bfrank79

I was in the process of pulling the cam out of my LY6, and it wont budge, it will spin around pretty easy put I could not get it to pull out at all. could this mean something or should I just try to put some more muscle behind it?

97badass

iTrader: (8)

It should slide right out... I assume the retainer plate is off and the lifters removed? Has it slid out any at all? If so it might not be lined up in the holes

bfrank79

retaining plate is off, listers are still in, and no it hasnt moved at all

raven154

iTrader: (14)

Lifters have to be up out of the way for the cam to come out. The lifters, on base circle or on the top of the lobe, still hang down lower than the cam journals and will not let it come out. You need to spin the cam several times and let the lifters get pushed up out of the way and then use some means of keeping them there because the cups dont always hold them. Ask me how I know.

And as 97 said, once the retainer and the lifters are out of ht way it should slide right out the front. What I did is bolt the cam sprocket back on to give me something to hang on too so I could get it started.

bfrank79

what is the best way to keep the lifters up? I spun it SEVERAL times but it never really got loose, it would never even start to come out.

midevil1

iTrader: (17)

Are the rocker arms and pushrods removed from motor? You have to atleast remove the rockers. 1/4 wood dowel rods can be slid into the oil passages on either side of block to hold the lifters up.

LSxChevelle

iTrader: (4)

Like said above...pull pushrods and spin motor over. Lifters trays with their angle create enough friction to hold. But please put 1/4" dowels in holes on each side of cam to prevent them from dropping into motor once cam is removed!

JDP Tech

Yep, they will usually stay in place for cam removal and swap, but its better safe than sorry, put the dowels in before removing the cam.

- Jeremy

bfrank79

Ok guys, sorry for being such a newb but I know what the problem is. I didnt know you had to remove the rockers and pushrods. They skip that step in the Haynes manual. Thanks for your help

JDP Tech

The Haynes is good, but they do leave out a bunch of stuff, and are vague on others. There is a great write-up over on Camaro5, with somebody swapping a cam in an LS3, different engine, but basically the same. You can check it out here: www.camaro5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=125123

- Jeremy

Yullose

iTrader: (1)

I saw pics of a guy that used 16 telescopic magnets and 16 clothespins.

He stuck the magnets to the lifters and clipped the clothespins on to keep them from dropping back in.

Looked like a clever (but expensive) idea.

Mike454SS

iTrader: (4)

Just make sure you're careful to support the weight of the cam as you bring it out...once it's out of the cam bearings (say after you slide it out 1 inch) you need to get the lobes through the cam bearings wiithout damaging them...then you will have the journals engaging 1 less cam bearing again, then lobes again, then journals again...as long as you're careful you'll be fine...same deal when you install the new one...be very careful and mindful of the bearings.

...and DON'T squeeze too hard when you're holding the cam...the edges of the lobes are sharp...easy to cut your hands if you're not expecting it.