Inliners International Forums General Discussion Hi Performance Harmonic Dampers

I am having problems with dampers on my 292. They keep slipping on the hub. Has anyone tried the 8 in. damper off of a V-8 on these engines? Any input and info. appreciated.

Hud, Call or e-mail Tom Langdon. He'll straighten you out on this subject and will probably have the part you need. See his Stovebolt Engine Company ad on the back page of The 12 PORT NEWS. He's helped me solve too many problems to list and his prices are very good, too.

Thanks Dennis. I had already thought of that. I figure there was someone out there who had already tried it. I was sort of wanting to know what others had tried. I know they recommend the aftermarket dampers. One guy was using a fluid damper and the nose of his crank broke off. I figure I had rather have a spun damper than a broke crank. I sure there are some maverick mechanics out there that has tried alternatives. Thanks.

Hud,Just a thought. Tom may be at Carlisle,PA this weekend if you can't get him on the phone.How far is your home from there? Maybe you can talk face to face.

Opps.It's Dennis who lives in PA.

If you want to use a Fluid dampner why not call the people who manufacture the dampner you want to use and see if they will help.I always have my Cranksafts balanced with the dampner I plan on using.I use fliud dampners on all my racemotors but not on street motors and perfer the use of SFI approved balancers when possible.I have been machining 292 balancers to fit 235-261 motors for years with no problems to date. Just a thought--Paul

Thanks guys for all the info. and input. The rotating assembly is balanced. I have been surfing and checking out different dampers. I can't believe someone hasn't tried the V damper. I think I am going to give it a shot and see what happens. Thanks again guys.

Hud I beleive Leo Is useing the Fisher dampener on his turboed Injected 292.Hope this helps.
}[oooooo]

We had multiple problems with Fluid Dampers on 292s. If the snout did not break of the crank, we could not keep them attached, even with a Stage8 lock bolt kit.

Went with an aluminum ATI damper and just randomly check to make sure everything is ok. Been fine for three years.

Hud One other thing you need to d oto a V dampener is Either havd the hub cut Or mill the crank gear. 1/4in Which Is a better thing to do Because then The dampener sits on Both Keyways.I'm mill the gear out on my 250 for the ATI dampener. Hope this helps.}[oooooo]

Thanks guys for all the input and info. I have a V damper on it now but it may not stay long. I will be a month before I can run again so I have time to think things over. I did not modify the V damper because I needed the space to clear my cam cover. I put the bolt in the end of the cam to hold the gear on. Thanks again guys.

Hud I'm Guessing You have that nasty big lump in the cover?

Twisted- that is a for sure. If that gear walkes this time it will tear more up that I would like to think. I have to shave about a 1/16th off the V damper to get it to clear.
Bruce-I have been looking at the ATI dampers. Did you try the steel one before the alum. one? The steel one is somewhat cheaper than the alum. one. Plus I might have to modify the back a little.
Thanks guys.

After the "fun" with the fluid damper, we decided to go light. Many articles claim you need a heavy damper on an inline, especially a 292, but so far from what I have experienced, lighter the better.

I've lost three dampers on my 292 over the years. One I lost at about 65mph. One dropped to the ground when I started the engine. Another, I found to have spun when I was setting the timing. I now have a single pulley bolted to the front of the damper and I have a white line painted on the timing mark all the way out to the front pulley. The new pulley traps the outer part of the damper from flying off and the line should be easier to spot than the one I used to paint on the face of the damper.
You've all heard belts sgueal when you start an engine. Zero to 1000rpm almost instantly. This is when the belts tug the hardest on the outside ring of the L6 damper. V8's bolt their pulleys to the front.
I plan to use that front pulley for air conditioner belt. The AC belt will also go around the water pump pulley and tie them together. The power steering pump belt will tie the water pump belt back down to the damper and hopefully take some of the strain off of it. It can only help.

after reading all this I think i need some pictures or something...how does your damper fall off, mine is bolted to tre crank pulley with 3 bolts...and thats stock. I got a ford 250 I6 and the pulleys are all stock...anyone have some pics so i can get a better idea of what u guys are talking about.

They are talking about Chevrolets. Joe

trueslayer, I should drive out and show you sometime when I'm at Pick-a-Part in Chilliwack. I'm only in Langley.

Greg

that would be great...i only live about 10 min away from pick-a-part...i cant send an email or PM or anything since i cant login...i can only post replys since it does the message and login at the same time..but i'm not logged in after the message is added either...i think i'm gonna talk to the admin....but if u can send me an email, then i will be able to contact u that way since the email will be registered in hotmail then...thanks, and sorry for the slight inconvenience of this otherwise useless post.

I just finished building a 320 GMC, and I have dealt with most of the advertisers in the 12Port News. I've had some good luck with Stovebolt, but with the dampner after several discussions with Mike Kirby of Sissell's Automotive in CA I decided to buy mine from him. It is a aluminum Fisher that has the pulleys built into the dampner. If your running a performance engine, you will want a fluid dampner or the one like I have has clutch's, friction plates and springs in it to absorb the heat and torsional shake. Mike says that he has had the best luck with those. So that is what I went with, but this engine only has about 20 hour or less on it. I'm getting it ready for dyno service very soon. I hope this helps you some. Good Luck!

Bob, how about a detailed story on your buildup? I will be doing one soon.

Ed Pruss
Longmont, CO

A light weight damper for sure, I have the best luck with fisher units..the fluid dampers will eat thru the crank gear . that is why the bolt always gets loose, and metal will transfer from the crank to the hub......that is with the 8" unit web page

Update: I ran the V damper all season and did not have any slippage. I did not get to run as many times as I would have liked. A buddy continued to run the 292 damper. He removed his alt. belt but that did not help. He slipped two this season. I guess I will stick with the V damper until I start having problems again. Thanks guys.