Dudes... mega sorry for not keeping this updated.... we've bught a house and right now all the time (read that as money) has been going there... either way, here is the update so far.
I replaced the idler pulley with a new ford part, seemed to turn smoother than the one i took off so i was sure that when i fired it up it would run perfectly.... yeah... well... not so much. It was EXACTLY the same as before.
I checked the oil was getting to the blower and that all looks fine. Obviously you cant pull the oil feed off when the car is running but when i removed it just after shutting the motor down the pipe was full of oil and the return seemed to be feeding oit back in to the sump ok. Oil pressure seems ok.
I put a few miles on the car but I have not yet got on the boost. I think i did about 20 miles to get it inspected and did most of that at idle because i was worried about the blower.
When you're sat at a set of lights with the windows down you can hear that faint grinding sound from the blower. Not the fast high pitched gear lash but that rythmic griiiiin griiiiind griiind that comes from inside the casing. Its very hard to explain. Once you pull away though you cant hear it at all. I have no idea what noise it'll make on boost though, could be a bad sound, could be a broken sound but as of yet im not planning on taking it there.
I've had the screwdriver-ear trick on all the parts i can get too and it sure sounds like its coming from the blower caseing, on the pulley side more that the air inlet. When te revs pick up you cant hear it, you hear it increasing in tempo but then it becomes continuos and blends in with the rest of the car's noises. When you let off the throtle, you hear the tempo of the grind slow back down until you're back where you started.
UKBullit said his quietened down after a few miles, maybe I'll try that. The guys at Paxton even said the bearings may take a few mile to break in?
I bought the blower back in December so my years warrenty is almost out.. Im going to try and put 3 hundred miles on it and assess the noise again afterwards. If its gotten quieter I guess I'll know its ok and keep it. If the noise is the same or worse I'll send it back to Paxton for them to look at it and replace any bits that need replacing.
The HUGE problem over here is that i dont even know anyone else with a novi2000.... let alone where to find them and listen to their car !!!!!!!
I'll subscribe to this thread so I can see the updates in the future,... thanks again for all your advice and tips guys, it is hugely appreciated
EDGE