New Chinese Made Aluminum Blamed for Engine Failures (1 Viewer)

[rocketman]

Racers are concerned over Chinese made Aluminum Rods and Bolts after recent engine failures! It could be end of the season fatigue but the folks I'm talking to say no it's the new aluminum manufactured in China.

Go to Rich Bailey Home Page to read more.

 

[Nick Name]

You can get mil spec aluminum that is not manufactured in China. Are the rod manufacturers trying to buy the cheapest material? Or are the rods manufactured in China and the bores just sized here like most of the steel rods now being sold.

We had an issue with "import" titanium a couple of years ago. Nothing structural, it just wouldn't machine correctly. We now specify domestic and that is what we get.

 

[NCC250]

Racers are concerned over Chinese Aluminum Rods and Bolts after recent engine failures! It could be end of the season fatigue but the folks I'm talking too say no it's the new aluminum manufactured in China.

Go to Rich Bailey Home Page to read more.

Now ive heard it all....

 

[HEMI6point1]

So let's get this straight. These people are trying to save a few bucks by buying parts that are made by a bunch of over-worked and non-caring people in a communist dictatorship, and then complaining when they break?

This is what you call "the Walmart Mentality." Spend a little more and get quality stuff that's made here, for crying out loud!

 

[Speed1288]

As the saying goes, **** in, **** out.

 

[Mooseman]

When it comes to materieals (aluminium, stainless steel, any carbon steel, any material really) stay away from china or any of the stuff made in lower end countries.

I work in a tool and die shop here in new zealand and we do general and precision machining as well as the tool work.

Chinese aluminium is not fantastic, what is worse is the stainless we have been getting we dont know where it is coming from but the suppliers are selling us junk stainless steel.

We deal in metric mostly down here and we can't order H8 stainless at all which should be +0-.03mm tolerance but we are getting stuff that ranges from .05 oversize to .05 undersize or worse and none of it is completely round. Just junk.

Never knowingly buy raw materials that is made in these places they just arent at spec.

Thats not a china bashing, if the stuff was upto spec it wouldnt be a problem.

 

[Randy]

...and here's why electric rates continue to "skyrocket" and energy consuming companies like Alcoa are being be forced to move operations overseas in order to survive, which affects us all:

YouTube/Electric rates will skyrocket under my plan.

This isn't political, it's facts of life today in America and is being implemented based on junk science by the pres through the EPA. And it has a direct impact on all forms of racing, not just drag racing.

.

 

[Super Mod]

...and here's why electric rates continue to "skyrocket" and energy consuming companies like Alcoa are being be forced to move operations overseas in order to survive, which affects us all:

YouTube/Electric rates will skyrocket under my plan.

This isn't political, it's facts of life today in America and is being implemented based on junk science by the pres through the EPA. And it has a direct impact on all forms of racing, not just drag racing.

.

See that's the problem, the person who is uninformed or ill-informed or is just plain stupid gets to vote. And his vote counts just as much as yours. That's what I love about democracy.

 

[Bullet]

I would never have bought the "Hunan Panda" connecting rods for my fuel engine.....

 

[rocketman]

There are still 700 aluminum foundries in the USA so it's best to check with the manufacture before ordering parts to see where they are getting their materials. Chances are the best rod manufacturers are still getting their materials from USA foundries. But, some are not.

 

[rckymtn3]

pair rods with this for a nice theme dinner....

good 'ole Chinese Nitro

ps....let me be the first to suggest that in this country too, there is sub-par manufacturing and smelting....there's a reason for choices, it's up to people to make the right ones.

 

[clwill]

So let me see if I have this right. Companies have made the choice to buy cheaper, less well made materials for critical engine components. They could buy better quality materials from numerous US companies, but choose to buy cheap. And their customers, looking only at the bottom line choose to purchase the cheapest component without regard to quality.

Yet the fault for those bad choices and the resulting failures is not the companies that made those choices, but rather somehow it is a political choice and the fault for this lies with the government.

Wow.

 

[mltdwn12]

Reminds me of a quote from Armageddon

You know we're sitting on four million pounds of fuel, one nuclear weapon and a thing that has 270,000 moving parts built by the lowest bidder. Makes you feel good, doesn't it?

 

[mw6789]

So let me see if I have this right. Companies have made the choice to buy cheaper, less well made materials for critical engine components. They could buy better quality materials from numerous US companies, but choose to buy cheap. And their customers, looking only at the bottom line choose to purchase the cheapest component without regard to quality.

Yet the fault for those bad choices and the resulting failures is not the companies that made those choices, but rather somehow it is a political choice and the fault for this lies with the government.

