Tricks & tips for removing camshaft

[Lotus907efi]

Hello:
I am putting a rebuilt short block back in a 1989 XR4Ti and prior to reinstalling the head I want to install a higher performance cam from Boport Performance. I am thinking the stage 1.5 cam would be best. The head already has the Ranger roller cam and roller followers in it.

I have never changed a cam in a 2.3L Lima and I do not have any special ford cam tools. I do however have a normal valve spring compressor that sort of looks like a huge C clamp that reaches all the way around the head. Will this work for the 2.3L?

Also any direct experience with the Boport 1.5 cam?

[merkurdriver]

http://store.esslingeracing.com/cart/ro ... tails.aspx

Esslinger makes a tool.



Its really handy IF you have the head on teh bolck / engine in the car, etc. However if the head is loose I'm guessing you could probably use a "normal" valve spring compressor.

[Esteban]

There really isnt much to it and you can pretty much wing it by looking at it. If the head is on the car, make sure you use paper towels to plug up the oil drain holes so nothing falls into the block such as a valve lock or those cam plate screws. Pull the cam out slowly making sure not to nick or scratch the cam bearings. You may also want to swap in a new cam seal which are usually $8 at autozone. And instead of re-using the philips screws for the cam plate, you can buy hex bolts and flip the cam plate around. This way you can remove those bolts easily with the head installed.

As for cam selection, this purely depends on what your goals are with the car and where you want your power to be, and your supporting mods. The power on the 1.5 doesnt come on till after 3k and falls off by 5500. Although Bo's cams are designed to be ran straight up, you may want an adjustable cam gear to dial in the powerband. Other than Boport, I would look up Schneider Cams. Give them a call and tell them what you want in a cam and they can recommend something for you.

[Lotus907efi]

Yes, the head is loose sitting on the bench and the rest of the engine looks like this in the car:



The special Wiseco coated pistons look like this:

[my8950]

Good info here...

The pictures are hard to see, they're a little "small"...

[Lotus907efi]

BTW, for those of you who have been to Carlisle many times over the years this engine is going in Eric Hoffman's old car that he had owned from when it was new.

[Lotus907efi]

After doing quite a few google searches around this I have found information on a K-D tool with the part number of either 3087 or 2400 that looks like this:

K-D 3087


K-D 2400


There is also a youtube video showing the tool in action:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DD-wEruEdRM

Unfortunately this tool is very hard to come by now.

I was able to remove the hydraulic lash adjusters yesterday using a large open end wrench but the method does not seem like it will work to put them back in once I receive the new cam kit. So still looking for any suggestions on how to reassemble the HLAs into the head when the head is off the car.

[grampy666]

When my '85 XR4TI was running back in the '90s, I did the valve stem seal upgrade and made a tool to compress the valve springs with the head in the car. When my GF gets home from work, I'll try to take a pic.

Basically, I used 2 pieces of 3/8 steel rod about a foot long and put a 30 or 35 degree bend about 4 inches up the rod. Then I cut a block of 2 x 4 to the width of the valve keepers, cut two grooves in the side of the block and used 2 C clamps to hold the longer legs of the steel rods to the block of wood. It worked well enough to do the job, but does require the head to be secured somehow because you need one hand to work the tool and one to remove the locks.

[Turbo]

I made these tools for replacing valve springs while head is on the car, they worked out fine, would be real easy for removing just the followers.
1" bar stock from Lowes. old sparkplug, air fitting and pipe for the air injector to hold the valves up.

[jkxr4ti]

FYI KD no longer makes this tool but it's available under the Jack Sealey
brand PN VS168. This looks to be a U.K. Producer but it's still being made

Jack Sealey - Sealey Valve Spring Compressor Lever Type Ohv/Ohc



You can also look for Big A brand PN 17-8611
Or as you mentioned the KD version but both of these have been discontinued.