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  • Megasquirt crank sensor mounting questions

    Mounting a crank trigger for the first time for use with megasquirt. Have a universal 36-1 wheel and an sensor from an escort. Have a roughed in mount started but have questions before going farther.

    How precise does the mount need to be and how much if any adjustment is needed? Right now at TDC the crank sensor is aligned to the center of the 5th tooth but is at a slight angle. Have made it so the gap between the wheel and sensor can be adjusted. Does there need to be adjustment from tooth to tooth? Say a 10 degree adjustment or anything? Or can some misalignment be compensated with the crank offset trigger tool in the software. Not sure if I am making sense.

  • #2
    The trigger angle tool in TunerStudio can compensate for it. 5th tooth should be good enough, I went for 7th tooth BTDC. I would try and get as perpendicular to the tooth as possible though with a VR sensor since it's a wave that signal and the slight angle might mess up the wave pattern, or not, or the VR filtering will make it a non-issue. If it were me I'd probably try it to see what the MS sees.

    I have some adjustment to square it up and move it closer or further from the wheel. Mine's a hall sensor though.
    Last edited by TheSilverBuick; January 25, 2013, 09:04 PM.
    Escaped on a technicality.

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    • #3
      The position should be ok, but I'm worried that your bracket is far too flimsy. Vibrations in the sensor mount can cause all kinds of hellish trigger problems.

      Here's a bracket I made a while back that works well:





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      • #4
        Yes it is flimsy, I think I will make a new mount and make it more sturdy. Going to get the hall effect sensor from DIY and go from there. Thank you

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        • #5
          Sean, use the Ford sensor, that's what we used on our EMC engine - it works great! unless you already committed to the Hall sensor. If going Hall I'd prefer the Cherry sensor over the DIY one only because I have more experience with the Ford and Cherry brands.

          Karl is right. I recently helped a guy out, albeit with a 4-cyl 2.5 Iron Duke engine, traced all his problems back to a vibrating sensor bracket. You can't get them too stiff but it's easy to be too flimsy.

          The Trigger logger function is your friend, make sure you are running MS2-Extra firmware too. Cranking tests with the logger running wll show you if your polarity is correct etc before you even try starting the engine.

          Karl, your fab work is *outstanding*

          -Scott
          www.realtuners.com - catch the RealTuners Radio Podcast on Youtube, Facebook, iTunes, and anywhere else podcasts are distributed!

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          • #6
            My original design I decided was too flimsy. Never ran it this way. The box tubing is rock solid.

            Escaped on a technicality.

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            • #7
              Originally posted by dieselgeek View Post
              Sean, use the Ford sensor, that's what we used on our EMC engine - it works great! unless you already committed to the Hall sensor. If going Hall I'd prefer the Cherry sensor over the DIY one only because I have more experience with the Ford and Cherry brands.

              Karl is right. I recently helped a guy out, albeit with a 4-cyl 2.5 Iron Duke engine, traced all his problems back to a vibrating sensor bracket. You can't get them too stiff but it's easy to be too flimsy.

              The Trigger logger function is your friend, make sure you are running MS2-Extra firmware too. Cranking tests with the logger running wll show you if your polarity is correct etc before you even try starting the engine.

              Karl, your fab work is *outstanding*

              -Scott
              Thanks, Scott! That engine is running Megasquirt. I'm surprised you don't know about it.

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              • #8
                Escaped on a technicality.

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by Karl Buchka View Post
                  Thanks, Scott! That engine is running Megasquirt. I'm surprised you don't know about it.
                  Wow, you mean there are two Mega Squirt projects that the MS King doesn't know about, he must be slipping.......

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                  • #10
                    :rofl:

                    Wait, where is Team SuperBuickGuy, Forum Police when I need him?
                    Last edited by dieselgeek; January 27, 2013, 01:11 PM.
                    www.realtuners.com - catch the RealTuners Radio Podcast on Youtube, Facebook, iTunes, and anywhere else podcasts are distributed!

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                    • #11
                      Thanks for the advice guys. Already ordered the DIY hall sensor before seeing these posts. It looks the same as the Cherry to me. Have revised the mount, just waiting for the sensor to arrive to finish it.

                      How critical is the sensor to center of the tooth? How far can it be off?

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                      • #12
                        no experience with the DIY sensor here but the ford VR sensor will tolerate a lot of misalignment.
                        www.realtuners.com - catch the RealTuners Radio Podcast on Youtube, Facebook, iTunes, and anywhere else podcasts are distributed!

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                        • #13
                          It depends on the trigger wheel thickness, but it doesn't need to be dead center. If you have either edge of the trigger wheel over the center, you should be fine as a rule of thumb.

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                          • #14
                            Does this alignment look good enough? What is the best clearance wheel to sensor? Should I put any thread locker on the sensor threads when tightening for the last time?

                            Thanks



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                            • #15
                              I didn't loctite anything and mine hasn't moved at all. That design still worries me about vibration, but your sensor is closer to the 90* angle than mine was so it's probably quite a bit better.
                              Escaped on a technicality.

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