cam swap lifter problem
cam swap lifter problem So im in the middle of my cam swap, following the ls1howto.com guide, since this is my first cam swap, and Im to the point where I have the retainer plate off, and the cam almost ready to come out. Now I bought some 2 foot 5/16 wooden dowl rods like everyone else uses to hold the lifters up, and with them both all the way in, when i spin the cam, it sounds like I can hear a couple of the lifters riding on the cam still. To check, I threw the pushrods back in, and there are a couple that move up and down when the cam rotates, even with the 5/16ths rods all the way in. I dont really know what to do from here, anyone have any suggestions? Im trying not to **** anything up, and this is my first time doing it. I guess if worst comes to worst, Ill just pull the intake. But I really dont want to have to do that. Thanks.
-Lance
-Lance
You need to spin it fast to sling them up into the lifter trays. I have 80k on my car and figured the trays would be toast but every lifter stayed up for a day untill it came time to install the push rods. I probably spun the cam forwards and backwards 20 times before I took mine out. If this still does not work go the pen magnet route. Just make sure the magnets are secure so they dont stick to the lifter.
Trending Topics
So can anyone answer the question? lol. Right now I HAVE two wooden 5/16 dowl rods all the way in...is there any chance of the lifters getting past the dowl rods when I pull the cam????
LS1 Tech Stories
The Best V8 Stories One Small Block at Time
Topdon ONE vs. Artidiag 800 BT2: Which is the Diagnostic Tablet For You?
Pouria Savadkouei
Gas Monkey Built a 6-Wheel Ferrari Testarossa With a Corvette LT4 Engine
Verdad Gallardo
7 Most Reliable High-Performance Engines GM Has Ever Built
Verdad Gallardo
Amazing '71 Camaro Restomod Is Modern Muscle Car Under the Skin
Verdad Gallardo
6 Common C5 Corvette Failures and What's Involved In Repairing Them
Pouria Savadkouei
Retro Modern Bandit Pontiac Trans AM Comes With Burt Reynolds' Autograph
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Greatest Cadillac V Series Performance Models Ever, Ranked
Pouria Savadkouei
Top 10 Most Powerful Chevy Trucks Ever Made!
Hennessey's New Supercharged Silverado ZR2 Has 700 HP
Verdad Gallardo
If you have the dowel rods in all the way the lifters cant get past them, its my understanding that they can still fall far enought to not let the cam slide out though. I bought just one strong pen magnet and used it to pull each lifter tight up into the trays one by one, then put my wood dowels in and no problems.
TECH Resident
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 855
Likes: 0
From: AUSTIN TX
If you have the dowel rods in all the way the lifters cant get past them, its my understanding that they can still fall far enought to not let the cam slide out though. I bought just one strong pen magnet and used it to pull each lifter tight up into the trays one by one, then put my wood dowels in and no problems.
thanks guys, i had the rods in and the first two lifters on the pass. side wouldnt stay up so i ran to autozone, grabbed some pen mags and had my dad come over and hold those two up while I pulled the old cam and slid the new one in. Ive done alot of cam swaps on SBC and BBC motors, and none of the ones I had done, have came out, and went back in as easy as this one did!
Glad you got it done. For future reference, as stated above, dowels will prevent them from falling out but not from re-contacting the cam making it impossible to remove unless you did what you did, use a magnet to hold up the offending lifters. Also, lifters are not like a SBC, they are unfortunatley under the heads so removing the intake won't get you there.
Good luck with the rest of the installation.
Good luck with the rest of the installation.
If you look at the lifter(side view) you'll see a step in the center. This is the area where the rod detents the lifter during the cam removal/install process. The step is nearly 1/2" long so the lifter can travel about that far down(towards the cam) before it reaches the end of its' travel which happens when the top face of the step contacts the rod. This keeps the lifter from falling, but not from moving at least the length of the step in the side of the lifter. This is not the GM approved method of a cam swap. The GM method requires head removal. This method is a short cut so the rules are NOT cut in stone. This method works, but sometimes you have to sweat a little to get the cam out. The magnets are a gamble. The pitfalls of the magnets have already been mentioned. If the magnet comes loose from the telescoping rod(and they have on some people) it's nearly impossible to get the magnet out.