SOT: Need machinist input on project idea Options

[Dr Evil]

I am looking at my options on machining my corvair/VW power plant for the bus. I have come up with a few questions and realize that I have largely been going at this alone and could use input from those who know more than me.
1) I am considering taking the money I would spend to have the p/c machined and buying a mini mill so I can do it myself. Is this foolish? Is it possible? To see what I am going to need to do, look below.

Trim the type 1 cylinder skirt, and drill new holes in the fins for the corvair head stud pattern:



Trim piston skirts to make room for opposing rod end and bolt:


Trim center cylinder side fins down:


2) I will also need to get the block and heads bored out, the valve guides replaced and reamed to the right size, and the rods punched out and oil holes added. If anyone here is up to doing that stuff, let me know as I am looking for a less expensive alternative. But, for the cylinders and pistons, I am considering trying it myself.

[smdubovsky]

Zach,
The fun is in doing it yourself. Because you can. This stuff usually isn't rocket science. If you know: remove "x" amt from the cyl skirts, anyone can do it. If its a trade secret then its is better left to the pros.

Mike,
Oh man, FORGET it. You won't get anything done on that toy (well, maybe the pistons). Notice the 11.5" max Z. An endmill + holder is at least 3" leaving you 8.5". A drill chuck+drill eats up even more. A boring head is WAY more. Then you have to worry about fixturing. If you can clamp straight to the table its less of a problem, but a vice eats into that. Are the pistojns flat topped? If not, you're going to have to put something under them. Very quickly you can see the difficulty in machining even something as small as a piston. Cylinders are out of the question.

Bigger machines like:
http://www.grizzly.com/products/Mill-Drill...chine-25/G1005Z
turn up on CL for less than the small one you're looking at. It doesn't have a dovetail column but at least its bigger (and possibly? more rigid.)

The big downside of a round column is that if you have to change tools w/ varying heights you might have to move the column. That 'loses' your X/Y location. Say you want to drill and then mill an small amount - all w/ relative precision. drill+chuck stick out 6+". End mill is 3". = 3" difference. The 3-5/8" spindle travel means you only can mill 5/8" deep w/o moving the Z. Once you move the Z, it will also rotate slightly side to side, so you completely have to re-indicate off edges to rezero the dials. If you're patient you can do the job, but it'd make me want to blow my head off. While its a limitation, its far less of one than the little machine. Plus, you can bolt a vice to the table and leave it there. Once aligned and tightened down, you are GUARANTEED that anything you put in it be square w/o dicking around for 10-20mins EVERYTIME trying to to bolt something to the table.