[BMFH]

Hello All

Things May Be a Little Out of Sequence, But they have Valuable Information on Maintaining and Enjoying the PONTIAC OHC 6 ENGINE

Head and Cam Assembly

After Installing the Cylinder Head and Torquing the Head Bolts MAKE SURE THE “ORIFICE TUBE” IS INSTALLED IN THE OIL HOLE FOR THE CAM AND LASH ADJUSTERS LUBRICATION Put The Lash Adjusters in a Lite Engine Oil COMPLETELY COVERED TO TOP to Soak, You can Push the Plunger Down Until it Stops, That is what is Called Removing the “Hydraulic Lock” Install them in the Lash Adjuster Bores Install the “SERVICEABLE” Cam Followers and Clips “if you have them” INSPECT EACH CAM FOLLOWER FOR EXCESSIVE WEAR, A SMALL LINE IN THE CENTER OF THE CONTACT AREA/WEAR SURFACE IS NORMAL, IT IS USUALLY ABOUT 1/8th OF AN INCH WIDE ACROSS THE WEAR SURFACE, IT IS CAUSED BY THE CAM BASE CIRCLE ALWAYS RUBBING ON IT At the Valve Contact Point on the Cam Follower there is Usually a SMALL WEAR AREA FROM THE VALVE TIP INTERACTION, Slight Wear is NORMAL “Make Sure they are in the SAME Position/Order as when they were Removed They were Worn In to The Cam Lobes and “THEY NEED TO BE REINSTALLED IN THE SAME LOCATION AS WHEN REMOVED” Lube the Cam Followers with the Bostick Anti-Seeze where they Contact the Lash Adjusters and the Valve Tips, Install the Clips if you have them, It is OK if you Don’t Have them After the Installation of the Followers, Coat the Wear Surface of the Cam Lobes and Cam Followers with a Liberal amount of the Anti-Seeze

INSPECTING AND CLEANING THE LASH ADJUSTERS

Remove the Tin Ring at the Top of the Lash Adjuster with a Small Screw Driver then take each Lash Adjuster APART, GENTLY slide the Plunger out of the Lash Adjuster Body, BE CAREFUL, the SMALL Steel Ball, Retainer and Spring will FALL OUT and Could Get Lost, DO NOT MIX UP PARTS, ONLY DO ONE LASH ADJUSTER SERVICING AT A TIME

A Small Tray and a Shop Towel would Be the Best Prevention from Loosing the Small Parts Soak All Parts in a Suitable Cleaning Solution and Dry with a LINT FREE TOWEL OR CLOTH Inspect all Components for Wear, Damage or Broken Parts Really Inspect the Ball and it’s Seat for Irregularity's, If there is ANY DAMAGE TO THEM, the Lash Adjuster will NOT FUNCTION AS DESIGNED and the Engine Valve Train will be Noisy or have a TICKING Sound when Running

IF Any Damage is Found, that That Lash Adjuster Must be REPLACED WITH a NEW or A SERVICEABLE LASH ADJUSTER After Cleaning, Lubricate All Internal Parts with Vaseline and Re-Assemble them, Make Sure that the Ball, Retainer and Spring go in in the Proper Order I prefer to use Vaseline to hold the Small Parts together for Re Assembly, Slide the Top Part (Piston) into the Body in an Upside Down Fashion, with the Small Parts held together in there Proper Position with the Vaseline everything should Re Assemble Properly. The Vaseline will Melt into the OIL at Start-Up. Put The Lash Adjusters in a Lite Engine Oil COMPLETELY COVERED TO TOP to Soak, use a Phillips Screw Driver to push the Lash Adjust Piston Down Several Times, it Should Pump Up IF YOU CAN’T Get the Lash Adjuster to do a Hydraulic Lock and it won’t Pump Up Until it Stops, There is Something Wrong, You will have to take it apart again for Inspection and Check that it was Assembled Correctly, if it Still will Not Pump Up then it needs to be Replaced

