49-53 camshaft bolt pattern

M

mOSkit

Junior Member
Hi guys

I want to make valve lifter indexer to be available to print on 3d printer but i need the bolt pattern including all hole angle from the marking point so it will be accurate.

Does any one may have some info??
I promise the design to be free to download for your own 3d print.

Thank you
 
mOSkit said:
Hi guys

I want to make valve lifter indexer to be available to print on 3d printer but i need the bolt pattern including all hole angle from the marking point so it will be accurate.

Does any one may have some info??
I promise the design to be free to download for your own 3d print.

Thank you
Click to expand...
Maybe I'm stupid but what is a "valve lifter indexer" and what does it do?
 
Yup, this is mine. i want to make it so you dont have to spin the crank when rebuilding the engine to adjust the valves, hence i need bolt pattern.
 

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mOSkit said:
Yup, this is mine. i want to make it so you dont have to spin the crank when rebuilding the engine to adjust the valves, hence i need bolt pattern.
Click to expand...

Hi "mOS", I'm in the engine building business and don't really see a need for anything like that tool. This is NOT meant as a "knock" on the tool itself, just whether or not it would really be needed.

I have exactly 3 flathead builds going on at the moment, 2 8BA's and a 59, and don't see a "spot" for it anywhere.

Also, if the crank IS in the block it's much simpler to make 2 turns (following the firing order) and be done. This is really easy BEFORE the pistons/rods/rings are ever installed. We are talking while a full rebuild is in progress here.

I'm not trying to talk you out of going forward, just wouldn't be for us here!

Thanks, Gary in N.Y.

P.S. One drawback also, it would not necessarily show the "lowest" point on the heel of the cam lobe. This would have an overall effect on the actual lash number! We find variations of .003"/.004" (new cams) throughout the base circle on the heels of many cams?
 
I bought one of the "Cheater Pete's" units. After looking it over, I'm sure I'll never use it, but I like to encourage this kind of endeavor.:)
 
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with the crank and cam in but no rods or pistons in ,its easy, turn the crank until the valve you want to set or check is fully open , then turn the crank one turn.
Saying that,I just fitted a set of new guides and valves into my 33 engine while still in the car,it was not as easy, what I ended up doing was turn the eng untill the valve needing adjustment was fully open, then turn the engine one turn using the starter,
Lawrie
 
I have seen several of these devices on the market already and have to add I don't really see any value to using them. If I remember correctly there is even one that attaches to the 8ba distributor.
 
Guys I appreciate your feedback. As per original post, I'm not looking for financial profit. I want it to print it for my self, i actually use it on regular basis (paper printout attached to cam gear) and hence I have my own 3d printer I thought it will be cool to go rigid version.
I understand some of you have your own technics and I'm sure they right but I want this thing and I'll go ahead. This will be available for download at thinksgiverse.com hopefully tomorrow for any one to print.
 
I like the method where you set 6 valves at one setting, six at another and the last four at a 3rd setting. saves a lot of engine turning.

Mart.
 
If you have a paper one attached to a cam gear, don't you have the attachment information you need? What measurements are you needing? And a side question, I'm not sure I understand the aversion to rotating the engine assembly while setting the valve lifter clearance, seems like a good thing to me. I'm not a fan on any of these short-cut methods. I have never adjusted the lifters on any engine without placing the lifter on the heel of its particular lobe. These other methods seem to work ok, but to me it is better to be rotating the cam and crank assembles and checking things out.
 

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I need the cam gear bolt pattern. The bolts are offsetted so the gear can only fit one way on the cam. Very difficult to take those measurements especially that the tdc dot and the bottom bolt hole are off somewhere like 20degrees
 
I have done a lot of reverse engineering. I worked part time for an aviation component rebuild company that required FAA approved drawings for each item and a lot of the original drawings were not available. It is not that difficult to get the information you are wanting. The biggest secret is repeatability. You need to keep repeating the process you are using until you are getting consistent results. I'm not sure who would have the information short of manufactures (there are some cam regrinders on the Barn, maybe they would). If it is 3D printing wouldn't trial and error work? Print one up and check it on an engine with known TDC.
 
GOSFAST said:
Hi "mOS", I'm in the engine building business and don't really see a need for anything like that tool. This is NOT meant as a "knock" on the tool itself, just whether or not it would really be needed.

I have exactly 3 flathead builds going on at the moment, 2 8BA's and a 59, and don't see a "spot" for it anywhere.

Also, if the crank IS in the block it's much simpler to make 2 turns (following the firing order) and be done. This is really easy BEFORE the pistons/rods/rings are ever installed. We are talking while a full rebuild is in progress here.

I'm not trying to talk you out of going forward, just wouldn't be for us here!

Thanks, Gary in N.Y.

P.S. One drawback also, it would not necessarily show the "lowest" point on the heel of the cam lobe. This would have an overall effect on the actual lash number! We find variations of .003"/.004" (new cams) throughout the base circle on the heels of many cams?
Click to expand...

Now the question is, which part of the heel do you set the clearance to? Time consuming for sure but moving the cam a few degrees in either direction and checking the clearances find the low spot. If I found the base circle off 3 to 4 thousandths I would be wondering what else was wrong. These are solid cams where it might not matter as much as a hydraulic cam running at zero lash.
 
This is another reason I'm not a fan of all these short cut methods! How can you possible know what is going on if you don't check it!!! Installing a bad cam (and they certainly do exist) can have you chasing problems forever. On any engine I rebuild everything is checked, double checked and then triple checked. This brings up a whole lot of issues, but to me to rebuild an engine correctly you first have to establish TDC and then check against that reference as you go. On a stock engine using original parts you can most likely get away with not being that picky. But with reproduction or aftermarket parts, just no way in my book.
 
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