Class is now in session...........
Below is my setup, nothing exotic, any home porter with a couple hundred $ can duplicate to do their own stuff. I used to envision pro head porter's work areas as some big clean modern work station. Uh.... Then I saw some in person and in pics. I have seen Ray Barton's Porting area, Rider Racings Porting Room, and a few others. I feel much better about my setup after seeing theirs LOL. One must realize cylinder head porting is a NASTY and DIRTY job. The grindings and dust gets EVERYWHERE. It's just not possible to maintain a completely sanitary work area, nor is it necessary. I try to stay organized and I wipe the workbench off as often as possible, and that's about it...... Anyhow here are some pics:
Nothing Glamorous..... just a 1/2" thick Plywood workbench, ~5 1/2 fet long and aprox 30" deep. Stuffed into the back corner of my shop. You can see my grinder speed control knob (dimmer switch LOL) Hanging to the right of the pic.
I did'nt clean up for the pics. This is how it looked this AM LOL Aluminum shavings and epoxy dust everywhere from Don's INDY inatke being morphed into a W6 intake.
I have custom made Cylinder heads stands that I clamp down to the bench.... This is an old pic of B3's W5's back when I first did them. The head stands make it nice to adjust teh head to angy angle when porting and hold the head rock steady. Most guys just flop the heads on the bench and go at them, but just as a personal preferrence I like the stands. The head bolts on with 2 bolts, and can be removed in ~45 seconds.
As far as tools..... I use a Makita GEO600 1/4" Electric Die Grinder. ~ $100 from MSC industrial Supply. Alot of other places sell them as well. Lowes etc. should be able to order you one. I put ~600 hours on my last one before the front bearing wore out. The motor and brushes still had lot's of life left. So they will last a while. Unlike Air grinders, no oiling to mess with. I have used air before, and I think I actually prefer electric now. You just get used to it and it get's comfortable. The Makita is VERY light, which is important when holding a Grinder for hours on end. Does'nt really get hot etc. Works great. Alos to use air, you better have a fairly large upright compressor.... obvioulsy not every home garage has a compressor capeable of handling an air die grinder for continuous use.
As far as carbides go, these are my basic ones. I have a bunch more but I rarely use them. Short and a long Sanding Mandrel and you are all set. All my short carbides are double cut for iron use. Although I do use two of them also for Aluminum chamber work sometimes depending on the head.
If I could only afford a couple tools, these would be it. 6" Sanding Mandrel with 1/8" pilot, 3/8" head Aluma Cut Carbide in ~4 1/2" (I cut down a 6") and a short double cut "tree" carbide. These are the 3 tools I use most often. All are from Cylinder Head Abrasives
www.ruffstuff.com
As far as sand rolls go, If you are not using Standard Abrasives, you are wasting your time. I have used 3M, Norton etc. It's all junk compared to SA rolls. The rolls Goodson sells ARE Standard Abrasives brand put in a Goodson box. I usually buy mine from CHA by the box of 100. I have 120, 80, and 60 Grit, but for a home porter, just buy a box of 60. You can do everything you need generally with 60. OH and I use 1/2" Diameter, 1 1/2" Long Straight rolls. Tapered rolls etc are more $, And I just prefer straight anyhow.
Also a Dial Caliper and Snap gauges are helpfull. LOL And don't forget teh layout dye and a scribe. I have been using Dykem layout dye, but recently started using Starret brand Blue dye, and I like the applicator and the wear characteristics of the Starret better than the Dykem. Starret is avail from MSC industrial supply.
www.mscdirect.com
If you are working with aluminum, a lubricant for your carbides will be necessary to keep them from clogging. I use WD40. Some use ATF? But I think a light penetraing oil is best. For light jobs just buy a spray can and spray your carbide when it starts to get clogged. I buy it by the gallon and dip my carbide in it when necessary. You'll get a feel for when the caridge is beginning to clog.....
My porting gloves..... Are'nt they SEXY?
Oh not really? Oh well, I told you this was'nt galamorous..... Index finger hole to be able to "feel" the ports and short turn.....
And Safety Equipment...... This is the 3M filter mask I use.... I don't even remember what they cost, I bought a pack of ten of them a while ago. The 3M is ALOT better mask than your regular old 50 ct. Hardware store dust mask. Gotta have one. ESPECIALLY when sand rolling....... The dust that is kickad up is unreal.
My googles.... No safety glasses for me. I've had alot of suff try to come up around normal glasses, and after my first and hopefully only trip to the ER to have a Cast Iron Shard drilled out of my Eyeball, I now will only use a goggle with a TIGHT rubber seal around the face. I actually got this set at Pep Boys for $15 LOL. I HAD a very expensive set from MSC, but IMO these are alot more comfortable and work better for me. I love them. Took me a while to find a set of gogglss that were comfortable, gave me free range of vision, would'nt fog up, and protected 360*.
And lastly my Husqvarna Chainsaw Ear Protection LOL. Not only keeps all noise out, but also keps all metal shavings off your ears as well. Love 'em.
Those are the basics..... in recap: You only need a couple well thought out Carbides, 60 Grit Sand rolls, A Sand Mandrel, a Good Die Grinder, and safety protection. OH and LIGHT LIGHT LIGHT. I have a 600 W floodlight in the ceiling aimed right at my workbench, also use a 500W halogen and a 100 watt light to shine at the ports I am working on.
Hey if I can achieve results like these:
With the above setup, no reason you can't either with enough practice. (oh the flowbench helps too LOL)
