Changing your own cam bearings?

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MileHighDart

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Can this be done at home? Is there a tool you can rent for removal and replacement, or is this pretty much machine shop only territory?
 
If you have the tool you can do it at home.

Someone may rent them.

Just make damn sure they are straight.

Sometimes no matter what you do you have to use a bearing knife and scrape the bearings to get the cam to turn.

Big block fords are horrible for cam tunnels being out of line.
 
RustyRatRod did a "how to" thread on this showing the process step by step
 
Yes there is a tool for cam bearing removal/insertion. Some part stores may have for loan or rent. The tricky part is getting oil holes to land in the correct position. That comes with experience and/or luck.
 
RedFish said:
Yes there is a tool for cam bearing removal/insertion. Some part stores may have for loan or rent. The tricky part is getting oil holes to land in the correct position. That comes with experience and/or luck.
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Or a sharpie to mark the hole position on the O.D. Of the bearing.
 
Damn good article right there.

Glad you mentioned putting some lube on the bearings. Some don't but it is a MUST do thing. No reason to beat them in dry.

The only exception to the lube rule I have found is again, the big block ford. I used green lock tight on those buggars. I had them turn and all kinds of crap. Other than that lube the bearings.
 
and on a mopar I would not change cam bearings on every rebuild, only if the old ones are bad, or if the block is cleaned in a caustic liquid
 
Bearing materials do get old and brittle, and bearing material can then flake out of the shells, so if the block is original, I'd change them regardless of condition.
 
nm9stheham said:
Bearing materials do get old and brittle, and bearing material can then flake out of the shells, so if the block is original, I'd change them regardless of condition.
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I think that's exactly whats happening. 4 out of 5 bearing look fine, but one looks like small areas of the bearing surface have flaked off or something like that. That's why I'm looking at changing them out.
 
MileHighDart said:
I think that's exactly whats happening. 4 out of 5 bearing look fine, but one looks like small areas of the bearing surface have flaked off or something like that. That's why I'm looking at changing them out.
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I've run them flaked, broken all that. Sometimes we over think it. Keep your idle oil pressure at 30 pounds hot or more and you'll save yourself a bunch of headaches.
 
Well, I wasn't really wanting to change them, my budget is pretty much shot already.
But after looking at the bad one again, I gotta change em out.
One bearing has a small flake, and one has about 1/2 the coating flaked off on the lower half.
So, gotta do it I guess. Got some bearings ordered, will have them tomorrow morning.
 
Yup, good info. Years ago I had a buddy who owns a shop change one flaked bearing in an otherwise clean short block, cam removed. I brought him the short block on an engine dolly, the bearing (I had to buy all five in a set), he knocked the new bearing in, in the bed of my pickup, $50 labor, ouch.
 
YoloCtyFlash said:
Yup, good info. Years ago I had a buddy who owns a shop change one flaked bearing in an otherwise clean short block, cam removed. I brought him the short block on an engine dolly, the bearing (I had to buy all five in a set), he knocked the new bearing in, in the bed of my pickup, $50 labor, ouch.
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Yikes! He charged you $50 to do one bearing?
This is why I'm going to find a way to do it myself. And I may do what you did and just change out the bad one.
 
I can't say every shop would charge that much to do one bearing, and likewise, it wouldn't be $250 to do all five, but it didn't look too tough to do, it's just - do I want to invest in the specialty tool?....yeah, I think I do!
 
yellow rose said:
I've run them flaked, broken all that. Sometimes we over think it. Keep your idle oil pressure at 30 pounds hot or more and you'll save yourself a bunch of headaches.
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And I have raced on .005-006" of cam bearing clearance to the cam journals when I did not have a set handy, but for the low cost and effort, why not just get them freshened up? It'll just make things better for the long run.
 
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