Has anyone done business with or had any machine work done by Christian Garibaldi, aka Darkhorse, aka Garibaldi Imagineering, LLC? If so, please PM me with your thoughts, experiences and the nature of the work that was performed. I haven't seen him post here in awhile. I have a feeling he stopped posting due to his lack of official vendor status.

Thanks

 

I wish they would invite him back... he was more of a high end specialty than a vendor... most couldn't afford him anyway. I really enjoyed his posts, and marveled at his skill.

 

I know, i used to like looking as his pictures and knowledgeable input.

 

Agreed - just thinking about him the toher day

 

I could not afford his work, but I sure do like seeing it. It's like XXX machine work **** or something, just some amazing work. I would love to have that equipment and the skills to use em'.

 

I doubt I could afford him either. Unfortunately because of the distance I am away from his shop I can't afford to haul my parts to him to have him assess the level of effort required to do a port, polish, blueprint & balance. I'm probably going to stick with a local machine shop specializing in performance builds. I was hoping to get a feel for whether it was worth the effort to work with him.

 

Why is he banned?

 

I don't know if he was ever officially banned. I was merely speculating that he might have been asked to "buzz off" since the powers that be may have thought he was drumming up business. All the pics he posted have his contact info on them. Pure speculation on my part...

 

he was a pro. I have a lot of respect for him. I called him once and he took his time explaining and answering all my questions.

When my engine rebuild 2.3 is on the door he will be the one to install the kit

 

Anyone try emailing/PMing/calling him to find out what happened? I was just thinking about that fuel cell holder he made...

 

He is still around, but has taken on a new job. I've already forwarded this thread to him. Hopefully he will respond.

 

Hope he comes back around... seemed to be a real stand up guy.

 

Yep. I just talked to Dickie at Darkhorse. He spoke very highly of Christian but indicated that Christian had decided to move on.

Oh, and for what it's worth, I was very, very strongly advised to avoid stroking the 4G63 by Christian's mentor (56 years of experience building race motors) if I had any interest in keeping the bottom end together.

BTW, 2 to 3 month lead time for basic blueprinting & balancing services...

 

propellerhead - Can you provide a little more insight on this - please. I am considering getting an evo, but only if I can add more displacement by getting a stroker kit. What specifically is the problem with putting on a stroker kit on the 4G63????

 

It's not a problem per se. It's a matter of simple physics. With the increased crank throw you get an increase in velocity. The increase in velocity increases inertial forces exponentially, placing alot of stress on the rod ends, wrist pins and pistons.

Basically what this means is that the parts have to be of very high quallity and put together very meticulously if you think you're going to run the motor at high RPMs at extended periods of time, such as those encountered at the track. I'm thinking that the machine work for motors intended for "normal" street use is not as critical.

I think alot of what Dickie was saying is his conventional wisdom based on his years of experience. The quality of materials and quality of machine work available to your average Joe is probably much better than it was 20 years ago. As a result I think the bar has been raised in terms of what stresses can be placed on parts and motors in general.

While his comments caused me to stop and think for a minute, it hasn't detered me from considering a stroker. It's just helped me place more emphasis on quality parts, machining and assembly.

I'm learning about this myself. Anyone who has practical experience should jump in and help my "bench racing" efforts.