IMG_3030.JPG
502 hits | 52.79 KB | Posted: 11/6/10
A new set of Comp timing gears.
The fact that the 300 doesn't have a timing chain to stretch/break, ...

IMG_3029.JPG
531 hits | 25.32 KB | Posted: 11/6/10
Purchased a new cam spacer and thrust plate (also had new bolts and a cam alignment key). This made...

IMG_3031.JPG
492 hits | 55.09 KB | Posted: 11/6/10
A Comp Cam 260h.

Purchased the cam from a guy off Craigslist. He had had it in his garage and neve...

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507 hits | 32.57 KB | Posted: 11/6/10
Can see the 260H embossed into the end (albeit upside down).

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459 hits | 34.61 KB | Posted: 11/6/10

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432 hits | 35.88 KB | Posted: 11/6/10
Checking for clearance between the plate and the spacer. The spacer is only very, very slightly thi...

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443 hits | 40.2 KB | Posted: 11/6/10

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442 hits | 39.51 KB | Posted: 11/6/10
Test fitting the spacer.

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440 hits | 35.44 KB | Posted: 11/6/10

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452 hits | 36.06 KB | Posted: 11/6/10

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447 hits | 73.89 KB | Posted: 11/6/10
A new set of Comp springs, lifters, valve seals, and umbrella seals.

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426 hits | 57 KB | Posted: 11/14/10
Put the spacer and thrust plate on, and then tapped in the cam alignment key.

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449 hits | 55.4 KB | Posted: 11/14/10
Found later that the key wasn't fully seated, which made it more difficult to get the cam gear on.

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462 hits | 59.96 KB | Posted: 11/14/10
To help the cam gear to slide on easier, I put it in the oven for a half hour at 300*. It helped to...

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415 hits | 68.85 KB | Posted: 11/14/10
The gear didn't go on all the way (I'm guessing the alignment key wasn't seated fully), so I needed ...

IMG_3062.JPG
465 hits | 64.43 KB | Posted: 11/14/10
Found a bolt that fit the thread on the end of the cam, and used a stack of washers to help press it...

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467 hits | 61.36 KB | Posted: 11/14/10
Grabbed a hold of the timing gear and tightened down. It didn't take a lot of effort, but the cam g...

IMG_3060.JPG
491 hits | 81.29 KB | Posted: 11/14/10
Cam gear's fully pressed on.

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509 hits | 48.24 KB | Posted: 11/14/10
An underside view of how snug the cam is up against the thrust plate. The spacer ring is the only t...

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438 hits | 60.66 KB | Posted: 11/14/10

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488 hits | 46.65 KB | Posted: 11/14/10
From what I heard, the spacer is only 0.005" thicker than the thrust plate. Not much at all, b...

IMG_3072.JPG
503 hits | 89.61 KB | Posted: 11/14/10
That is one long cam.

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536 hits | 80.12 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Engine before digging in.

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492 hits | 75.42 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
More pre-install pics.

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546 hits | 90.12 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Radiator hoses removed.

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500 hits | 76.97 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Spark plug and wires removed.

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506 hits | 85.78 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Radiator unbolted and taken out.

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627 hits | 83.68 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Accessory belts removed.

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539 hits | 64.59 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Need to make room for the cam to come out, so the grill needs to come off.

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544 hits | 72.79 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Removed the bolt on the harmonic balancer.

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721 hits | 77.03 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Attaching the pulley puller and worked the harmonic balancer off.

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523 hits | 74.06 KB | Posted: 11/19/10

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529 hits | 60.78 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Needed more room to work, so removed the rest of the grill trim.

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499 hits | 84.19 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Harmonic balancer off, and out of the way.

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524 hits | 66.28 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Timing cover and water pump removed. Now had access to the timing gears.

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483 hits | 80.9 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
They look to be in nice shape.

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533 hits | 68.15 KB | Posted: 11/19/10

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511 hits | 84.23 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Removed the valve cover to start removing the valve train.

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533 hits | 90.49 KB | Posted: 11/19/10

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546 hits | 63.26 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Used an egg carton to sort the push rods and valve train components. Works perfectly for a 6 cylind...

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505 hits | 99.46 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Rocker arms and push rods removed.

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525 hits | 80.6 KB | Posted: 11/19/10

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518 hits | 92.98 KB | Posted: 11/19/10

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974 hits | 83.44 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Double checking to be sure the timing marks are lined up before removal. Before I did so, I lined t...

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498 hits | 50.71 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Found out that the puller for the balancer was pressing against the threads on the end of the cranks...

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505 hits | 91.45 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Lifter cover and distributor removed .

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520 hits | 82.16 KB | Posted: 11/19/10

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469 hits | 71.63 KB | Posted: 11/19/10

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507 hits | 86.56 KB | Posted: 11/19/10
Lifters removed. The cam is ready to be pulled out. However, I didn't want to pull it quite yet, s...

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524 hits | 76.72 KB | Posted: 11/19/10

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492 hits | 76.23 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
Didn't have a jack tall enough to reach the engine so I had to use a block of wood as an extension. ...

