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two questions need help with

M

mchuey19629489

Member
Member
last year I had new cams installed by a dealer mechanic I have know for sometime.
I am trying to track down a noise in the top end and after removing the valve cover I noticed the 4 of the cam cap bolts on two of the cam caps were loose and almost off. Maybe 3-4 more turns and they would have been in the motor.
I want to check the torque on all the cam cap bolts and am thinking to loosen and remove one bolt at a time, inspect it, clean it, re oil the bolt and hand tighten it in the hole it came from. Repeat for all the bolts. Once all are removed and cleaned and hand tightened I will then follow the sequence and torque to spec.
Does anyone see a issue with doing this?

Also, can someone describe the drag I am looking for when I insert the feeler gauge to re check valve clearance? Tight? not tight? any help would be greatly appreciated.
thank you!
 
You haven't explored the limitless info membership brings as a COG member. Lol. As a full member you, yes you mchuey, have access to the technical wealth that exists because of the membership...

Go to the menu..and look for something that say tech pages or tech info... this will take u to.everytjing that's c10 and c14 related. In the c10 area u will see headings for the various areas of maintenance, and go down to engine top end. The last topic is valve adjustment. Click on it and prepare yourself for.enlightenment. lol

Not trying to.be a wise a$$ here, just trying to make it fun for u. I will.tell u I am severely tech challenged. But I too had someone send me to the tech pages and from there I've explored and forgotten so such...!!

When u get the chance check.out the complete site to see what else lies within your reach. Until then keep asking questions, cuz the only dumb question is the one not asked. There's a wealth of info here and we love to share.

..and yes ur plan sounds good, I'd wanna know if threads are bad for each bolt etc... or did ur mechanic who replaced ur cams not get the correct torque specs...

Join for the bike(s) stay for the people my freind..
 
Mchuey,

The C10 manual says: 12 N-m / 104 in-lb torque for the cam cap bolts and 25 N-m / 18.0 ft-lb for the tappet locknuts.
A word of caution. As I understand it, those torque specs are for 'dry' fasteners.
I've stripped an oily valve tappet & locknut trying to hit that 18 ft-lb spec.
These days, (oily tappet & nut) I only torque them to about 80% of the spec (15 ft-lb). >73K miles later, I've never had one back off.
It's also possible my torque wrench is calibrated on the heavy side.
Yes I'd definitely check those cap bolt threads (head and bolt) for damage - and everything else in the vicinity.
If all looks good, try to dry (brakleen or similar) the head threads, bolts, cap contact area and torque to spec.

When setting the valve clearance, the feeler gauge should move with some very slight drag if the clearance is right.
You can get some idea of correct vs too tight by having the feeler gauge in place and lightly screw down the tappet.
You'll feel it in the gauge when the tappet takes up all the slack.
After the lock nuts are torqued, I double check clearance again to make sure it's still correct. I'll also check by adding one or two thousands to the correct clearance gauge to see if it'll fit.
For example, I'll try to see if a .007" or .008" gauge will fit the .006" intake clearance.
If it doesn't fit the clearance or has to be forced in (heavy drag), but the proper gauge feels right, you should be pretty close.
Better to be on the loose end of the spec than tight.
Also, keep the clearance as identical as possible for each rocker/valve set, so there's minimal 'rocking' of the rocker in operation.

Good luck.
 
Last edited:
Works best for me anyway.....use 2 feeler gauges. That way when you go to next adjuster nut the one you just tightened won't move.
 
Konehead34 said:
You haven't explored the limitless info membership brings as a COG member. Lol. As a full member you, yes you mchuey, have access to the technical wealth that exists because of the membership...

Go to the menu..and look for something that say tech pages or tech info... this will take u to.everytjing that's c10 and c14 related. In the c10 area u will see headings for the various areas of maintenance, and go down to engine top end. The last topic is valve adjustment. Click on it and prepare yourself for.enlightenment. lol

Not trying to.be a wise a$$ here, just trying to make it fun for u. I will.tell u I am severely tech challenged. But I too had someone send me to the tech pages and from there I've explored and forgotten so such...!!

When u get the chance check.out the complete site to see what else lies within your reach. Until then keep asking questions, cuz the only dumb question is the one not asked. There's a wealth of info here and we love to share.

..and yes ur plan sounds good, I'd wanna know if threads are bad for each bolt etc... or did ur mechanic who replaced ur cams not get the correct torque specs...

Join for the bike(s) stay for the people my freind..
Click to expand...
thank you, I do appreciate it, I will take your advise
 
mtntec said:
Mchuey,

The C10 manual says: 12 N-m / 104 in-lb torque for the cam cap bolts and 25 N-m / 18.0 ft-lb for the tappet locknuts.
A word of caution. As I understand it, those torque specs are for 'dry' fasteners.
I've stripped an oily valve tappet & locknut trying to hit that 18 ft-lb spec.
These days, (oily tappet & nut) I only torque them to about 80% of the spec (15 ft-lb). >73K miles later, I've never had one back off.
It's also possible my torque wrench is calibrated on the heavy side.
Yes I'd definitely check those cap bolt threads (head and bolt) for damage - and everything else in the vicinity.
If all looks good, try to dry (brakleen or similar) the head threads, bolts, cap contact area and torque to spec.

When setting the valve clearance, the feeler gauge should move with some very slight drag if the clearance is right.
You can get some idea of correct vs too tight by having the feeler gauge in place and lightly screw down the tappet.
You'll feel it in the gauge when the tappet takes up all the slack.
After the lock nuts are torqued, I double check clearance again to make sure it's still correct. I'll also check by adding one or two thousands to the correct clearance gauge to see if it'll fit.
For example, I'll try to see if a .007" or .008" gauge will fit the .006" intake clearance.
If it doesn't fit the clearance or has to be forced in (heavy drag), but the proper gauge feels right, you should be pretty close.
Better to be on the loose end of the spec than tight.
Also, keep the clearance as identical as possible for each rocker/valve set, so there's minimal 'rocking' of the rocker in operation.

Good luck.
Click to expand...
thank you for this! good advise and it helps, thank you.
 
mtntec said:
For example, I'll try to see if a .007" or .008" gauge will fit the .006" intake clearance
Click to expand...

Thats the thicket...I also mike my feeler gauges, I've seen more tolerance on them than you would expect.
 
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