Question? Is it posible to build a titainium motor?

[HoosierDirtFan]

Question is it possible to build a titainium motor?
Over on the Indiana Open Wheel.com forum there was mention of a guy in Denver, Colorado who built a titainium Midget & another who built a v8 engine to use during the for the Chili Bowl a year or two back. Would it be any good to use if it was possible to race with it in a late model versus aluminum or steel Block motors?
Just wondered

[JustAddDirt]

Midget motors are 4 bangers. Not v8

[Krooser]

All you need is a $30,000 billet of Ti.

[HoosierDirtFan]

Midget motors are 4 bangers. Not v8

Not sh!t but there was one at the Chili Bowl a few years ago. You apparently didn't read what I typed

[petesbuyin]

Titanium is heavier than aluminum so the only place you would want to use it is where aluminum is not acceptable. The only place you do not use aluminum on a sprint or midget motor is the crank, rods, wrist pins, valves, valve springs, and fasteners. Using titanium for rods, wrist pins, valves, and fasteners is very common in any race motor today. That only leaves the crankshaft and valve springs. Titanium alloys available today do not have the needed characteristics for valve springs so for now the springs will need to be steel alloy. That only leaves the crankshaft to be titanium. Crankshafts used in SLM motors weigh in at around 40# so a titanium crank would be around 23# if it is profiled the same as the steel one, a savings of 17#. Midget motors are only 4 cylinders so I would assume the the weight savings would be even less.

Rumor had it that Gaerte built Steve Kinser a motor with a titanium crankshaft back in the 80's and that rumor caused titanium crankshaft to be outlawed by most sanctioning bodies.

[FourDeepInTheFluff]

Midget motors are 4 bangers. Not v8

Apparently you have not heard of the Synergy v8 that the boys from down under brought to the Chili Bowl for a few years. Or the various v6's that have tried their hand at the Chili Bowl.

[smith19]

we had a titanium rod motor in 1978. we ran it at the indy fairgrounds for a usac race. we had a good lead in the feature and it exploded. rod was guaranteed not to break. lol a pic of this race is on the cover of the 1978 indy fairgrounds pictorial. showing us out front. d1ck tobias won...

[JustAddDirt]

Apparently you have not heard of the Synergy v8 that the boys from down under brought to the Chili Bowl for a few years. Or the various v6's that have tried their hand at the Chili Bowl.

Nope shure haven't. Conventional USAC midget motors are 4 cylinder. That's all I know, all I have ever seen.

[MI Dirt Fan]

we had a titanium rod motor in 1978. we ran it at the indy fairgrounds for a usac race. we had a good lead in the feature and it exploded. rod was guaranteed not to break. lol a pic of this race is on the cover of the 1978 indy fairgrounds pictorial. showing us out front. d1ck tobias won...

Did it break in half or multiple pieces?

[smith19]

don't know exactly where. hell I was 12 and it was my granny's sprintcar...

[FourDeepInTheFluff]

Nope shure haven't. Conventional USAC midget motors are 4 cylinder. That's all I know, all I have ever seen.

While this is true, the race in question was the Chili Bowl which is not sanctioned by USAC, nor does Emmett use their rules. In fact, there are so few rules at the Chili Bowl and the USAC legal car is probably considered the minority in Tulsa.

Not knocking you, just trying to educate.