You Asked... How Long Does It Take to Make an SMX Block? 310 Hours So Far. I'll Show You Why.

SME Merch! www.stevemorrisengines.com
To Become a Channel Member - / stevemorrisracing

[@StewMac570]

Perfect timing to add the pic of old Cleat and whistle. 19:15

[@Hacob_R]

Made me chuckle

[@riccocool]

Hemi

[@ronbuckner8179]

If there is an individual in your world that can break something, Cleetus is your man!

[@bobroberts2371]

When I posted in other vids that C breaks stuff on purpose for clicks, his fan boyz got all out of shape. Well, what do they have to say now?

[@scottr9900]

Gotta add Cleeter here.

[@thomasphilyaw8593]

I could watch the milling process 24/7. You should live stream a whole block from start to finish. You would get thousands of people checking in ALL the time to see the progress.

[@peternewman958]

Totally brilliant idea, STEVE Don’t worry if not much is happening at any point just stream it as it would be a whole lot better than most of the crap that gets streamed. It’s worth a shot. Loving this from Queensland Australia.

[@rockkhound943]

I would, I work for myself. I would put it on the TV...all day

[@stevelee5724]

I reckon, mate ! Cheers from New Zealand

[@tedjones-ho2zk]

Great idea

[@thedude7726]

100%

[@marklowe330]

Being a disabled machinist /programmer, I enjoy watching you go through the process of working out the setup and programming for this block. CEE and your channel are about the only machining that holds my interest. You have got to step up and get a lathe. The programming is actually easier than mill programming. Spend the money on conversational control. Saves a lot of time doing small runs.

[@physics_peon8266]

Yes to CEE! Late the the party there only been watching that one for a year but man what an amazing channel and crew. It really is cool how the wide the spectrum is amongst viewers makes it pretty special in the space for sure.

[@jaymiller393]

Conversational is garbage. Lol

[@themechanician7526]

Watching the Mazak Integrex work on Edge Precision is pretty awesome.

[@robertmason8341]

I like the contrast you get with Curtis and Karen’s videos (CEE) often showing the really big machining jobs on hydraulic cylinders and such for the mining industry! Interesting too is it’s just him and his wife, a 2 man show, so to say (man and woman I know).

[@dereknissen1602]

Wish I could understand how to program!!!

[@austincassell4741]

I'm sure most will agree with me on this one, but your channel is one of the few channels I will watch till the outro screen. I don't care what it's about or whether or not I can afford it, the amount of knowledge you share with us is crazy. Not many people would tell you straight up what you have into a project and ESSENTIALLY not that they're loosing money on something. I am SOOOOO glad Garrett pushed you into making videos.

[@michaelkennedy2528]

Make Steve Morris snow globes with those tiny chips with the wagon as the feature in the globe.

[@BryanR83]

Thats creative as hell, I love it

[@doctorprick2843]

I`d buy one, not for $7000 though. Merry

[@llewellynquay9463]

*Back in my day*, we made those things the old fashioned way! With a broken hacksaw and a dull File!!! You Kids today don't know how easy you got it!

[@gailtaylor1636]

Yep. Uphill both ways.😂

[@llewellynquay9463]

@@gailtaylor1636 In 2 feet of Snow!!!

[@gizmofish57]

barefoot!

[@ninjapumkin]

Walking backwards

[@jgpittman1]

You mean to tell me you guys had a file?!

[@darryloertel6559]

What a beautiful block. That's like a piece of art sitting on top of that raw billet block. If I ever have the money saved, I'll buy one of those for sure.

[@dereknissen1602]

Fabricator here. Thank you for sharing so much wisdom and knowledge. God blessed you, and you do him well sir. Building cars over 30 years, nothing beats a Machinest build. The craftsmanship and perfectionist from a Machinest is second to none, and not economical. :)

[@Togo-420]

19:13 forgot Jackstand Jimmy

[@garthp9874]

Thanks for taking us along on your journey. You are making great progress. Can't wait for Val to make a pass in her new car with one of these new engines.

[@glenclifton4563]

Nobody teaches like Steve!! I bet you have more than that in just parts. Please add it all up for us. Thanks for everything!!

