Thread: My camshaft won't come out!!!

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Hey fellas, I got my car at the mechanics shop to get my car running good. It was making a popping noise after replacing my old 292/512 cam w/ a Comp 286/488 cam. We tried hot lashing the valves 3 times w/ no success. We decided it was a bad cam lobe and that I hadn't broken the cam in properly.
Now we can't get the cam out...5 mechanics tried to get it out w/ the engine still in the car. I'm guessing we'll have to pull the motor and beat it out from the back. My question is how could this have happened and what size cam bearings do I need once and if I get that cam out in one piece?? I believe my block (400 chev) has been align honed. Will any SBC cam bearings do? I've never replaced them before...Anyone

If you have to replace the cam bearings, and you've never done it before, it might be better to have it done. You'll need special tools to drive the old bearings out and the new ones in. You need a soft plug driver to put the cam plug in the back. The tools would problee' cost more than the labor. If you want to try it on your own, you could probably rent or borrow the tools from a parts house. They can also show you how to install the new bearings (They need to line up right with the oil holes in the block). I like to align the oil hole in the bearing with the oil hole in the block (main bearing journals) to confirm the bearings are in right.

Does anyone have any idea why my cam won't come out without pulling the engine? Meaning why won't it come out from the front like it should (easily) could one of my bearings spun? Or did one of my cam lobes grenade thus preventing it from being pulled out. I can turn the cam over and over but it won't come out more than six or seven inches, it will go back in the engine but it still will not come out. I was wondering if this has happened to anyone before....and did they have to beat it out from the back with the engine out?

I forgot to mention...Are there different size cam bearings for a chev 400? versus all other SBC? or does one size fit all Small blocks?

Hard to say without looking at it. My guess would be a bearing is damaged. You are probably pulling it out far enough to where the cam has to fit through the "Next Set" of bearings for lack of a better term. If it were mine and I wanted the engine to last, I would bite the bullet and pull the engine n' tear it down. If the cam is bad you've got filings in the engine and probably embeded in the bearings ....cam, rods and mains.

Try turning the crankshaft a little bit, a rod might be interfering. Thread a long bolt into the cam for a handle to make it easier to line the journals up with the bearings. And, yes, be sure your fuel pump pushrod is out!

No the mechanical fuel pump is not in there....I thought of that too.

Its only a guess, but you may have a bearing stuck on the cam and it won't let it slide through the next bearing. as you slide the cam forward have someone , with a flashlight look down the lifter holes in the block and see if they can see the rear bearing stuck on the cam. carlg

Lets go back to what R Pope said. He ask if the fuel pump push rod was out. You said you removed the fuel pump. How about the push rod??? You could have removed the fuel pump and the push rod could still be there blocking the cam. If you had 5 mechanics trying to get the cam our surely someone has looked for the fuel pump push rod.I would guess by now that enough damage has been done to the cam bearings that you need to take a very close look. Good Luck!

I am thinkin its time to pull it on out!U had problems with this motor for a while now?I thought I saw some posts when u first got the car?Things that take 3 hours in the car take 5 mins on the motor stand.That things not fuel injected or computerized ,should be easy!

Are all the lifters removed?

thanks guys for the posts....yes all the lifters are removed, the fuel pump pushrod it not in there either. It's got to be the rear cam bearing stuck on the cam. I'm pulling the engine for the 6th time now. I haven't tried turning the crank yet, I didn't think that would even matter...does the crank or rods even come that close to the cam that would prevent it from coming out?
Maybe it's time to give up on the Chev powerplant and go back to the cars roots "PONTIAC"!!!!! I can't believe I've had this many problems w/ this motor. That goes to show you--DO IT YOURSELF!!! Anyone else.....

Originally posted by DennyW
Ok, so you have the distributor out, all the lifters, fuel pump, and rod, hahaha, and you can turn the cam ? but it won't come out ? Those cam bearings are so soft, you can scrape them with your fingernail. If your sure there is nothing you forgot, install 2-3 bolts, and use a pry bar on each side, and pry easy, working side to side. Turn it a little and pry some more.

Exactly my thought Denny. A cam bearing can easily be damaged by nicking one with the cam as you pull it out. Then you have a problem if the engine is still in the car. There will no doubt be a high spot on the cam bearing that could spell trouble if not fixed or better yet replaced. That high spot could give you yet another reason to tear it down sometime down the road. Or in an extreme case you could end up with a gouge in the bearing that could cause oil pressure loss. I still would tear it apart, boil the block, get every speck of bad parts washed out of it and rebuild from scratch. Replace anything questionable in the process.