Never mind, I'm out.

 

I'll give it to you Rick!
What are you afraid of G? Did you not receive a tasty beverage with my last package?

 

Paging m.netters!! Katskins!!



Intercooler pipe fabrication. Working on the coldside in 2.5". A Lisle exhaust pipe expander makes nice slip joints in the aluminum tubing.



I bought a tube beading tool from JEGs. JEGS Performance Products 80083, JEGS Professional Tube Forming Tools | JEGS Performance Products. Similar to $500+ tools but a whole lot less expensive. It galled a bit when first used so I disassembled and greased it. Peaking inside, the quality was quite good -- it just needed lubrication. Made nice beads:







Completed cold side. Just need to JB Weld the joints and paint it black for a nice OEM look. I followed the same routing as the MSM.









Hotside in 2" next.

 

How did you do the blow off valve bung? I plan to use the exhaust expander for my tubes also, but will go with some aluminum brazing rod for the seal. After working with the rod (alumiweld) some more, and finding some others that have brazed intercooler tubes with it successfully, I inspired to try it.

 

I did the BOV bung with some 1" AL tube and . . . HTS 2000 brazing rod (similar to alumiweld)!

Brazing rod works OK. Trick is to get past the aluminum oxide to bare aluminum. Healthy dose of clean SS wire brushing and acetone. The other trick is even heating . . . enough heat but not too much -- going for the zone where the rod melts and the tubing doesn't. You end up working one small area at a time. And the aluminum takes A LOT of heat since it conducts so much of it away. Works great on the 1" tubing, but I found brazing 2.5" tubing to be kind of a pain. Hopefully, you're more patient than I am.

I'm also after precise angles. JB Welded slip joints set up with the tubing installed on the car is the "Easy Button" for that and has stood the test of time on some other intakes I've constructed.

 

Tubing looks great rick, very clean.

 

Thanks. And, since you like fighter jets . . . . Here's one for you:



Background . . . on a lark I surfed the net for VFA-83 aircraft photos. And, I found a picture of me! This is 1989, just after a change of command in which the tailmarkings got changed. CO wanted in flight photos of the new markings and we got them on a bombing practice flight. We were flying out of the old NAS Cecil Field enroute to the Pinecastle bombing range with MK76 practice bombs (little blue bomblets). This particular aircraft is about 1.5 years old at this time. One year later we would be departing for an 8 month combat cruise (Desert Shield/Desert Storm).

 

Thank you for the link to the bead roller. Been trying to find a decent one for a good price for a while now.

 

<p>Work is exquisite. Don't you want to use a real BOV?</p>

 

By orders of magnitude, MT.net has the highest "The Most Interesting Man in the World" candidates per capita. One of the many reasons this is my favorite forum by far. I would love to go have a beer with you. Thanks for your service!


Any chance you can get me some seat time in an A10?

 

Well, I've been using that Bosch for thousands of miles. Previously, it was setup for recirculation. Never had any issues and it didn't leak at medium (10-14psi) boost pressures. Figured I would just stick a small filter on it and press ahead.

Is there any disadvantage to this? All we're trying to do is prevent compressor stall/surge when the throttle closes, right? As long as it doesn't leak?

 

Actually, one of the guys I flew with in VFA-83 was flying A-10s with the Idaho ANG not too long ago. Not sure if he's still doing that (mandatory retirement). For that matter, I think Idaho is retiring their A-10s -- pity to see them go, talk about the right tool for the job.

Interesting story, the USAF was hell-bent on retiring the A-10s in favor of F-16s as early as the late-80s. The ascot-wearers couldn't bear flying an aircraft with a blunt nose I guess. A-10s performed so well in the Gulf War that they got a 25 year reprieve. I once met an A-10 guy who had brought one back with nearly 300 holes in it -- it's on a pole in front of NAS New Orleans now. No other US aircraft of that era could have taken that. They fixed the hydraulics, aluminum taped the holes and kept flying it until hostilities ceased. When they brought the aircraft back to the US for major maintenance, it was codemned. LOL.

 

I'll do a test run on some IC tubing and test my patience first. I'm intrigued by the epoxy but concerned about a positive log on the joint. Though I suppose that could be addressed post epoxy with a sealed rivet or other fastener, or MIG tack weld.

 

I'm using the Bosch as well. It is OEM quality and doesn't leak. It is on the cold side of the IC which certainly helps longevity. 14-15psi on a GTX2867R, for reference.

 

A-10 is so much win

Im curious if you know the capabilities of the 30mm AP round. As in, how much penetration into standard RHA steel. Im curious, and havnt been able to find the info. Id imagine its not classified?

 

If you use traditional JB Weld (24 hour cure) on a slip joint that's been roughed up with 80 grit . . . it ain't going nowhere!

It does look kind of ugly unless you paint it though. If bare aluminum is your thing, TIG welding is the way to go.

 

All I know is that a depleted Uranium 30mm shell goes through a T-55 like (fill in your favorite here).

 

I used to have this info in a binder that broke down pentration by range and angle against various materials. It was indeed locked away in a classified safe.

 

/\ See what i mean? (post 170)

 

<p>Because so many of them do leak, but it if yours doesn't then I agree, keep it. My Mitsi one, like the Bosch, but metal can, did leak. +1 for cold side mount.&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Also, how will you prep the charge pipes for painting, and what paint will you use?</p>