Wow.

The fault as you call it lies in a lot of places (including the government), but an earlier poster hit the nail on the head with the "Wal Mart mentality" comment. I own a business in a industry that relies heavily on imported goods--the classic car restoration parts industry. Virtually all the sheet metal used in classic car restoration is produced in Taiwan. Along with most of the moldings, emblems, and plastic parts. Mostly because of tooling costs being tremendously cheaper overseas than in the states. A customer of mine who owns a small injection molding company came in my shop one day and picked up a part on the counter and read outloud the "Made in Taiwan" sticker on the part. He placed it back on the counter and said the next time I had a customer *****ing about 4 buck a gallon fuel, to show him that sticker. "Everybody wanted cheap goods and now we have proped up their economy and they are buying more and more fuel because of it" he said. And its the truth. I have customers complaining about $200 for a 67 Camaro front fender, when the same fender would be $800 were it available from GM and made in the states. And by the way, the General also imports parts from Taiwan and other countries. Bottom line is buyers want cheap goods---and really dont care where they come from or who it hurts to get them. We have a "ME FIRST" mentality in this country. I want cheap goods and to hell with it costing my neighbor his job. We sell "Made in the USA" emblems and 9 times out of 10 the buyer will opt for the half the price Taiwan reproduction. Sadly most of the restored American muscle cars are mostly built of Taiwan parts.

 

[clwill]

Fully agree Mike. It's kind of silly how often some people have to be reminded of some very old truths: "you get what you pay for", and its corollary "there's no such thing as a free lunch". That part is cheaper for a reason, and it's not often that the reason is magical -- someone didn't just happen to figure out a way to make two identical things cost 25% different. They are not the same.

I'm fine with people who buy cheap things when they only need cheap things. I've bought a $1.50 styrofoam cooler from WallyWorld when I just needed a throwaway cooler for the day. But if you're expecting to it to be (or complaining that it's not) made the same as a $35 Igloo, or a $100 Yeti, you're an idiot.

 

[Doolie]

So let's get this straight. These people are trying to save a few bucks by buying parts that are made by a bunch of over-worked and non-caring people in a communist dictatorship, and then complaining when they break?

This is what you call "the Walmart Mentality." Spend a little more and get quality stuff that's made here, for crying out loud!

No, it seems the Chinese aluminum is all that is available to manufacturers. That is the thrust of the quoted article.

 

[dboxell]

Same issue with Chromoly tubing, although you can still find the good stuff with the "green" coating. The chineese tubing is black on the outside.

 

[Randy]

Two Questions:

1. Who the F*ck is making aluminum racing connecting rods for American Drag Racers in China?! (It's not like the price of rods and bolts has gone down to the point to justify not buying American made.)

2. Who is buying sh*t for their race car that says "Made in China" if there isn't a comparatively priced American alternative.

Check it out, you can go waste your time and vote for president...the president isn't the reason our economy sucks. VOTE WITH YOUR DOLLAR! It's different when you can't find American made tennis shoes to buy, but if you can afford to build a race car, you should be looking at the box where the sh*t is made. Forgive me for getting rilled up, but I've lived in 3 American cities that are in ruins cause those jobs are elsewhere...and it didn't have to be if America would've equalized trade with those countries.

There are some knocks on American made goods that I can't defend. But after working for a Chinese manufacture in L.A....we can all agree that American Made is superior to Chinese/Taiwanese more often then not.

I think your questions are answered by Norman Hechtkoff in the post just above yours. It's where the material is coming from, not the manufacturing process.

 

[Jim]

Just an observation (I'm conflicted by an open trade philosophy and knowing that cheap ain't - in the long run - always that cheap:

The I-Pad is made in China. It ain't cheap - I guess it's a good prodiuct - I wonder how much it would cost if it was, at least, assembled in the USA.

There are lot's of reasons manufacturing has gone off-shore (not the least of which is union work-rule inflexibility in many industries) but, I'd like to see WalMart retuurn to the old days when they championed "Made in America". If they (or Target or Searcs or whoever) could market a USA Quality branding, it just might work. The question is: would the quality be there and how much of a premium would folks have (or be willing) to pay?

 

[Les]

I think your questions are answered by Norman Hechtkoff in the post just above yours. It's where the material is coming from, not the manufacturing process.

I stand corrected...which brings me to another question:

Do the rod manufactures take random tensile test of the raw material. If there is that big of a difference between the Chinese aluminum and whatever they were getting before...wouldn't you re-engineer the rod to accommodate the weaker material?