Install a cam?

[A67StangMaster]

Is it really hard to install a cam?
could you plz gide me through it.
i and going to change my cam and i want to do it myself.

 

[mustangdave]

Engine in the car or out? 67?

 

[A67StangMaster]

it is out and yes it is a 67

 

[mustangdave]

Remove the water pump, hoses, timing chain cover, timing chain, distributor, vlave covers. Done yet? J/k. Let me know if you need help with any of that; I saw a guy try to hammer off a timing chain and break his block!

 

[mustangdave]

Next, loosen the rocker arm nuts and rotate the rockers out of the way. Remove pushrods and if you are going to reuse them, keep them in exact order! I'm not sure if the intake has to come off...somebody help me here.

 

[A67StangMaster]

no i got it out already yesterday
i just want to know if i have to do something to the cam and how would i put it in

 

[mustangdave]

Now it gets tricky: you have to get the lifters out of the bore. Supposedly you can use a magnet to pull them and get them out through the top. Problem is, if the engine has alot of miles, the bores will have varnish on the top and the lifters won't want to come out. If you can't remove them, there may be a plier type tool to get them out. Remove cam thrust plate and then cam. Be very careful not to damage the bearings when removing the cam. This is a very basic walk-thru and the install is a reversal. Make sure to lube the cam and installl timing chain correctly. This should give you an idea of whether or not you want to tackle the job.

 

[A67StangMaster]

ok so i would just put the cam back in with some lube with the lifters out.
and then put the lifters back in with lube and then put the rest of the stuff on then i am done theres nothing after that
just need to start it.

 

[mustangdave]

You will have to line up the timing chain(dot to dot), and hand turn your engine to set the rocker arms. That part gives alot of people trouble. Also, get your engine to T.D.C. on compression stroke and install the distributor. But yes, you are correct on the cam,lube, lifter part.

 

[A67StangMaster]

ok so whats the thing with the distributer
part how would i put that on the engine if i took it off?

Hey Thanks alot mustangdave for your help.

 

[mustangdave]

To remove the distributor there is a hold down bolt bolted at the base of the distributor into the intake. After removing that the dizzy will pull out. To reinstall, turn the engine over with the no. 1 spark plug out. You can use a breaker bar on the crankshaft pulley bolt. Have someone hold a finger over the spark plug hole and they will feel air push out of the hole. This is close to T.D.C.. Look at your timing mark and it should be near T.D.C. Line it up. Reinstall dizzy and hold down.
One problem is you may be at T.D.C. on the exhaust stroke and you need T.D.C. on the compression stroke. Leave your valve covers off and when you get that far, we can show you how to tell by looking at the rocker arms.
This forum can get you through the job but it is no cake walk. As a side note, if you are installing a new cam you must have matching springs so they don't bind or are unable to control the valves(bye,bye engine). Another added cost is you will probably need to have the heads machined for screw in styda. The added lift of the cam can pull them right out of the heads. Usually you will need guide plates for the pushrods when doing this. A cam is a snowball thing...one cost right after another. You will definitely want a new timing chain unless yours has been recently replaced. You can half-a** the job but it could cost you the whole engine if it fails.

 

[A67StangMaster]

what dose tdc stand for?

 

[mustangdave]

Top Dead Center. The "0" mark on your timing pointer. This is when the piston is at its highest position in the cylinder bore.

 

[brianj5600]

Spring for a book. If you plan on working on your own stuff, you'll use it all the time. Was intake removal listed?

 

[D.Hearne]

A few things he forgot to tell you. You also need a balancer puller to remove the Harmonic balancer, before you can remove the timing cover. As for the pushrods, keeping them in order is nice, but not necessary. Lubing the cam is also tricky, you want just enough lube on the lobes to prevent them from galling till the oil gets to them when it's fired up. Too much lube is just as bad as not enough. The trick here is the lifters, you want them to start to spin when the engine is fired up, otherwise you'll wipe a lobe or two. Too much lube on the lobes and lifters can prevent the lobe from "gripping" the lifter bottoms to set the lifter to spinning when first fired. Most people don't realize that flat tappet lifters spin in their bores while the engine is running. No spin and you end up with wiped lobes and holes in the lifter bottoms.

 

[D.Hearne]

You really do need an instruction manual (as Brianj5600 said) there with you and possibly someone, who's done it before to prevent costly mistakes. It's not a difficult job, but you do need to pay attention to the details to be successful.

 

[69Rcode_Mach1]

What D. Hearne stated is key, you don't want to end up with a flat cam. Also make sure that the lifters go back in their same bores if you are reusing, if by chance the cam has already been broken in you should use black moly grease on the lobes and lifters. It is very easy to do you will be surprised it is setting the valves and getting that timing chain on and lined up that can really annoy. Just be patient and don't use a hammer on anything especially the timing gears unless you have a sleeve!!!

 

[65ShelbyClone]

Wait a minute, dont you need new lifters with a new (flat tappet) cam?

 

[D.Hearne]

Wait a minute, dont you need new lifters with a new (flat tappet) cam?

I think what 69Rcode meant by that, was if you were putting the same cam back in, you can reuse the lifters, but only if you put them back in the bore they came from.

 

[69Rcode_Mach1]

I think what 69Rcode meant by that, was if you were putting the same cam back in, you can reuse the lifters, but only if you put them back in the bore they came from.

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Yep, thanks D. Hearne. Or if the cam was already broken in that the lifters are matched to their bores.