Turbocharger turbine wheel clipping, the insde story!

Ever wondered what a clipped turbine wheel was? Why was it done? In this video I will go over the basics of this topic. Be sure to leave a comment if you have a question, I will be happy to answer them. Hope you all have a great day! -Reed
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[@802Garage]

Great simple video.

[@CMETURBO]

looks amazing

[@levischittlord6558]

It was a trick that was employed a lot back in the DSM modding days with the Mutt and Frankenstein turbochargers so you got a Garrett compressor in a Mitsubishi turbocharger that bolted right onto a ported exhaust manifold and ported O2 housing.

[@workturbo]

Have not heard the "mutt" in a while. Daniel and David used to get quite a few compressor and turbine wheels from my stash back in the day. Extreme Turbo IIRC was their shop.

[@FredAllenBurge]

Good video. Would love one going over that G-series turbine you showed there at the end👍

[@kylemilligan752]

Had a "greddy" turbo kit on a h22 prelude years ago. Big compressor small turbine. It was "happy" around 260whp dynojet around 10psi boost. Against my suggestions, he had the small turbine wheel"clipped" and lost around 10 wheel hp everywhere

[@workturbo]

Yessir, if you don't understand that clipping reduces the efficiency of the wheel to some degree, you can loose drive energy that the compressor may need to perform properly. The Greddy's were a TD05 IIRC for the Prelude, that turbine wheel got very unhappy if you clipped it much more than 5°

[@kylemilligan752]

@@workturbo I agree, the greddy turbine started out undersized to drive the compressor, clipping it made a bad situation worse. Interesting to see the dyno data supported my gut feeling

[@protomotive]

Well done. Visually seeing the difference through the housing shows how much flow improvement 10deg can get you! Are you concerned about the tips degrading on the machined clip where it appears sharp?

[@workturbo]

This is a Garrett OE clip, and I am aware of quite a few other Garrett and BorgWarner wheels that are done this way (The S300-SX "S366" being the highest volume unit we have sold with a factory clip). Never seen any indication that the material removal in this manner would cause any reliability issues. Most heat related issues will occur at the turbine wheels inducer if it is going to happen.

[@protomotive]

@@workturbo yes we've seen the very tips of the inducer thin out and melted in extreme situations. We've been having borg warner vgts clipped for years to mimic the gt2 turbines. They've done well. They just always looked sharp so I figured I'd ask. Thanks again!

[@JustinBone]

I have a hybrid turbo ready to go on my car. It has a clipped turbine wheel, and a large and lighter compressor wheel. What are the chances it will greatly impact lag/spool response?
The factory turbo typically starts spooling around 1.7k, while this turbo supposedly starts more around 2k. My 2.5-3k range is quite nice on the highway on stock turbo, but it dies off quick at 5k+. Wondering if I’m better off getting a hybrid with a fully redesigned turbine wheel to help prevent low end power loss or lag. There is also a Xona CHRA option with a ball bearing as well, which might help some too.

[@reubenmorris487]

All depends on how you plan to use the car and what you can live with. I'd never worry much about little/no power below 4-4500 RPM because anything below that engine speed I don't need/don't demand output from the engine.
I had a "hybrid" turbo assembled:TD06 turbine unclipped, machined out 7cm^2 DSM housing, and a KTS-D645 11-blade compressor wheel. I don't care what it does below 3500 RPM because I don't need/demand any meaningful performance at that engine speed - it'll still make power at and beyond redline.

[@2engjnr2]

In smaller applications its not going to respond as well and wont sppol up to it's normal operating curve. Rather buy a slightly larger turbo more consistent with your applications. Just saying.
I've designed turbos. Ask me.

[@workturbo]

Proper application is always key, regardless of the design. Antiquated technology from a bygone era for sure...but still knowing what it is and how it worked was the purpose of this video.
-reed

[@rickyr7790]

That’s assuming something exists/is available for your application.

[@workturbo]

@@rickyr7790 if there are no other wheel choices and you need the turbine flow, it will work. Just have to understand that it will come with some penalty (response, maximum rotor speed and efficiency being the influenced the most)