Winch Engine Broken

Hello from Japan,

Let me ask for your advice on Tost Engine replacement.
Our TOST 2 drum winch engine (type: Olds 455 Bigblock) blew out last week
and it looks we need to replace it with spare engine.

If anyone know where to search second-hand engine which may fit, our club
appreciates to hear any info.

Unfortunately our club can't afford to buy new one from TOST or Skylaunch,
let us know your idea about any cost-saving option...


Due to lack of forum or good network of glider in Japan, let us seek for
support from UK!

Best,
Ueda

At 03:50 07 July 2017, Tetsuya Ueda wrote:
Hello from Japan,

Let me ask for your advice on Tost Engine replacement.
Our TOST 2 drum winch engine (type: Olds 455 Bigblock) blew out
last wee
and it looks we need to replace it with spare engine.

If anyone know where to search second-hand engine which may
fit, our clu
appreciates to hear any info.

Unfortunately our club can't afford to buy new one from TOST or
Skylaunch
let us know your idea about any cost-saving option...


Due to lack of forum or good network of glider in Japan, let us
seek fo
support from UK!

Best,
Ueda




Ueda,

Difficult! You are looking for an engine fitted in American cars
about 40 years ago. Your best chance must be the USA. Very few
of these cars reached Europe, and I suspect even fewer reached
Japan. Reconditioned engines and spare parts are not easy to find.

We had the same problem in the UK a few years ago. We couldn't
find an Oldsmobile 455 but we were able to find a damaged car with
a Pontiac 403 engine. This fitted straight in. It is not as powerful
as the 455 but it did let us launch Duo Discus gliders.

If you can't find an Oldsmobile or Pontiac engine be aware that
Chevrolet engines of the same age may not fit. Oldsmobile used 6
bolts between engine and gearbox, Chevy used 5 so they don't
match up. If you change engine and gearbox is the propeller shaft
the same? Unfortunately you may have a lot of work to do even
when you find another engine.

Perhaps the US glider pilots can help.

Jim Thomson

On Thursday, July 6, 2017 at 10:00:06 PM UTC-6, Tetsuya Ueda wrote:
Hello from Japan,

Let me ask for your advice on Tost Engine replacement.
Our TOST 2 drum winch engine (type: Olds 455 Bigblock) blew out last week
and it looks we need to replace it with spare engine.

If anyone know where to search second-hand engine which may fit, our club
appreciates to hear any info.

Unfortunately our club can't afford to buy new one from TOST or Skylaunch,
let us know your idea about any cost-saving option...


Due to lack of forum or good network of glider in Japan, let us seek for
support from UK!

Best,
Ueda

Try Ebay, I found 2 Olds 455 complete engines for sale plus a complete rebuilt kit.
Best. Tom. #711.

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odk...ne&_sacat=6001

Many different sources in the US. Here is another:

https://www.powertrainproducts.net/P...dRoC yCDw_wcB

What "blew out"?
If it was a head gasket, easy fix.
Broken piston, a little worse.
Worn out rod/main bearings, not bad.
Broken connecting rod which put a hole in the block, pretty bad.

If just parts, not sure who ships to Japan from the US.
Maybe try:
RockAuto.com
SummitRacing.com
PAW.com (Performance Auto Warehouse)

Hi Ueda,

Our club in Holland has a tost winch for sale for a very sharp price.
it has little hours and comes with a spare olds mobile 455 engine.

You can contact me at sgagrunder on gmail.com.


best regards
Stephan

Hello from Chicago! Our club recently built our Tost winch from a kit and the engine Tost reccomends is the Chevrolet 454 HO. It is still in production and in the USA is easy to find at all major online auto parts suppliers. We bought ours from Jegs for about 5500 dollars. Your challenge is going to be the shipping. Do not buy from Tost or Skylaunch! Why ship an engine from Detroit to Europe to Japan? Order from the online source who will ship for the lowest cost.

Doug Tarmichael
Sky Soaring Glider Club
Dtarmichael at Comcast dot net

At 14:00 07 July 2017, wrote:
Hello from Chicago! Our club recently built our Tost winch from a
kit and
t=
he engine Tost reccomends is the Chevrolet 454 HO. It is still in
productio=
n and in the USA is easy to find at all major online auto parts
suppliers.
=
We bought ours from Jegs for about 5500 dollars. Your challenge is
going
to=
be the shipping. Do not buy from Tost or Skylaunch! Why ship an
engine
fro=
m Detroit to Europe to Japan? Order from the online source who
will ship
fo=
r the lowest cost.