[@robertsemple1092]

I’m sure it’s been said already but I’m going to say it again. That’s a work of art. Truly a jewel in any engine bay.

[@joeeyman7503]

Wow! Since the 70’s machine work sure has advanced, exploded is more like it! Our local machine shop was the local gearhead hangout. Steve , you making a block from billet is 🤯 mind blowing!

[@michaeljones3827]

I could watch this all day. Thank you Steve, for giving us an inside look at something most engine builders would NEVER release to the public. This is only one thing that makes you stand out. The other is that you are just an all around good person.

[@Smokkedandslammed]

You should look into those spinning windows they use on container ships during heavy seas

[@Beek88]

I work in a machine shop, we make hydraulic cylinders/ mining equipment parts. That's a nice piece of machine you have there!! Keep it coming!!

[@dannystephenson4855]

I find it absolutely fascinating!! I could sit and watch the entire process from block to engine. The process, tools, tech and materials involved plus the final product is simply bad ass!!

[@purebredamericanmutt]

Caution may learn something. I always learn something on your videos. I'm watching Kevin build Vals car and can't wait for it to make a pass. Everyone loves my sugar mamma shirt

[@randomfpv22]

That is an incredible process. My last job I got to run the cnc. I’m no machinist but learned a lot and thoroughly enjoyed the job. I miss it!

[@ppark2123]

Man, it would be a dream to have a steve morris engine!

[@nickvdavis123]

The technology in machining and metalworking is amazing! Excellent demonstration that you don't just press a button and an engine spits out the other end.

[@wattson4051]

Love watching your vids when I'm not at work 😅😅 I live being a performance machinist so much I watch machinist vids when I'm not machining 🤣

[@051570orion]

I have machined cast parts for 11 years and it definitely moves a lot quicker than machining a huge block of billet aluminum. Great and informative video Steve God Bless y'all 👍🙏

[@kentmackey2717]

Awesome stuff. That is a beautiful hunk of metal. The precision of those machines and the programs just blows my mind. Looking forward to seeing what is next!

[@michaelcummings1862]

I work for a major automobile manufacturer making cast aluminum engine blocks. It's really neat to see how you do yours and the time it takes. We are die casting 4 cylinder blocks and crank 1 out every 120 seconds. Ours definitely aren't as pretty as yours. Keep up the great work!!

[@lsucody3687]

As a machinist this is beautiful all of my CNC machines are from the 90s this is like whoa what I dream of. My manual lathes are from the 40s and 50s

[@robertmason8341]

60s and 80s machines here, I’d kill for a shop full of all new Rottler and Centroid machines, I can only imagine the monthly payments though 😳

[@billbushman6686]

Really cool process! Thanks for running through it for us!

[@neilchallis5535]

Absolutely a work of art , thanks for bringing us along for the ride

[@bobbybelcher6800]

I can't believe you gave away the Sugar Moma ! that car was a keeper ! hope you get it back !

[@davidgrooms7121]

Love the machining. Being a toolmaker and cnc programmer, this is what I know and love the most. Love the channel.

[@walterhubicki5207]

This is so cool to see what's involved. Thank you for a window into this!

[@BillyCardano]

This is something far beyond craftsmanship. This is the type of art that is bewilderering to men and impressive to gods.

[@keithbailey540]

Steve isn't just an engine builder, he's a jeweler!

[@rhnstjegilrhkscvn1djhrj969]

who ever wrote the program for this is just a mad scientist

[@The50Baker]

I've been a cnc machinist and programmer for 13 years. I'd love to be a part of Steve Morris engines

[@380.motorsports]

Love the details of the machining process. I’m always learning something new from your videos.

[@madeiraoven]

Steve that is absolutely the nicest piece of Art I have ever seen. I have a Haas Mill in my garage because I enjoy machining. You are living in a wonderland, enjoy.

[@travispeoples]

The amount of time, money and dedication just to get to this point in the process is hard to comprehend.

[@kenneth-hz2tk]

awesome video! thanks for letting us hear the machining sounds w/o music

[@kiwidiesel]

Wow even that pedestal holding the engine is art in action.

