazer rods, but was able to order them. Looking at their site now, it says the Phazer rods are out of stock and to contact them for availability.

The Phazer I bought with the blown engine (which was 100% stock) had experienced a catastrophic rod failure after only 375 miles and after seeing how 'frail' the stock rod looked, I wanted a little peace of mind knowing I would be putting boost to the engine eventually. On the subject of low compression pistons, another thought I had was to order a set of dished Apex pistons, but to try to specify they be made for a 77mm bore instead of 74. I know I have seen 'overbore' pistons for the Apex somewhere, but I think they were only offered up to 76mm, which gave me another idea...sleeve the Phazer block with 76mm sleeves and use the Apex pistons. Honestly, probably more work than it's worth, but could be done. It may be easier to ask a piston manufacturer to make a few simple changes to an existing low compression piston (such as the Apex) in their inventory, rather than having to specify all the 'custom' dimensions and traits. I have an RX-1 piston and rod around here somewhere, and the wrist pin diameter and compression height were the same (if I remember correctly), but the small end of the RX-1 rod was just a little tight in the Phazer piston (the RX-1 piston had about .06 clearance from the sides of the rod to the inside of the piston, but a light interference fit with the RX-1 rod in the Phazer piston). Obviously this could be fixed with some simple machining, if necessary.
Edit: Sorry, got it mixed up, the RX-1 piston has more clearance with the Phazer rod, no machining would be necessary, but not sure how much free play would be too much.

Once we get the pistons figured out, all we need to do is get Mattoon Machine to make a couple billet cases to put everything into! Well, that may not be all we need...possibly a second or third job to pay for it all too. Never hurts to dream though!

 

[DigitalFusion]

Alright, ya lost me.

I love figuring out low-cost solutions and re-purposing parts to save a buck, but having a custom order for Apex pistons in a smaller dimension? Re-sleeving to a smaller bore? Going through all of that? Hurricane already quoted a pretty good ballpark price of $350/set if we had a few orders. You had me excited that there was at least one other person who wanted a set of CP pistons in low-comp for the Phazer.

Lemme throw you a life preserver, you've jumped head first into the deep end of the crazy pool!

 

[Snowmixer]

Sorry for the confusion, you must have posted about the CP pistons from Hurricane while I was writing that last 'chapter!' You're right though, I actually prefer the deep end of the crazy pool, it's much less crowded over here! Though $350 for two pistons may sound steep at first, it is most likely a better option than any of the others I listed in my previous post, (which were brainstormed quite some time ago) especially if they're exactly what we're looking for. My Phazer project is moving at a much slower pace than yours and I had not yet had an opportunity to discuss options with anyone, so I thank you again for your efforts in finding (and sharing) a possible solution. With that said, count me in as guy #2 who wants some low compression CP pistons from Hurricane.

 

[DigitalFusion]

I have been having so much fun working on this project. That is, until tonight.

My various gaskets/OEM parts and injectors all arrived on Tuesday and I have been itching to get out to the garage and do some wrenching ever since. Unfortunately, I have had to put in so many hours with work (being self employed sometimes has its down falls) that I was only able to get an hour of garage time on Wednesday when I installed the head, a new cometic gasket, and torqued the ARP head studs down. But hey, I guess that was plenty of time for the lock-tite to set up! I moly'ed all the threads, washer surfaces, and bottoms of the nuts. I torqued them in 10lb increments of 10, 20, 30, 40, and finally 45. I then backed them off a 1/4 turn and did it again at 45lbs. I didn't take any pix because there wasnt much to look at to be honest.

Tonight I wasnt able to get out there until late. I literally spent the last two and a half hours just trying to get the cams installed before I just completely gave up out of frustration and exhaustion. I have to be doing something completely wrong here, because I cannot get the timing right for the life of me.

