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Old Aug 23, 2005 | 10:38 PM
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OK i'm going to install my asa cam, ls6 springs, spdc oil pump, and ls2 timing chain here in the up comming week. i'm new to the cam swap and was wondering if any one had any advise for me from their cam install experience. and i was wondering if anyone has put in a stall in their car without a lift in a garage, and how big of a pain in the *** it was. i'm just wondering if i should have someone install it for me or try it myself. thanks for your help
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Old Aug 23, 2005 | 11:26 PM
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Use all methods avalible for holding up the lifters pen mags dowel rods whatever because you will be in a world of **** if ya drop one...
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Old Aug 23, 2005 | 11:29 PM
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ya i was told about that so i'm on top of that, but i was wondering if i woul dhave to adjust the lash on the stock rockers or not.
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Old Aug 24, 2005 | 08:29 AM
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Originally Posted by 2000RedZ
ya i was told about that so i'm on top of that, but i was wondering if i woul dhave to adjust the lash on the stock rockers or not.
There's no lash to adjust on the ls1, it's a hydraulic roller valvetrain. Just make sure you use loctite on the rocker bolts and torque them to 22 ft lbs , rotate motor and re-torque.
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Old Aug 24, 2005 | 08:49 AM
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yup...

Also, use a TDC method to hold the valves up when you swap the springs.
See ls1howto.com for a sweet writeup on cam swap...
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Old Aug 24, 2005 | 12:42 PM
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ok thanks guys, i have read the ls1howto, about a million times so i hope i'll be alright, i was just wondering if any of you guys had any other tips or advise that isn't mentioned
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Old Aug 24, 2005 | 01:15 PM
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Instead of guessing where the cam needs turned when you're trying to get everything dot to dot, just take and hand thread 2 of the cam retainer bolts back into the cam. After your crank dot is at 12, just go ahead and get the cam gear dot pointing directly at the other dot. Unbolt the cam gear, slip the chain on and you will be aligned perfectly when you put everything back together.

We fooled around for 5 minutes with just guessing and once I did this it was done in 30 seconds tops. Good luck with it.
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Old Aug 24, 2005 | 01:18 PM
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wooh, never use loctite on those rocker arm bolts!! just torque them to spec.
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Old Aug 24, 2005 | 01:25 PM
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So i shouldn't use loctite why not? and is the crane valve spring tool the best tool to use for the job or is there anything that is better or the same just cheaper?
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Old Aug 24, 2005 | 01:29 PM
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Anytime you add stuff to bolts such as lock-tite it changes the torque specs. Plus you would have fun getting them back off when you change the springs.
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Old Aug 24, 2005 | 01:31 PM
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Ok so i won't do that. anything else that i should know about, maybe some tips to get it done easier.
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Old Aug 24, 2005 | 02:23 PM
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aren't the rocker arm bolts already locktited from the factory? mine were a major bitch to break loose.
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Old Aug 24, 2005 | 03:01 PM
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Originally Posted by yak
aren't the rocker arm bolts already locktited from the factory? mine were a major bitch to break loose.
Yes they have loctite from the factory, so why wouldn't you put it back on?
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Old Aug 24, 2005 | 06:16 PM
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I'm sorry but anything that will see the abuse that those rockers go through deserves to get locktite. I sure as hell wouldn't want one of those bolts backing out at 7k
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Old Aug 24, 2005 | 06:26 PM
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Just make shure if ya use loctite to use the blue kind that is removable...
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Old Aug 24, 2005 | 06:40 PM
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I used the red locktite on mine and I could still break the bolts free.
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Old Aug 24, 2005 | 10:20 PM
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Ok i will be gettin some loctite, cause i don't want a rocker flyin off, i'm already tryin to do this swap as cheap as possible, i don't think i could afford that, if it happened. anything else, i've been told to go and buy some wood dowls from the home depot to hold the lifters up, would they work. or should i buy some pen magnets or the tool that thunder sells to hold them up.
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Old Aug 25, 2005 | 07:42 AM
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If you want to use loc-tite be my guess. I have done over 15 cam swaps on these cars and I would never use the loctite on them. I always torque them to the factory spec and that is it. Many cars i swapped cams in are way past 30k miles on the cam swap.. I don't think your rockers will be flying off any time soon.... as for holding the lifters up, run to home depot.. get the 5/16" metal rods for like 5 bucks. It might require a little grinding with the grinder to get them to slide in smooth. Good luck with the swap.
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Old Aug 25, 2005 | 11:15 AM
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ok thanks for the info, that is what i was thinking of nuying but some people have told me that they won't work, so i'll try the $5 method before the $100+ of buying the tool. and i would like some others to chime in on the loctite issue on the rockers, if its a good idea or a bad one.
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Old Aug 25, 2005 | 11:42 AM
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The cam install writeup on ls1howto.com that everyone here seems to follow (myself included) recommends using loctite on the rocker arm bolts and torque them to 22 ft lbs and then rotating the motor and retorque. I would say if most people are following jmx's writeup, then most people are putting loctite on the rocker arm bolts. I haven't ever heard of any problems doing so, and have never had any problems myself. Good luck on the install!!
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