Before Installing the CAM

If Used or NEW, If the Cam is out of the Cam Housing, Install one of the Bolts that are at each end, then Blow Shop Air Pressure into the Cam to make sure that ALL OIL HOLES ARE OPEN, Feel it with your Hand, Feel that Air is Coming out of ALL the Lube Holes for the CAM BEARING JOURNALS and ALL THE ORIFICES on “EVERY CAM LOBE”, there is a SMALL ORIFICE HOLE INSIDE AND AT THE BOTTOM OF THE LARGER OIL HOLE, IF NO AIR is Coming out, You Can Use a Paper Clip To Clean It Out,
“DO NOT USE A DRILL, THE ORIFICE HOLE IS VERY SMALL”

After Checking the Cam

“Before Installation”
Inspect the CAM and HOUSING to make Sure LOBES the Bearing Surfaces are Serviceable and that
CAM LOBES ARE NOT WORN BEYOND BEING IN A SERVICEABLE CONDITION Coat the Bearing Surfaces in the Cam Housing with a light Coating of the Anti-Seeze, then install the Can Into the Housing, JUST BEFORE THE CAM BEARING JOURNALS SLIDE INTO THE CAM HOUSING, COAT THEM WITH THE Anti-Seeze and Slide it into Position. Install the Thrust Unit at the Rear of the Cam, Torque the Bolt, with the Cam and the Housing Standing on it’s Nose, Put Some Engine OIL on the Thrust Unit, then Coat the soft plug with a Thread Sealant like the Type used on Some Head Bolts, WITHOUT THE CAM NOSE CONTACTING ANYTHING then tap the Soft Plug into the Cam Housing Until it Bottoms OUT in the Cam Housing, a LARGE SOCKET WORKS THE BEST

Check that the Cam Has Just a Slight Amount of End Play and Turns Freely Then Lube the Cam Seal Contact area and then Install the Cam Front Seal, and the Timing Belt Pulley and Torque the Retaining Bolt Install the Cam Cover Housing Gasket on the Head, Make sure that the Orifice Tube Has been Installed and that there is an OIL HOLE directly above the Orifice Tube in the Gasket where the Orifice Tube was installed

Installing the Cam and Housing

Make Sure that the 2 Studs at the each end of the Head are installed Ensure that the Cam Lobes Have a LIBERAL COATING of the Bostick Anti-Seeze Align the Timing gear mark at the TOP, Gently and SLOWLY Lower the Cam and Housing EVENLY onto the head, start the Bolts With Their Washers into the Cam Housing and engage them into the Threads of the Head, SLOWLY Tighten them EVENLY until the Cam Housing Just Contacts the Head and Gasket, then let EVERYTHING SET STILL for about 5 Minutes, This will allow the Lash Adjusters to Bleed Down to there Proper Height, after the 5 Minutes have Passed, Rotate the Cam Timing Gear 1 Turn, this will allow More Lash Adjusters to Bleed Down to there Proper Height, after the 5 Minutes have Passed, Rotate the Cam Timing Gear 1 Turn Again, after the 5 Minutes have Passed, Rotate the Cam Timing Gear 1 Turn Again this Operation has Ensured that ALL the Lash Adjusters Have BLED DOWN and Adjusted to there Positions for Proper Operation
Tighten all Cam Cover Housing Bolts Evenly and Torque them to there Proper Torque Value
ALIGN ALL ALL TIMING MARKS and Install the Timing Belt and Adjust it’s Tension
The Timing Belt Tension is Adjusted by Moving the Accessory Drive Housing UP or DOWN
It Is On the Lower Right Front of the Engine It Contains the Distributor, Fuel Pump and Oil Pump
If you Slid the Timing Belt OFF the Cam Drive Gear during Disassembly, then you Might be able to Slide it Back on the Pulley again on Reassembly, ensuring that ALL Timing Marks are In there Proper Location Before Re-Installing the Timing belt, after Re-Installing the Timing Belt you need to check the Belt tension, Rotate the Engine in the Direction of Rotation some, Maybe a ½ turn to tension the Belt in Rotating the Cam, to check the tension, My rule of THUMB is to grab the Timing Belt abut ½ the way between accessory drive Pulley and the Cam Pulley, give it a Gentle but Slightly Firm TWIST, you should be able to TWIST IT about ¼ of a turn without Much Force, that is Just about the Right Tension on the Timing Belt. If you can twist it Further, You Need to Remove the Accessory Drive Housing Assembly

