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Unread 04-12-2018, 11:06 PM   #147
GlenL
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Default Cam Tower assembly

I'm turning the corner on the project from disassembly and cleaning to re-assembly.

Got the cam towers together today. It took a long time to get it all ready for that. The towers and exterior parts were very dirty with caked-on, baked-on oily crud. It took about three hours per side to get it done. Assembly is about 45 minutes a side.

While checking the lifters, I found some problems. First-off, some of the lifters had zero play on the piston. Some moved freely for about 1/4" to 3/8" of stroke. For the stuck ones, I worked the piston a bit by pressing on it by hand but that didn't free them up. What did work was using a gear puller to force the piston down. Not good to do but we'll see if they're damaged. Applying some penetrating oil and working them made them all move well, eventually.

I'm not sure why some lifters were stuck solid. It might have been the pistons were seized or gunk inside was not letting the oil out of the piston or fill hole. I tried getting them apart but the piston is swaged in. It'd be fun to investigate but that'd be one that got replaced.

While getting the sleeves out, I apparently distorted a few. The lifter should slide through on its own weight but some stuck. Eyeballing, the sleeves were bent a tiny bit where there were vice-grips marks. Some 220 grit sandpaper took that down enough to get smooth motion. It's important that the lifters not only move up/down easily but turn as well. The cam lobes are a bit off-center with respect to the lifters so the lifters will turn a bit on each cycle. This motion evens out the wear on the lifter faces.

The towers went together well. I use a bit of RTV on the cork end seal as those tend to leak. An oddity is that the cap themselves are marked "Canada." I did not know that. I use Redline assembly lube on all of the contacting surfaces.

Only a few things left in the need-to-clean pile. Only a few minor parts that need to come in. Getting near to doing the rotating assembly assembly.
Attached Images
File Type: jpg CamTower.jpg (128.8 KB, 1 views)
File Type: jpg CamTowers.jpg (139.1 KB, 1 views)
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Last edited by GlenL; 04-13-2018 at 09:54 AM.
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