After a fairly lengthy absence from my shop due to family obligations, I finally got to pour a couple of valve covers for my customized Corvair hotrod engine. Other than fairly minor cosmetic repairs, I feel they came out pretty good. The first one had a small flaw that went all the way through on one end, but I fixed it with a little JBWeld, and I think it will be fine at the temperatures I expect the engine to run within.
Looks good Irish. That's a fair size part and good success, especially for early in the learning curve. Best, Kelly
Thank you, Kelly! That bit of success has given me the confidence to go on to more complex castings, including a block for the top front of the engine with complex oil passages, and a large finned top cover for the engine block. My pyrometer reading jumps around a lot if I touch the wires certain ways that go into the meter from the probe, but I've learned that as long as the melt is a really nice bright yellow orange, it seems to work really well. The second valve cover turned out better than the first, so experience is the best teacher...after you, that is
