How bad is this?

[chilort]

Took out my cam the other day to install my 2.4L DOHC lifters ("PT" lifters) for my 782 head and found this on the #3 cam surface. You can feel it and catch your finger nail on it. The cap is just as bad. The cam has a visual difference but I cannot feel anything.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3638/3625506875_ecc944fbd9_b.jpg

#5 is messed up too, but the picture isn't clear because the digital camera focused on the wrong thing.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3344/3625514303_fc2738ee5f_b.jpg

The @#$%'ing valve cover bolt holes are all stripping out too.

I'm waaaay less than happy right now.

[cordes]

My old roommate had a head which was much worse on his TBI motor. It has been running happily for several years now after I saw it. Who knows how long it has been like that.

[bakes]

Your good to go

[xdig]

The @#$%'ing valve cover bolt holes are all stripping out too.

I'm waaaay less than happy right now.

Get a heli-coil kit and fix the valve cover bolt holes while the head is off. You can fix all of the holes in probably 20-30 minutes.

[chilort]

Glad to know it is "okay." I've got another head that I'm going to be doing some work on. I'll heli-coil all of the valve cover bolt holes for it.

The head in the pictures is still on the engine. I'll heli-coil it before I do much more driving though. One corner was already heli-coiled and it pulled out. Looks like I"ll have to go the next size up on that one. Time to get a metric tap kit so I can clean some of the funk out a little better.

[Murphy]

jsut a thought...would it be good to go over the surface with like 800 grit sandpaper to help eliminate any ridges?

when i chewed up a rod bearing in my TBI car, I sanded the crank with some 600 grit sandpaper to make sure it was smooth, installed some new bearings, eliminated the balance shafts and ti was still running 2 years later when I junked it. oil pressure was a little low, but it wouldnt knock or anything

[Aries_Turbo]

i wouldnt touch it with sandpaper. id just leave it.

Brian

[bakes]

i wouldnt touch it with sandpaper. id just leave it.

Brian

+1 dont use sand paper on it, the grit left behind can do more damage then good

[chilort]

Consensus is to leave it be. That is good because that is what I was already doing. ;)

[snoman]

my neon was way worse than that on almost evey one.
I did an "inframe" on the block with a loaner hone and spun my valves on my living room floor with a corless drill. broke it down fri nite rebuilt it sat drove it 10 hrs sun nite to Denver. 52 mi/gal baby!
ran like that for almost a year, open TB and all till some punk snatched it one nite while I was at work.
you should be good to go.

[janus]

did you put it back together yet? i have similar damages after breaking a cam, one journal is much worse though :(

[chilort]

I did put it back together and have been driving it nearly every day.

I'd really like to get a mechanical oil pressure gauge on it.

I'm building another engine right now so I'm driving the car like I don't care.

[83rampage]

did you put it back together yet? i have similar damages after breaking a cam, one journal is much worse though :(

Sounds like your cam towers are warped.

[janus]

i'm not 100% sure about why the cam broke but i can tell that too much t-belt tension and a rocker falling off at highspeed highway driving have to do with it..

why would you think my cam towers are warped? hmm, i'll try to get pics soon.
is there any way these journals and caps can be line bored or something?

[83rampage]

If only 1 is worn, seems like something isn't straight. Maybe you had a bent cam? I would check your cam towers with a straight edge before you re-assemble.

My machinist (who's older than dirt) was telling me he has done a few heads that the cams towers were warped. He was saying you can overbore them and get bearing inserts.

[chilort]

If my cam towers were warped I'd be really, really pissed off. My head was a reconditioned head from a well respected vendor to this community. I would have hoped it was checked by them. The cam itself was new as well.

[83rampage]

Chilort, I think what you are seeing is normal. All the heads I have basically look similar. Little bit of dirt, etc is all it takes to score them up.

My machinist was saying the cam towers can be a problem, especially if the head deck was bad. Guys machine the deck true, but never check the cam towers. Kind of makes sense if the deck got warped, the entire head had to change, so the cam towers moved also.

He said a broken cam is a good sign you towers are warped, but overtightening the belt is common cam breaker also.
I was just saying because Janus has one journal that is really bad, I would look into the cam towers.:)