[@Justgaragenit]

Great video. It was really cool to see the entire machine process from a raw black of aluminum into that beast of an engine block. Can’t wait to see it on the dyno

[@spridgetmidget9238]

This is a lost art. You may not think that it is, but it really is. In a production setting (one block per machine every 60 secs, but 35 machines that do it in individual steps, one drills and taps, one faces, one creates new location points, one bores, one hones, one deburs, one adds freeze plugs and loctite), I would often go in and loosen the bolts on a location pad and retorque just a little bit tighter and it would kick the position say 3 to 4 microns so it would go from out of spec to into spec. The tools used to measure these parts is more incredible than the parts themselves. Love your content Steve 😘

[@charlestorruella8591]

This is not a dying art man it's mostly new technology come on they didn't start making bullet blocks till the 90's dude that's so funny "it's a dying art"lol I can't stop laughing

[@Jerry-jy7jm]

I'll bet a lot of folks are wondering about Brock. If I was Steve I wouldn't say his name, that talent is very expensive lol Definitely not a lost art ,but not cheap

[@tabbott429]

@@Jerry-jy7jm Its not really that expensive to get a CNC operator. Its the programmer that does most of the hard stuff which is mostly done by CAD/CAM software as well. I did this stuff in the 90s and it was awesome to see what computers are capable of. Set your location points and hit the start button. The machine does the rest after you proof out the first piece to make sure the program is correct. We had button pushers for changing parts between cycles. all they had to do was make sure the part was installed in the machine at the same location every time. I even used a CNC router to make patterns for sand castings We could blow out 3 patterns a day on one machine. Before we got the machine we have to wait 1 to 2 weeks for one patterns from a pattern shop to custom make them out of wood.

[@Jerry-jy7jm]

@@tabbott429 I thought he did it all..maybe I'm wrong

[@Jerry-jy7jm]

@@tabbott429 I think that's what he does design ,programming, and prove it out with a runoff ,that's what I do, and I think most businesses do. Idk that's what I thought he was doing

[@dannyellis8112]

Great job Steve and Crew. Looks awesome! I'll have to buy 1 Stud and sleeve at a time😂. Also sweep the floors at night for the labor 🤷‍♂️

[@Sperrine08]

About time to setup a camera and do a Livestream of this machine working.

[@baddriversoflittlerock8359]

One of his past videos, he videoed almost the entire thing. But speed some of the areas up.

[@tabbott429]

You cant really see much when the coolant is flying around and the windows get distorted for hours at a time.

[@krusher74]

you really want to watch coolant splash off somthing for 60 hrs?

[@vehdynam]

Great information , and it goes a long ways to explaining the cost of playing at this level. Many thanks.

[@jeffdickerson3]

So glad to see it coming around, FYI I did svc work on the dynos years ago at dart

[@stephcooper5998]

Steve the very best showcase for the first block is in The Wagon in the Winner's Circle at your inaugural Drag and Drive. Congratulations on advancing machining technology.

[@charlestorruella8591]

The very first block is in Tom Bailey's sick 2.0 the engine that's in the wagon was the first engine cut by this machine but it was done by Tom Bailey's guy when Tom owned it but by far not the first smx

[@stephcooper5998]

Do you really believe this is the same machine?

[@onthelake9554]

@@stephcooper5998 Yes

[@Vteccer666]

Love the machining vids and any engineering in general, thanks

[@jimsimpson4385]

Steve, I think you are a genius at everything. You do what you have brought to the racing industry. Is unbelievable technology and engineering? Hats off to you and your entire crew keep up the great work.

[@Edward135i]

Congratulations Steve so awesome that all of your SMX/L stuff is made in house now.

[@billylikessoda]

I feel your excitement Steve! Congratulations to you and your team. Great video keep them coming

[@mattchew7219]

Nice work Steve! I love machine work but could probably never do the math lol!! Big brain things you’re doing over there! I hope you get a good production line going and they fly off the shelf!

