Really stuck cam nut

31 Woody

31 Woody

Senior Member
Any tips on removing a really stuck cam nut? I borrowed the right adapter/fitting to use but this nut is so beat up using a breaker bar it pops off the nut.
 
31 Woody said:
Any tips on removing a really stuck cam nut? I borrowed the right adapter/fitting to use but this nut is so beat up using a breaker bar it pops off the nut.
Click to expand...
do you have an impact wrench with socket or if that beat up use a drift pin /hammer
 
I tried the impact wrench for a few hits, then decided to see if there was ‘experience’ out there before I make it worse.
 
The six sided cam nut is way easier to remove. If your fiber gear was badly worn and missing teeth it’s prudent to drop the oil pan and clean the oil pump screen, a plugged screen can cause bearing failure.
 

Attachments

  • 8F480134-D3B7-4235-8DCA-2D378D85745D.jpg
    8F480134-D3B7-4235-8DCA-2D378D85745D.jpg
    41.1 KB · Views: 56
I recently had a similar stuck cam nut that wouldn't budge with a wrench without stripping the fiber cam gear. So I gave it a good whack with a heavy hammer and cold chisel and it came loose. I never thought of using an impact wrench. Will try that on then next tough cam nut.
Thanks for the tip!
 
I had tried a hammer and chisel too, but the gear was so beat up I was worried it would become an unrecoverable mangled mess. I was able to use the cam nut tool—just barely. FYI, the pan is off, the valve cover is off, the head is off, and the whole engine is coming out this weekend. I am going to do a major clean and check of everything while it is this far apart. Planning to lap the valves and set the lash as well as long as I don’t find something fatal. The good news is the pan was pretty clean of debris, but there was sludge the consistency of tar.
 
I had one with a mangled nut ,no way would the special tool stay on . As a last resort I used a thin cutoff disc on my angle grinder . I cut the nut as close to the cam flange thread as I dared . I removed about a half leaving a thin bit completing the nut circle . I could now engage a heavy pipe wrench (called a "stilson" in UK ) The nut unscrewed easily . I used cardboard to deflect sparks which worked fine . I use one of those very high powered button magnets on the oil pan close to the drain nut and remove /replace during oil changes in case any " sparks" got by the cardboard . I did not mark the cam flange .

John in a rainy morning Suffolk County England .
 
Last edited:
I use a combination of heat and an air impact wrench. you may need to take the cam out of the engine. With the cam in a vice, heat the nut very hot, and hammer it off with the impact wrench.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top