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531 hits | 91.45 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
A real pain. I had the engine jacked up and before I could get blocks in place to rest it on, the j...

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526 hits | 90.26 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
Can see just how far back the engine moved.

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470 hits | 85.33 KB | Posted: 11/20/10

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554 hits | 79 KB | Posted: 11/20/10

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520 hits | 83.64 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
The *ONLY* bonus about the engine sliding backwards is it made it very easy to remove the oil pan. ...

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475 hits | 77.42 KB | Posted: 11/20/10

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521 hits | 75.18 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
A view underneath of the cam.

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494 hits | 99.5 KB | Posted: 11/20/10

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531 hits | 78.81 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
Struggled to get the cam out for a while, until I realized the fuel pump was still in place. After ...

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469 hits | 59.19 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
A shot down the camshaft hole.

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479 hits | 76.34 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
The cam bearings are now visible and accessible.

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511 hits | 82.1 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
The old cam. Looks to be in decent of enough shape.

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468 hits | 86.17 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
The puller for the crank timing gear couldn't fit behind the gear, due to the limited space. Had to...

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499 hits | 84.98 KB | Posted: 11/20/10

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457 hits | 81.79 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
Crank timing gear successfully removed.

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475 hits | 81.21 KB | Posted: 11/20/10

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465 hits | 79.97 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
Got a free piece of pipe at Home Depot to use to tap the new crank gear in place.

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486 hits | 87.8 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
A little time in the oven at 300* and a little grease helped it to slide on pretty far.

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550 hits | 69.35 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
Tapped it on the rest of the way with the metal pipe.

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489 hits | 92.43 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
As an off-project, I decided to modify my oil pan to use the one piece rubber gasket, which is leaps...

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486 hits | 77.99 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
Used a grinder to grind the ridges from around the bolt holes off the oil pan. Not too difficult.

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517 hits | 72.45 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
Cleaning years of buildup off of the timing cover before installing the new seals.

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487 hits | 76.3 KB | Posted: 11/20/10
Cleaned up the face some.

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465 hits | 83.03 KB | Posted: 11/21/10

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521 hits | 69.19 KB | Posted: 11/21/10
The new cam is in place. Double and triple checked to be sure the timing marks were lined up. Las...

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893 hits | 56.17 KB | Posted: 11/21/10
Took another picture just to reassure myself they were lined up properly.

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476 hits | 67.89 KB | Posted: 11/29/10

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518 hits | 89.42 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
New lifters installed, a new lifter cover gasket, and the bolts back in place.

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539 hits | 82.09 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
Rented a valve spring compressor that can be used without removing the head.
Since I don't have an a...

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513 hits | 72.63 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
Getting the old keepers loose could be a chore on quite a few of these. Had to tap the top of the s...

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496 hits | 74.01 KB | Posted: 11/29/10

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472 hits | 62.91 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
The old oil seals were all brittle and broken. Most likely contributing to my puffs of white smoke ...

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441 hits | 68.24 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
Compressed spring. Don't let them fly off and hit you in the face. It hurts.

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474 hits | 83.96 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
Spring, keeper, and oil seal removed and the valve stem visible.

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484 hits | 74.5 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
Fresh, new oil seal in place. Soft, pliable teflon. Should make a difference.

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465 hits | 56 KB | Posted: 11/29/10

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491 hits | 76.73 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
New Comp spring compressed and in place.

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411 hits | 74.96 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
Setting the keepers in place. Took a little wiggling around and taping to get them to seat.

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506 hits | 80.9 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
One down, eleven to go.

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432 hits | 75.07 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
More broken and brittle original valve seals.

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580 hits | 63.94 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
Found and issue *after* I spent hours wrestling the engine back forward and into place. The clutch ...

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436 hits | 58.54 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
Another morning of work, waking up to a blanket of snow. If you're going to be doing a cam job outs...

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445 hits | 71.21 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
Ran into a problem when I torqued down the lifter cover gasket and snapped a bolt off. What kind of...

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524 hits | 81.65 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
After re-tapping the end of the crank, I installed a new timing cover gasket and installed the timin...

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461 hits | 84.11 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
Still needed to drill and tap the broken bolt.

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468 hits | 82.17 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
Decided to take a picture after spending several hours fixing a stupid mistake....


When you have 1...

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401 hits | 78.7 KB | Posted: 11/29/10

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465 hits | 80.93 KB | Posted: 11/29/10

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448 hits | 74.95 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
Time to reinstall the front end trim.

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433 hits | 85.1 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
Water pump reinstalled with a fresh gasket.
Installed a new water pump about two years ago, or this ...

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447 hits | 69.01 KB | Posted: 11/29/10
Has its face back again.

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501 hits | 90.28 KB | Posted: 12/20/10
A picture of the new Comp springs installed.

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439 hits | 61.23 KB | Posted: 12/20/10

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450 hits | 66.54 KB | Posted: 4/18/11
Well, several months later, the cam ate a lifter. The lifter I pulled out is on the right. It also...

Timing_Marks.jpg
445 hits | 59.93 KB | Posted: 7/24/12