honestly, i wouldn't trust a shop if they tell you that.....

did they pull the valves out? I would make them run a compression and leak down test in front of you before you ok them to pull your head and cost you all kinds of mula.

I can't believe you tried a cam install without knowing what was going on....and how on earth did you break that tension tool?

 

those plain threaded rod was a ***** to use because it only gave me minor loosened tension. The tension grew back on me while I was working on my cams and I had to use a BIGASS screwdriver wrap it around a towel, stick it in the hole where u lift the engine, and pry the cam through. It would be best to get a good quality rod or just the timing belt tool

 

hmmm, you must not have loosened it all the way then....when i did mine, all the tension came off the belt until i tightened it back down.

 

UGH...even w, the right pitch and rod..u still have to put some oil on it to make things easier...and the longer you leave the rod w. tension on it the harder it gets, to turn...and when tighten it down you have to do it really slowly...

i think you tighten it to fast w. out any lube and it snapped...the cam install w. somewhat easy..but most ppl dont know about the rod...you have to be really carefull..thats the only PITA in the cam install...

for me i use a diff. threaded rod and remade the thread , but i took my time to tighten it down..w. oil..

gl man...

 

Why doesnt everyone just buy the damn tool instead of rigging ****? If it doesnt fit dont force it, if the tool wasnt designed for it dont use it.

 

they did a leak down and cylinder 3 was holding about 80psi (injected 100)

 

Well you should have zip tied your belt to your gears if you were going to take the short cut to ensure it didn't move at all. This is how the guys doing my cams did it and it works like a charm. If you do it the long way (taking the belt off). You need to ensure your cylinder 1 is Top dead center before lining up your cam gears, otherwise you will end up like you did.

 

Hey, at least he admitted his mistake. And just as he said, lesson learned. There have been several other threads about using an actual hardened cam tensioner tool, the first time I did cams I tried the 8mm x 1.25mm pitch rod with two nuts on the end locked together. I just got the damn thing out before it was going to break, it was very, very close. I now have a tensioner tool and have done a lot of cam installs, the hardened steel makes all of the difference in the world. Oh, that and a little bit of experience!

 

I can't agree more about having the right tool for the job. I've used my "proper" tool to replace several sets of camshafts now and haven't had any problems.

One key point though is that you need to screw the tensioner in very slowly - I forget exactly what the manual said, but I usually do a 10 count when tightening the tool each 90 degrees after I start to feel some resistance. When things get really tight I'm probably turning the tool at 1/2 the speed above. Slow and patient are important here.