Painful Lessons of Camshaft Work

Yup. May need a small flashlight .

I thought I was the "wrench whisperer." :lol: Yes you can see the valves. I just don't like the idea of putting something into the cylinders. A novice might use one that's too short and drop it in. :ohmy: Now what, it's not steel, how would you get it out? :whistle:
Steve

I'm almost 60. I have never used an inch pound torque wrench ever!!! :ohmy:
Been wrenchin since I was 10

I'm one are you? :lol: :lol: :lol:
Steve :lol: :lol:

After double checking with the 2 inch lb wrenches I found out with my trusty 3 and a half inch 10mm boxed end I was getting my cam cap and valve cover bolts closer too 60 inch lbs before calling them tight enough....... the oil drain plug, filter nut and plugs were all light maybe 20% too along with the pan bolts........ and no I've not yet stripped a thread yet (and I can see why) thank God. Not sure about the big nuts that call for big numbers like the clutch hub, axle, swing arm etc with be doing that someday soon.

Ha 831st comment....... dreamed and planned about that 831 cc MTC piston kit for many years in the 80s....wish I had it to do over again.

Like I said along the way here - I don't know what I don't know - so when I first used my new click ft-lb torque wrench to tighten the cam cap bolts to 12 ft-lbs there was this little click and I thought- "what- that's it?", surely if I continue it will just click again if that's the right torque (made sense to me) Right then and there I destroyed 6 bolt holes although I didn't know it at the time.

Now if I hadn't screwed up and it hadn't cost me countless (countless!!!) hours of work, I might by using a 10mm spanner and nipping it along or yanking on a ft-lb torque wrench but given the pain and suffering I put myself through, I will take the ultra-conservative road when it comes to steel bolts in an aluminum head- I dread the feeling of one more bolt giving way.

By the way, I've got a few years on you, I'm 68. I started with a $5 torque wrench with a metal pointer (god knows if it was even close) on my first car, a gray two-tone 48 buick with a straight eight engine (I was one year older then it was when I got it at 17.) The engine block weighed more than my KZ1000p and you could damage a sledge hammer hitting it. You'd worry about breaking bolts not stripping threads.

Torque Wrench is my firend.

The cycles of heating and cooling cause weakening and the aluminum alloy is soft, so for any case covers at 6mm you could torque less than book. The key is even torque for covers and fitted and parts so they don't get misshapen by unequal torque. The clamping force of 8 or 9 bolt at 87 in lbs each is large. I roached a valve cover thread at 87in lb on the wrench and was very cautious. Cam caps, I knew right from the beginning I was not doing 12 ft lbs there. I like the suggestion of 100in lbs and a drop of blue loctite. I did 120 in lbs and man it was gingerly done, but no problems. I will use the 100in lb and a drop next time they come out. Personally I think it is easier to remove the camshafts for valve adjustment rather than screw with the depressor shim tool. My 0.02$ R

swest wrote: I thought I was the "wrench whisperer." :lol: Yes you can see the valves. I just don't like the idea of putting something into the cylinders. A novice might use one that's too short and drop it in. :ohmy: Now what, it's not steel, how would you get it out? :whistle:
Steve

Certainly by NO means ideal but I could imagine a very soft and sticky piece of chewing gum on a thin stick to get anything dropped that is non-metallic in a tight space like that. Ask me how I know and have learned of this trick :blush:

Brett

I keep one of these in my toolbox. If I drop something in a tight space it usually can retrieve it. Ed

Ed, where the heck did you find one of my baby pics?!?!?!!? :silly: :silly: :silly:
Brett