FE Cam Bearings

cyclone427428 · #1 (**permalink**) 04-30-2006, 08:24 PM

I recently tore my 360 apart to rebuild it and I was looking at the cam bearings and #3 was cocked at an angle. My has the same bearings it came with from the factor so I imagine the cam bearing was put in wrong from the factory. What I didnt understand was the first cam bearing has two holes in it and all the others have only one. Doesn't the oil come in the cam bearings then down to the main bearings? I'm still trying to figure out the miss alignment of the cam bearing. Anyone have any info on the oiling? any help will be much appreciated.

dynoroom · #2 (**permalink**) 04-30-2006, 10:53 PM

If you look closely at the front cam bearing you'll see that the 2nd hole feeds oil to the part of the distributor shaft that drops into the block to align the distributor gear with the cam drive gear.

Barry_R · #3 (**permalink**) 05-01-2006, 03:50 AM

Hi Mike,
From one lurker to another....

Barry R.

dynoroom · #4 (**permalink**) 05-01-2006, 09:02 AM

How ya do'in Barry? Are you ready for your next shoot out?
Hope your new jobs working out.

Barry_R · #5 (**permalink**) 05-01-2006, 07:22 PM

Hey Mike,

I'm doin' OK peddling - - not gettin' rich, but "Survivin'"...

So far I have Blue Thunder, Scat, Probe, Stefs, Manley, Diamond, and my own flat tappet cam line. Adding more as I get to them....lots of old friends are helping out.

I stay kinda quiet here since Keith and George invest a lot of ad money to the forum - - no need to poop in their playground...

They're good guys...I'll get noisier when I have a little scratch to toss in...

The next generation contest motor is gonna be a tweaked destroked version of last year's effort. Now that we did OK, the Cinderella factor is done and we'll need to step things up a bit.

See Ya,
Barry R.
Survival Motorsports

ted · #6 (**permalink**) 05-03-2006, 11:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cyclone427428

I recently tore my 360 apart to rebuild it and I was looking at the cam bearings and #3 was cocked at an angle. My has the same bearings it came with from the factor so I imagine the cam bearing was put in wrong from the factory. What I didnt understand was the first cam bearing has two holes in it and all the others have only one. Doesn't the oil come in the cam bearings then down to the main bearings? I'm still trying to figure out the miss alignment of the cam bearing. Anyone have any info on the oiling? any help will be much appreciated.

In regards to your ‘cocked’ bearing question, when you say cocked, I’m assuming you’re referring to the oil hole not being perpendicular or being directly at the bottom of the cam bearing bore. Because the #2 thru #5 cam bearing bores are fully grooved behind the bearings on the center oiling blocks, the hole in the cam bearing can be physically placed in any location with the oil still getting to the camshaft journal. It’s not unusual for the #2 thru #5 cam bearings to be installed at the 4 to 5 o’clock position (looking from the front with engine right side up) to aid in camshsaft journal oiling. If you’ve only got one bearing that’s got the oil hole positioned differently from the rest, then you could suspect a spun bearing but odds are good that it was just installed that way. Removal of the bearing and some scrutiny would quantify this.

Excaliber · #7 (**permalink**) 05-03-2006, 12:15 PM

Barry, I find it interesting that you offer a lifetime warranty on your "Survival" brand cam shafts.

The industry has been experiencing a lot of flat tappet cam failures lately. Due to modern engine oils missing key ingredients and no doubt in some cases improper break-in procedures, etc.

Do you have specific instructions for your customers to follow when installing your cam? Have there been warranty issues you've had to deal with for cams?

I see the warranty is not valid under 'racing' conditions, which is typical for all manufacturers.

cyclone427428 · #8 (**permalink**) 05-03-2006, 06:30 PM

What I mean by cocked is that the top of the bearing sits out of the journal and the bottom of the bearing is more in the journal. Like the bearing was installed wrong and it was put in at an angle. I got all the cam bearings out last night and they all were prety bad. the coating on som of them started flaking off. Thaks for the information Ted. by the way I heard you have a set of highly modified 428 CJ heads, or had a set.

ted · #9 (**permalink**) 05-03-2006, 06:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cyclone427428

What I mean by cocked is that the top of the bearing sits out of the journal and the bottom of the bearing is more in the journal. Like the bearing was installed wrong and it was put in at an angle. I got all the cam bearings out last night and they all were prety bad. the coating on som of them started flaking off. Thanks for the information Ted.

Thanks for clarifying. It indeed sounds like a faulty installation. Typically when the bearings are 'cocked' like that, the camshaft turns through with a lot of resistance and subsequently wears the bearing out quicker. When you removed that particular bearing, you should have observed a very unusual wear pattern around its inside circumference.

Excaliber · #10 (**permalink**) 05-03-2006, 07:25 PM

Unless it was cocked when the cam was pulled out? At any rate, those cam bearings should be a pretty darn tight fit and NOT easily moved during install or removal of the cam.

Barry_R · #11 (**permalink**) 05-04-2006, 12:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Excaliber

Barry, I find it interesting that you offer a lifetime warranty on your "Survival" brand cam shafts.

The industry has been experiencing a lot of flat tappet cam failures lately. Due to modern engine oils missing key ingredients and no doubt in some cases improper break-in procedures, etc.

Do you have specific instructions for your customers to follow when installing your cam? Have there been warranty issues you've had to deal with for cams?

I see the warranty is not valid under 'racing' conditions, which is typical for all manufacturers.

My conditions are what everybody else is coming around to. Rotella oil, US made lifters, cam lube, EOS, no inners, and 2000RPM+ for 20-30 minutes. What I'm doing is giving a guarantee for 10 bucks - it only covers the cam and lifters - - but if you toast one you don't need to make excuses, or try to talk somebody into taking care of the problem. Just send the dead piece in and I'll ship another out. Everybody in the cam business is having issues - - some guys are trying to deny them or hide from them. I can tell you that my blanks do NOT come from the same primary supplier for Comp or Crane...

Excaliber · #12 (**permalink**) 05-04-2006, 02:02 PM

Yeah, thats consistent with what the other cam makers are now coming out with for break in procedures. The BIG one seems to be removing those inner springs. What a pain in the butt that was, but it had to be done.



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