Since the plug on the stator side is stuck in place as the oil return for the turbo, I cannot just turn the bolt on that side to line up the timing mark. I had to do it from the clutch side. I would try to get it close via the marks on the gears, then go to the other side and peer in with the flashlight to see if I was right, then rinse and repeat. I did this so many times that I figured out a solution. I had a bunch of various thickness precision drivers. It was a lot of trial and error, but I finally found the right size to stick in the gear to keep it from moving so I could go check the positioning of the TDC mark and fine tune which size I needed to keep me right on the money. Once I was rock solid on TDC. I installed the cams and zip-tied the chain to them (awesome tip I found here from @grizztracks).

It was hard to get a pic of the timing mark on the stator side as the camera flash would wash out the marks. The exhaust side on the cam gear is hard to see as well. I highlighted the marks in red from the full-rez versions.

I would then install the cam holders and the tensioner, and then clip the zip ties and rotate the engine a few times. Every. Single.Time it was off. I repeated this process no less than 5 times and the result was the same every single GD time. In addition to always being off, it seemed kind of hard to turn over, didnt want to do the easily-go-past-tdc thing, and the cam chain tension seemed extremely high. Something is not right here. Maybe I am just exhausted and missing something obvious.

 

[DigitalFusion]

We got 6" of fresh heavy wet snow over night, and I am skipping another chance to ride around here to get this Phazer whipped into shape!

Normally, I keep my garage very clean and organized. With all this going on my garage is an absolute disaster. Seriously. I was able to get out to the garage at a decent time today and I looked around and my eye just strarted twitching realizing how chaotic is in there. Snowmobile parts seem to cover every square inch of real estate! Between christmas (we left for vacation 3 days after, and I dug into this project as soon as I could after we got back) and all the various parts I have ordered for this project there is literally a pile of empty boxes back around the corner behind the bathroom that is six feet high!

I tidied up a little bit, took some pictures of various parts from requests of the 08 part out, and went back into the cam timing with a fresh mind.Last night I spent hours trying to get the cams installed. I just kept doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result. Isn't that the definition of insanity? Its amazing how dumb I can be when I am exhausted.

Today I with a fresh mind I stepped back and walked through what I had tried last night. It was always the last step of installing the tensioner that things went wrong. I've never took a phazer motor down to this level before so when I first tried installing the tensioner I literally said to myself "well thats a stupid design" thinking that there wasnt any way to retract or release the tension. Today before I started on anything I decided i should RTFM about the cam tensioner. There is supposed to be a pin sticking out of the end. You squeeze the clip, push the tensioner in, and flip the little black retainer out over it. Yeah, turns out the tensioner is broken and I had no idea. I grabbed the one from the 2010 engine and had everything together in no time!

With the motor all buttoned back up, it was time to swap the coolant lines around. It seems the boondocker kit came with different lines in order to accommodate the space needed for the exhaust going to where the oil can would normally reside. The lines that were on the 2010 were wrapped with reflective tape, but it was in horrible shape. All the tape had lost most of its reflective coating, and was just a mess of degraded fabric with some foil still clinging to life here and there I rewrapped all the lines with some fresh reflective tape. I had such good momentum going that I forgot to take before pictures. By the time I realized I should have taken some pictures I was on the last line, which was actually in the best shape of all of them. My garbage can tells the story of the rest of the lines.

The last step before I could bolt the motor back into place was to attach the intake manifold. I had already pulled the old injectors in anticipation of the new 550's, so installing the new injectors was a very quick process.

The next step was to attach the boondocker intake to the OEM manifold. Thats when I realized I made another mistake. There are supposed to be brackets that go on the head studs located on the outside of the head, and on the allens on the other side. Do I really have to pull everything apart again? Since these are ARP head studs torqued to 45lbs instead of the OEM head bolts to 18lbs, will I be okay if I just pull those two nuts one at a time on the studs located outside of the head? Am I just being dumb again hoping I dont have to pull it apart? Ugh, I really dont want to have to go backwards yet again.

I really hope I am going to be able to make our big Togwotee trip in 4 weeks. I already missed the smaller Bighorns trip this weekend. It looks like my buddies are enjoying some nice conditions with fairly clear sky's and some fresh powder.