BUT BEFORE YOU UN-BOLT ANYTHING

“AFTER ALIGNING THE TIMING MARKS” You Need to Remove the Distributor Cap, take a Felt Tipped MARKER and Mark the Position of the Rotor Tip Position on the Distributor Housing, also Mark the Distributor's Positron on the Accessory Housing, Then “REMOVE THE DISTRIBUTOR ASSEMBLY”
By Marking it’s Position, that will make it EASY TO REINSTALL IT AFTER REPLACING THE ACCESSORY HOUSING GASKET, and the Engine will Start Right Up when Cranked after Re-Aligning the Reference Marks Made

If you have trouble re-installing the Distributor, take a flat Blade Screwdriver and turn the Oil Pump Shaft until the Distributor will Re-Install and Align with the Markings Previously put on the Distributor and Accessory Housing Before You Re-Install the Distributor, get an Old Distributor Drive Shaft that has the Drive Blade like your Distributor Has, an Old Chevy V8 Distributor Drive Shaft will work Fine, Just Gut it to get ONLY the Drive Shaft, You can Cut it Off at the Top as you DON’T Need any of THAT, You May Have to reduce the Diameter at the Top to Fit Into your Drill Chuck, (REMOVE THE OIL PRESSURE SENDER TEMPORARILY) Hook Up a RELIABLE OIL PRESSURE GAGE on The Oil Pump Pressure Port, Spin Your Test Drive Shaft with a Good Drill Motor, Smaller Ones will Struggle to do this, I use a ½ Inch Drill Motor since it has more STRENGTH, Spin the Oil Pump and Try to keep the Drive Shaft Straight UP and Centered In the Distributor Hole, a rag Wrapped around the Shaft and pushed into the Distributor hole works great to keep it Straight UP, as you Spin the Oil Pump Check your OIL Pressure to Make Sure it is with is within Specifications, run the Drill for about a 2-3 Minutes, this will Prue-Lubricate the WHOLE ENGINE and especially the Newly Installed Cam and Bearings, Followers and Lash Adjusters, IT WILL NOT HAVE A DRY START THIS WAY, You need remove the Accessory Drive Housing Assembly because you need to put a NEW GASKET ON IT, the Belt Tension is adjusted by Sliding the Accessory Drive Housing up or Down to adjust the Belt Tension, it has Probably been there a LONG TIME and the Gasket will TEAR IF MOVED and will have to be Scraped Off the Accessory Drive Housing and the Engine Block and a “NEW “GREASED” GASKET INSTALLED”

If the Cam and Cam Followers are Worn beyond the Point of Being Re-Usable, there are Reproduction Cam and Cam Followers for Sale on E Bay for about $500.00-$600.00 for Everything The Cam is a 4 Barrel Engine Cam they Say, Probably the “E” Cam and is Probably Rated as a 215 H.P. as a Reproduced Cam I would ask lots of Questions, make SURE it is the 215 H.P "E' Cam If you DO Buy One, “BEFORE YOU ATTEMPT TO INSTALL IT”

Clean the OIL and any Liquids Out of your Old Cam First YOU CAN TEST YOUR OLD CAM AND COMPARE THE AIRFLOW RESULTS OF BOTH IT and the NEW CAM Do the SAME Air Flow Test on the NEW Cam as Stated Above to Ensure that it has ALL the OIL Passages that are CLEAR and it will Match ALL Air Flow Results that are Mentioned Above

WARNING: IF YOU INSTALL A NEW CAM AND CAM FOLLOWERS THIS PROCEDURE IS VERY IMPORTANT! YOU MUST BREAK IN THE CAM AND CAM FOLLOWERS THIS WAY, After you have done ALL the Procedures Listed in This Article, then you can proceed with this Break-in Procedure Make Sure that the Engine is FULL of Coolant and Bled so that all the air is Removed from the Cooling System,

Make Sure that there is Enough Gas in the Fuel Tank to run the Engine for about 30 Minutes

Make sure that the ENGINE OIL is up to the FULL MARK on the dipstick

You can use any oil of your Choice, but it Must be a HIGH Quality Oil with
ANTI-WEAR ADDITIVES, these OLDER ENGINES “DEMAND IT”

The Oil Should Be Fresh, I prefer Mobil ONE 10/30 with a BLUE bottle of STP. It Should Have a Fresh FULL WITH OIL Filter too, there will be Metal Particles in the Oil from the Break In Procedure
You Need to Change the OIL FILTER “AGAIN” after about a Day of Driving the Car, It May Have High Metal Concentrations in it because of the Cam and Cam Followers wearing in to each other during the Break-in Procedure.