[@jamessharp4361]

Incredible, Thanks for sharing your journey

[@randalltufts3321]

Epic! Still amazes me everytime I see a billet block. Great job guys

[@thomasczyz1279]

Thank you for the video and the explanation on the process and time and cost….very interesting 👍👍👍👍👍🇺🇸😎

[@S_Waltz]

Got to love seeing todays technology and advances in Haas automation tools making the impossible now possible. Thanks for sharing 🤙👍🔥😎

[@Westsideautomotive]

Amazing talent and commitment from all involved. Your guys and girls are a credit to you and your passion.

[@shvrdavid]

Technically, it is probably far longer then 310 hours.... Things like retempering between machining steps take time that would only be counted if done in house, and how long that takes is not always fixed.. This time also probably doesn't include changes made to the programming and prior parts as things get further refined. Waiting for other parts, can drastically increase times as well. Sleeves, bearings, studs, etc. CNC is great for mass production, but getting to where you produce anything in low numbers is incredibly expensive and not easy to do. The fact that you are doing as much as you are in house, is amazing from a business perspective side... That is a credit to Steve, and his entire team....

[@spridgetmidget9238]

I think that he is honest with the time, but maybe a little of the CNC programming gets left out but thats just because they have already done this so many times before. Their first CNC block/head/oilpan/intake manifold would have taken so much longer.

[@garthp9874]

Needs to figure out how to recycle all that aluminum. Steve is like Henry Ford trying to figure out how to do it faster, cheaper, better, etc. Totally amazing!

[@picklefart]

@@garthp9874one shop I worked at would recycle the chips and every quarter it was in your bonus. It wasn’t chump change and it sure made everyone clean up well 😂

[@shvrdavid]

@@garthp9874 I am sure they do recycle it.... And that is probably where the billets came from as well.

[@bigdog2024]

No way he can spend 300 hours of CNC time + operator time on every SMX plus assembly cost and parts. That would make the SMX unaffordable for drag and drive racers. That would be a $200K engine to allow Steve any profit. As they optimize things I expect the machining time to get better, A near net casting with the general outside shape and the valley cast in within a inch would also save tons of time and waste. The very first one always takes a ton more time than production.

[@michaelgroves7178]

That's a BEAUTIFUL PIECE OF ART WORK!!!!!

[@matthewmccormick2417]

Looking great Steve Sir. I think it is amazing what Brock can do with a CNC machine.

[@1320pass]

The dudes behind the scenes are the stars of the cnc show. They rock.

[@unclejimbo861]

Love the content, sir.. Keep em comin! 🇺🇲

[@christiangraham4579]

“I’m sure someone could kill it” -shows garret and whistlin diesel 😂😂😂

[@budgina]

Thanks, Steve! What an icon you are! Amazing work.

[@pineychristian]

Im glad to see this video and the progress. People can get an idea the amount of time this takes and this video is has been shorten dramatically. Also i was cracking up when you dropped Cleetus picture in say that most people cant damage your engines lol😂😂

[@davidcashin9194]

Wow Steve what a piece of art and it is easy to understand where the money goes in something as nice as that block.

[@Guesswho69650]

It's so peaceful and relaxing to watch this progress into a Bad Mama jama Steve Morris motor

[@ConstitutionalFreedomFighter]

Steve, thanks for sharing all your hard work. I have a simple question. Starting with the raw block, why can't you band saw the rough outside shape? That would leave you with some nice chunks of material that could be used for other parts, maybe even the caps.

[@metalted6128]

Super cool!! Super impressive!! SME is number one!!! Great job as always!! Making the best is NOT cheap!! For a reason!!

[@planesofpaper]

Fascinating to watch. Super cool way to control the end float.

[@richardsmith-qy6vl]

That is wild wow i didnt relize it took that long for each block. But i do understand why. Great video

[@bobroberts2371]

Crank thrust KSR just had a problem with a stock block LS using a 7 " clutch. The release bearing was flat and contacted the diaphragm fingers way too close to the pivot point. The put excessive pressure on the thrust bearing to the point the motor would slow down when the clutch was depressed, this lead to burning the thrust out. The fix was to use a cone type release bearing.

