Years ago I built a jet engine as a bit of an experiment, using mainly scrap metal and various leftover car parts.

Every now and then I drag it out and try some new parts or modifications.

It’s based on a small turbocharger from a Mitsubishi Starion, and currently has a combustion chamber from a Rolls Royce Dart turboprop engine.

Last week I took it along to an event called Dorkbot (http://dorkbot.org/dorkbotsyd/), which is a monthly gathering of people interested in electronic / mechanical / scientific art performances, displays, and experiments.

I fired up the jet engine, made a lot of noise - then gave a bit of a talk on how it works, how it was built, and what I have planned for it in future.

The second presenter on the night showed information and video from an installation artwork / experiment he did in California, where an earthquake simulator was set up in the middle of earthquake territory and was used to display amplified real time seismic activity from the whole state!

The event was a lot of fun, and definitely worth going to if you’re interested in all manner of crazy experimental things!

I just hope I didn’t offend the neighbours too much with the jet, and they’ll have me back to show some of my less noisy projects

For anyone interested in home built jet engines, have a look at this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pTUeuEv8Uc

Also check out this very serious backyard jet: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VX5U8DlBzzk

The owner of this Silvia wanted better brake performance for track days and supersprints.

He bought a set of Project Mu HC+ pads, ProConcept two piece slotted front rotors, and RDA standard replacement rear rotors.

All these parts are a fairly straightforward bolt on job, except that the two piece rotors’ alloy hat is larger in diameter than the standard ones and will foul on most brake pads without modification.

I trimmed down the brake pad backing plates with an angle grinder, and it all went together nicely.

After that it was just a matter of changing the brake fluid and bleeding any air out of the system- ready for the track!

This car had a bit of a history of overheating.

It was taken to a workshop and had the head gasket replaced, but it continued to overheat. The workshop kept fixing the symptoms (blown hoses, etc) but not the cause!

By the time I saw it the head gasket was leaking badly and it was most likely that the head was damaged - making another head gasket replacement unlikely to be successful.

I sourced a replacement engine with half the k’s on it and swapped it over.

After a service, a bit of a tune and a general checkup the new engine was running nicely - and no more overheating!