Newly moved from NY

[Anthony]

Hey all, I moved to CT in July of 22 and have finally started to look around for some TR groups near me. It was great to recognize some of the names that are fairly close to my new home and I am looking forward to the summer driving season. I am in Killingworth and after almost 2 years of life events I am finally driving my car a bit and boosting my comfort level with the condition of the car. In the fall of 2021 the crankshaft broke and while I was able to rebuild the motor I did not get a chance to drive it. Covid, life issues, retirement and moving all factored in to the delay in enjoying my car. I have read with interest some of the gatherings that seem to be fairly close to me and pleasantly surprised at the proximity of some of the other members. Looking forward to summer and enjoying the roads in my new home state.

[lfmTR4]

Congrats on the move and driving the car.

Crankshaft broke? You have to elaborate on that. I’ve been on here 16+ years and other forums and it’s the first time I’ve heard that one.

[Anthony]

That story begins in July of 21 when I got the car registered after completing the restoration. I started to drive the car and was very happy with the performance and started to put some miles on it. My first longer road trip was to New Canaan from Westchester NY for a show and on the way back sensed something not right with the motor. Once home I could feel and kind of hear a low end knock. Checked the main bearings and found wear on the upper bearing shells. Rod bearings were fine. I did some research and had help from a good friend who is an ex Top Fuel race car builder, driver and engine builder. The research revealed some interesting details. I already knew that the engine in the car was not original when I bought it in 1986, it came out of a 1969 TR250. The TR250 used something called a long snout crank in 1969. In 1970 they redesigned the crank and used it exclusively going forward. The primary reason for the redesign was to eliminate untimely wear and failure due to the whipping action of the crank. The lobes are much larger and the weight is more concentrated at points along the shaft promoting warp and a whipping action while rotating. The knew design has smaller lobes more equally distributed along the shaft. When I removed the old crankshaft we took some measurements and found that it was fairly dramatically out of true at opposite ends which correlated to the amount of wear observed on the relevant bearings. The old style crank also requires the use of a specific flywheel. I might have some pics of the crank differences and will post them if I find them.

[Anthony]

That story begins in July of 21 when I got the car registered after completing the restoration. I started to drive the car and was very happy with the performance and started to put some miles on it. My first longer road trip was to New Canaan from Westchester NY for a show and on the way back sensed something not right with the motor. Once home I could feel and kind of hear a low end knock. Checked the main bearings and found wear on the upper bearing shells. Rod bearings were fine. I did some research and had help from a good friend who is an ex Top Fuel race car builder, driver and engine builder. The research revealed some interesting details. I already knew that the engine in the car was not original when I bought it in 1986, it came out of a 1969 TR250. The TR250 used something called a long snout crank in 1969. In 1970 they redesigned the crank and used it exclusively going forward. The primary reason for the redesign was to eliminate untimely wear and failure due to the whipping action of the crank. The lobes are much larger and the weight is more concentrated at points along the shaft promoting warp and a whipping action while rotating. The knew design has smaller lobes more equally distributed along the shaft. When I removed the old crankshaft we took some measurements and found that it was fairly dramatically out of true at opposite ends which correlated to the amount of wear observed on the relevant bearings. The old style crank also requires the use of a specific flywheel. I might have some pics of the crank differences and will post them if I find them.

[lfmTR4]

Ah a long snout from a 69, I understand now. Yes, it does use a different flywheel to fit the long snout crank.