Doug Tarmichael=20
Sky Soaring Glider Club
Dtarmichael at Comcast dot net

A word of caution! The Chevy 454 is not the same engine as an
Oldsmobile 455. In the era in which the Tost winch was built every
GM division designed and built their own engines, and they are not
readily interchangeable. Believe it or not these two engines have
near enough the same swept volume but different bores and
strokes!

Totally agree about sourcing from the US - European middlemen
don't add useful value.

On Friday, July 7, 2017 at 12:00:06 AM UTC-4, Tetsuya Ueda wrote:
Hello from Japan,

Let me ask for your advice on Tost Engine replacement.
Our TOST 2 drum winch engine (type: Olds 455 Bigblock) blew out last week
and it looks we need to replace it with spare engine.

If anyone know where to search second-hand engine which may fit, our club
appreciates to hear any info.

Unfortunately our club can't afford to buy new one from TOST or Skylaunch,
let us know your idea about any cost-saving option...


Due to lack of forum or good network of glider in Japan, let us seek for
support from UK!

Best,
Ueda

Hi Ueda,

I agree with all of the other advice - there are many of these engines available in the US. We used to do auto tow with a first-generation Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser wagon with the 455 engine. There were hundreds of used ones available and we would routinely find replacements with only a couple of phone calls to salvage yards.

If there are other Tost winches in Japan, you might be better off buying a couple of engines and having them shipped in a container. For a Less than Container Load (LCL) you should be able to get something for well under $1000. The trick will be to find someone in the US who can help with the logistics.

Erik Mann (P3)

Hi Ueda

I believe Skylaunch have some used 455 Olds engines in stock so it would be

worth contacting them to check price. Price for a used engine will be much

cheaper than for new. European gliding clubs may also have used/spare Olds

455 in stock so it worth advertising on here and segelflug.de or the
various
Glider for sale pages on Facebook.

Otherwise best option is to buy a used or reconditioned Olds 455 from the
USA. This is the simplest fix to replace exactly what you have.

If you convert to Chevy 454 or 502 you'll end up changing various
mountings,
ancillaries, transmission (or using an adapter plate), maybe changing
propshaft length, various parts of the fuel/intake system, exhausts etc.
The
Chevy is a slightly better engine in some respects but the conversion is
bigger than you think because of these implications. It will be a much more

expensive and time-consuming task.

So I suggest your job is to find the best deal for price, engine condition
and
support for a used Olds 455 shipped to Japan, then to swap it over
including
all your existing ancillaries etc. It would also be worth comparing this
price
with an engine rebuild of your existing engine if there are no holes in the

engine block etc. How major was the failure?

Good luck

Andy Holmes
BGA Winch Advisor & Skylaunch consultant




At 14:56 07 July 2017, Papa3 wrote:
On Friday, July 7, 2017 at 12:00:06 AM UTC-4, Tetsuya Ueda wrote:
Hello from Japan,=20
=20
Let me ask for your advice on Tost Engine replacement.=20
Our TOST 2 drum winch engine (type: Olds 455 Bigblock) blew out last
week
and it looks we need to replace it with spare engine.
=20
If anyone know where to search second-hand engine which may fit, our
club
appreciates to hear any info.
=20
Unfortunately our club can't afford to buy new one from TOST or
Skylaunch=
,
let us know your idea about any cost-saving option...
=20
=20
Due to lack of forum or good network of glider in Japan, let us seek
for
support from UK!
=20
Best,
Ueda

Hi Ueda,=20

I agree with all of the other advice - there are many of these engines
avai=
lable in the US. We used to do auto tow with a first-generation
Oldsmobil=
e Custom Cruiser wagon with the 455 engine. There were hundreds of
used
o=
nes available and we would routinely find replacements with only a couple
o=
f phone calls to salvage yards. =20

If there are other Tost winches in Japan, you might be better off buying
a
=
couple of engines and having them shipped in a container. For a Less
than
=
Container Load (LCL) you should be able to get something for well under
$10=
00. The trick will be to find someone in the US who can help with the
logis=
tics. =20

Erik Mann (P3)