[@tabbott429]

The nice thing about getting the prototype block proofed out is then you can slowly tweak the program and tooling choices to cut seconds/minutes off the cycle time. Every second saved in the cycle saves $ the more you make. Before i became the official programmer at the shop I worked at I ran the machines and would tweak the poorly written programs for speed and i could routinely knock 5 to 10 minutes off a 45 minute cycle just with editing toolpaths to be more efficient. We even had a tooling specialist come in and we replaced slower cutting tools with faster versions to reduce cycle times even more. We were running 50 -100 pc runs with each setup so it helped a lot to get the jobs done faster. The roughing tools is where you can really make up time with more robust bigger cutters that can take more material off faster.

[@RhombusProductions]

I purposefully add useless tool paths and set the feed to 25%, stop exposing me!

[@mrlithium69]

based on that resume, i'd say You're Hired!

[@Jimmyb918]

Pretty trick was really interesting to watch thanks Steve

[@jahyoda]

That Block is Pure Jewelry....I want one just to stare at 🤤...killa work Mr. Steve

[@bigtender7655]

At 3:32 that's a spade bit drill and for it to sound better I recommend covering one side when it's done cause when it breaks thru the other side there isn't coolant hitting the bit causing it to sound rough and heat up

[@motorcityrcattack9872]

That is a piece of art. Beautiful work.

[@toddbowers5673]

It’s exciting to many people…keep it coming!

[@charliebudden5053]

Awesome video Steve love it keep em coming cheers from idaho.

[@michaelgroves7178]

It's awesome to see all of the different steps of the machine passes. I really dig it because I was a machinists 8yrs for a medical device company. Have you figured out what's the life cycle on the tooling yet? I'm just curious 😁 😉 😎😎

[@terrellharris3618]

That's really really cool too see everything that goes in too building a block unbelievable

[@reyalPRON]

it soo cool to see the chips blasting the lexan :) man.... that thing CHEWS chips like its nobodys business I for one consider this art in motion. Id even say some saxophone of the less clean type would be the appropriate backing track for this ;)

[@Deano1948]

I could swear I saw the words "Miller Lite" as you were facing the block!😃

[@j1outdoors]

That overlay of whistling diesel and cleeter had me rolling😂

[@austinsparks44]

the most badaZZ engines ever made.. THX YOU for sharing and doing the craft that you do

[@Hydrazine1000]

Steve, maybe try to do a collaboration with Titans of CNC? They would probably be able to whittle down those 310 hours! *BOOM!* (Ok, who heard this in Titan's voice while reading this?)

[@nathanvanniekerk8718]

Epic!!! Amazing project!

[@MManeval]

Steve, I am curious, what kind of life expectancy do you expect from your mill maintaining the tolerances that you have to keep? Will you have to replace ways and screws often? Great work guys!!!! Love the content!

[@chrispassarella5634]

Beautiful work

[@Vgbjj1977]

Goes from a block to a beautiful piece of jewelry Love it

[@bobbendt1698]

Nice to see you finally getting to make your own blocks.

[@ericbeeman8717]

Those machines are definitely fascinating to see at work all that goes into em and it's gonna be the next step in the evolution of ur buisness

[@timbuckingham6734]

Amazing that you have in shop billet blocks now❤

[@mickc8738]

Hey Steve and the gang👍 I would love to know your thoughts on roller bearing mains. As opposed to traditional style and why you don't use them in big hp applications pls. Love the channel ❤

[@hillbillywes100]

It's really cool! and yes both of them could reck one or more!

[@scotthultin7769]

6 👍's up Steve Morris thank you for sharing 🤗

[@zachstrassburg3729]

I miss running/programming the horizontal mill at my old job. Mazak HCN with 120 tools and 12 pallet system. I would look into some shunk hydraulic Holders if there in the budget, cuts down on the tools singing the song of their people.

[@scottr9900]

This is an awesome looking process.

[@kenzodrow9604]

definitely something to be proud of steve and crew

[@davidgough1161]

BTW, I always learn things from your videos. Thanks much for the knowledge!

[@stevemorrisracing]

Glad to hear it!