lykamobile modifications kit

there hasn't been much going on in the CNC area this week as most of the staff have been busy sorting out the kits for dispatch, but i have made a start on some of the parts for the Lykamobile modifications kit.

for those people who don't know, this kit contains a selection of parts for the Lyka engine that have been slightly redesigned after the extensive road testing that the STW car has had. Whilst the engine in it's original form is up to the job, these parts will give a little more reassurance for those people who plan to put a few more miles in with their car.

first we have the Crank Bearing Housing. this is actually quite an impressive looking part and quite enjoyable to make. luckily for me, my original CNC program from modelworks was still on the computer, so with a few alterations it didn't take too long to get running again.

the whole part is machined from a solid block of cast iron in just two operations, but it does take quite a while to do.

the first op does most of the work...



and then we flip it over into one of our Ali vice pockets and finish the back...



the main modification on this part is the addition of a bush, so the smaller of the two holes has been enlarged.



Slide valves next, and again these are made from solid cast iron.



and then Return Cranks. solid steel this time and you can see how we go from a plain piece of bar to the machined part in two simple steps. the "square hole" is milled out using a 4mm slot mill and takes a bit of time.

just a quick up-date on this (photos will follow tomorrow), all the machines are working flat out on this kit, blocking out all the arms and rods and crank webs from solid steel. this is taking a long time, 5-10 mins each but we are on target to get it done in time.

as promised, more photos of the lyka mods as they get machined.

the first op of one of the reversing arms is running on one machine...



blocking out the main shape and drilling the holes...



other reversing arms are already finished...





the crank webs are on their last op...



here you can see the two op process from blank billet to finished part.



and now that we have these done we can machine the squares on the blank return arm pins...



a large stack of valve rods....



after the first operation....



they are being set for the second....



still a few more bits to make and with all the steel involved it takes a bit more time to machine than something like brass or aluminum, but we are still on schedule !!!!!

(do you think i should mention that one of the machines broke this afternoon ???? )

work is very nearly complete on this kit

valve rods are finished....



and have had the oil holes drilled....



the reversing arms are done....



the radius rods....







and the reverser shafts...



we just have one part left to tap and the gudgeon pins to modify and then it's all done. the good news is, all the bought in parts for this kit have arrived

unless the bloody roof caves in, this kit will be dispatched very soon

this kit is now ready to leave the factory

as there are a few options available on this, some kits may go out later than others.

if you are returning your crank web and bearing housing for modification and have not yet returned them or spoke to STW this week, please get in touch