Ok, so I have been going over how to build up the engine in the car. In doing so and researching this, I have found that some engines aircraft used to nitride engines to help them last.
This peaked my interest since the company I work for uses different variations of this on parts. I have contacts and the pricing is actually fairly reasonable for this process, around $200 or so. Which in the whole scheme of things can be a fairly cheap option.
Would anyone consider doing this in a automotive engine?
more power... more heat... it is known to hold up well.
tell us how it works out
I have seen this used on valves for nitro engine's. But not much else.
I think its an option on a lot of cams from one of the big American V8 cam makers, supposed to help prevent wiping the cam.
Probably completely unnecessary unless you're doing some really crazy stuff. Remember that aircraft engines typically run a oil with no metallic/ash forming antiwear additives(think more like 2 stoke oil), as the engine is rebuilt often anyways and the concern of a fouled plug is greater than some bearing wear.
I think nitriding the crank and cam would potentially be of a benefit, especially for some engines (think Spitfire).
Crankshafts and flat tappet camshafts in a heartbeat.
This process is done on rotary engine's iron side plates otherwise the steel seals would eat into the cast iron like butter.
When you lap/resurface the housings you have a tolerance depth of how much you can take off before you have to re-nitride it again.
Subaru STI crankshafts are nitrided
My dads friend had a rolls royce crank being welded and machined. I guess when the machinist cut the crank for welding they didn't get through the nitriding and when they went to weld it the welds just sputtered and popped. That is all I know about nitriding.
KL cranks are nitrided from factory. Many of Mazda's are in general, actually.
Never cared enough to re-nitride them after i had them cut down.
YMMV.
Isn't nitride what a lot of 2 stroke dirt bike cylinders are coated with?
Rusnak_322 wrote:
Isn't nitride what a lot of 2 stroke dirt bike cylinders are coated with?
I know they were nikasil liners not just nitrided.
Surely it yields some benefit, since I know both the classic SAAB Aero/SPG and the classic Mini Cooper S had nitrided cranks. Therefore it was done in engines that the factory expected to be beaten on.
My guess is that the surface hardening helped in periods of high heat and rpm, when oil supply or viscosity may not have been optimal.