Note: I ALWAYS CUT ALL OF MY OIL FILTERS APART ON EVERY OIL CHANGE TO CHECK FOR EXCESSIVE WEAR PARTIALS.

USE A HIGH QUALITY OIL FILTER TO BETTER PROTECT THE ENGINE (This is Just My Preference, I Have Never Had any Cam/Valve train Problems on the OHC 6 Engine since 1967, It Started with my My 1967 Firebird Sprint with GOOD HI GRADE OIL and STP Supplement) (Blue Bottle Now)

NOW THE SCARY PART

Assuring that “ALL” the Previous Requirements have Been Satisfied You Should have some means to hold the Throttle at 2000 RPM’s for 30 Minutes Start the Engine, and take it Straight up to 2000 RPM’s and hold it there for 30 Minutes, This is Needed to have Maximum Oil Flow and Anti-Wear Ingredients and Maximum Lubrication Available for the Wear in of the CAM and CAM FOLLOWER Components, this Ensures that the Components WILL NOT BE OIL STARVED FOR LUBRICATION during the Break-in Procedure, After the 30 Minutes you can return to Idle and Adjust the Carb and Timing as Needed, although the Timing should be Back were it Started Before Disassembly if the Distributor was Marked and it returned to the Same Markings done earlier during the Timing Belt Tension Adjustment

Warning" Make Dam Sure that the Coolant Hoses are VERY TIGHT and that ALL The Hose Clamps are TIGHT, If a Hose Blows Off during Break-In, You or Someone else will get SCALDED WITH 200 Degree Boiling Coolant.

IF THIS IS A REBUILT ENGINE, IT WILL "GET VERY, VERY HOT" DURING THE BREAK IN PROCEDURE, A VERY "HIGH VOLUME FAN" BLOWING THRU THE RADIATOR IS A MUST, IT MAY BOIL OVER, SHUT IT DOWN AND RE START IT AFTER IT COOLS DOWN, YOU STILL NEED TO RUN IT A TOTAL OF 30 MIN. AT 2000 RPM'S TO COMPLETE THE BREAK-IN PROCEDURE.

Re Install the Accessory Drive Housing that you removed, WITH A NEW GASKET THAT HAS BEEN GREASED ON BOTH SIDES, Gently Slide it UP to its Highest Point and Snug down a Couple of the Retaining Bolts, Insure that ALL “3” Timing Marks are At there Designated Location, Install the Timing Belt, Loosen the Accessory Drive Bolts and Slide the Unit Down until the Timing Belt tension is where You want it, Re Check that ALL Timing Marks are Still In there Proper Timing Location, then tighten all the Retaining Bolts on the Accessory Drive Housing to there Proper Torque Value, Re Check the Belt Tension after a Couple of Days If it is Still OK then Check the Torque on the Accessory Drive Housing Bolts, the Gasket May have taken a Set and the Bolts May be a Little Loose, Just Re Torque them Again

IF EVERYTHING CHECKED OUT OK, Go for a Drive and Enjoy the Fun Of A PONTIAC OHC 6 “SPRINT” GRABBING GEARS

Remember to Use Premium Gas so that the Engine does Not Ping when it is Driving, If it Does, then you need to put some GOOD Octane Booster in the Fuel Tank. You DO NOT want the Engine to PING While you are Driving it, DO NOT LET THE ENGINE LUG IN TOO HIGH A GEAR OR TOO SLOW A SPEED

That Causes DETONATION ON THE TOP OF THE PISTONS, IF IT KEEPS UP, WITH THE DETENTION, IT CAN DESTROY THE PISTONS

I KNOW THAT THIS IS A LOT TO TAKE IN, BUT IT HAS NEVER FAILED ME.

Hope this Answered a Lot of Questions

Take Care,

Dusty / BMFH

Note:
I Have Done this Procedure Since I first Had A 1967 Pontiac FIREBIRD OHC 6 "SPRINT"
I Have Never Had a CAM FAILURE.

P.S. I HAVE BEEN A JOURNEYMEN MECHANIC SINCE 1962 WHEN I ENLISTED IN THE AIR FORCE