norvalwilhelm
Well-known member
Most of us run into a bad plug or two. I ran into 3 bad plugs with my new raise port heads. Previously I had 2 problem plugs and went with Jacob ceramic boots. While they solved the problem of burn boots I still had a problem with the wires running under the headers right next to the block and still had to tie them back to keep them off the headers.
‘While the Jacob boots worked it wasn’t the perfect solution.
The local speed shop called me and aske me to look into Spark plug extenders as a possible solution for both their and my problems.
http://www.wrenchrat.com/index.php?r=5
I contacted Steve the owner and inventer and he sent me 3 of the extenders.
They arrive last night and I really like the looks and quality of the units but HOW do they fit.
This is a picture of one of my problems. You can see the boot laying against the header tube. Yes I ran a sock over it for a 20 mile test drive and it did survive but the sock was discoloured , the boot is a little white and I really don’t trust it over extended high speed runs.
These are the 3 units I received. They come in a lot of colors but I chose silver.
This is the unit snapped onto the plug and ready for a plug wire
This is a the plug wire reinstalled. Notice how the connection is taken away from the heat Also look at the boot and notice the white starting? Even wearing a heat protection boot it is starting to discolour
To me dropping a cylinder while on a long cruise can spell disaster for that cylinder
This is another angle of the same boot showing how the delicate boot has been removed from the source of heat.
These extenders can be run right against the tube without a problem. They are complete ceramic so unaffected by direct contact. The silver is only a coloring over the ceramic.
This is another problem plug. This one is using a Jacob ceramic boot but the wire needs to run under the header causing another problem with a loose wire touching a hot tube.
This is the extender snapped onto this plug again taking the boot away from the heat source
I did 3 cylinders with the extenders and only time will tell if they are a good solution.
Did I run into problems ?? Yes.
The extenders are made for up to .445 diameter porcelain. My one set of Accel plugs were .410, perfect but the set in the motor also accel were .450 Too big for the extenders. I took one of the oversize plugs and using a normal bench grinder spend a few minutes rotating it in my hands while grinding down the porcelin. I ground it down to .435 so it easily fit the extender.
The other problem is the snapping on of the little brass/steel end cap. I found the fit too tight. With the plug in the engine it was difficult to snap the extender on with that nice comfortable snap. To solve this I just put the plug in the lathe and with a file lightly filed the brass/steel cap until the extender snapped on with a secure feeling but not too much effort.
I like how they fit, plug porcelain can be iffy but I would test fit the plug on the bench first and then install in the motor.
Time will tell how they work but my intial impression is a very nice unit, fits well after checking on the bench and hopefully ends all future problems with tight fitting headers.
If I find after a few hundred miles of testing any problems with the units I will repost on this but as of this post I really like the extenders.
They are $30 each but for a problem cylinder well worth the expense.
Thank you Steve for a great product.
http://www.wrenchrat.com/index.php?r=5
‘While the Jacob boots worked it wasn’t the perfect solution.
The local speed shop called me and aske me to look into Spark plug extenders as a possible solution for both their and my problems.
http://www.wrenchrat.com/index.php?r=5
I contacted Steve the owner and inventer and he sent me 3 of the extenders.
They arrive last night and I really like the looks and quality of the units but HOW do they fit.
This is a picture of one of my problems. You can see the boot laying against the header tube. Yes I ran a sock over it for a 20 mile test drive and it did survive but the sock was discoloured , the boot is a little white and I really don’t trust it over extended high speed runs.
These are the 3 units I received. They come in a lot of colors but I chose silver.
This is the unit snapped onto the plug and ready for a plug wire
This is a the plug wire reinstalled. Notice how the connection is taken away from the heat Also look at the boot and notice the white starting? Even wearing a heat protection boot it is starting to discolour
To me dropping a cylinder while on a long cruise can spell disaster for that cylinder
This is another angle of the same boot showing how the delicate boot has been removed from the source of heat.
These extenders can be run right against the tube without a problem. They are complete ceramic so unaffected by direct contact. The silver is only a coloring over the ceramic.
This is another problem plug. This one is using a Jacob ceramic boot but the wire needs to run under the header causing another problem with a loose wire touching a hot tube.
This is the extender snapped onto this plug again taking the boot away from the heat source
I did 3 cylinders with the extenders and only time will tell if they are a good solution.
Did I run into problems ?? Yes.
The extenders are made for up to .445 diameter porcelain. My one set of Accel plugs were .410, perfect but the set in the motor also accel were .450 Too big for the extenders. I took one of the oversize plugs and using a normal bench grinder spend a few minutes rotating it in my hands while grinding down the porcelin. I ground it down to .435 so it easily fit the extender.
The other problem is the snapping on of the little brass/steel end cap. I found the fit too tight. With the plug in the engine it was difficult to snap the extender on with that nice comfortable snap. To solve this I just put the plug in the lathe and with a file lightly filed the brass/steel cap until the extender snapped on with a secure feeling but not too much effort.
I like how they fit, plug porcelain can be iffy but I would test fit the plug on the bench first and then install in the motor.
Time will tell how they work but my intial impression is a very nice unit, fits well after checking on the bench and hopefully ends all future problems with tight fitting headers.
If I find after a few hundred miles of testing any problems with the units I will repost on this but as of this post I really like the extenders.
They are $30 each but for a problem cylinder well worth the expense.
Thank you Steve for a great product.
http://www.wrenchrat.com/index.php?r=5
