Please say it ain't so. So far, things with this engine have been looking great. Got the camshaft out tonight. On the back end, the part number is 398. That's it. Can't find any other numbers stamped. There is a W and a 2 cast into the cam toward the rear of the motor, but they aren't next to each other. Anyway, this is what the first round section looks like: The cut into the metal doesn't go all the way around. It's on opposite sides, but what you see in the picture is as far around as each 'slice' goes. All the other round sections look good. The front bearing looks like this: And in what I think is an oil hole, I found this piece of metal. It was standing upright just like I'm holding it, but it was sitting about about an inch...near that little hole at the bottom. Talk to me...and if you are bearing bad news, be gentle to me...and please no unedumacted guesses.
Those "slices" in the cam are for oiling, no problem there. The errant piece of metal is odd, is it some kind of woven wire mesh, or is it machined in that pattern? It almost looks like the end of a rat-tail file. In any case, it shouldn't be in the engine. The bearing does have a scratch in it, can't really tell that it's worn much. Are you tearing the motor completely down, or is this just for a camshaft change?
I agree with ebbsspeed. The bearing surface isn't bad - maybe a dirt mark or two yet its the right"colour' and the surface looks great. The camshaft has an oil grove in the bearing surface and again that all looks good. I'd be happy with it. The odd bit of Metal - now thats another story!!! Shouldn't be there, no way hoosay should it be there. Get it out from the engine!!!! Looks like it may have been overlooked or missed during cleaning and assembly the last time the motor was apart Other than that I think you are lucky and fortunate. You have caugh a problem before it became an expensive problem. Good luck with the rest of it
Your cam looks normal, the piece of metal is strange, and I see a little galling on the bearing in the block. I'd replace the bearings being as you are this far, they are cheap and with the right tool easy to do.
Cam looks good. Put in new bearings and for god's sake get that broken-off piece of file out of there. Yikes.
What does the other half of the cam bearing look like? The portion you took a picture of does look fine, but it could still be worn. Look at the other half of the bearing and make sure it has the same color/shade to it. If it is darker, it would need to be replaced. I've pulled many apart that looked this good or better yet they are actually worn enough to be bad. For what it is worth, you have it this far apart, put in new ones anyways...cheap and relatively easy. EDIT* yeah looks like a piece off of a file.
I do see a ridge toward the back of the bearing. This tells us that the bearing is worn. Around the oil hole some crud has passed through and left a groove in the bearing. Due to the dull look of the bearing and the groove this will only get worse and start to flake apart at the oil hole. Now the mystery piece is a hunk of casting slag that should have been chipped out of the oil passage between the main and the cam oil passage at the factory. Now if it was me I'd tear it down and swab all of the oil gallies and replace the cam bearings
That piece looks more to me like a piece of a carbide burr, hard to tell for sure. I would renew the cam bearings.
Whatever that piece of metal is, at least it's out. The picture shows the round side. The other side follows the same contour...looks like it was a hollow tube and that piece broke off. It does look like it could have been a round file tip, but I've never seen a round file that was hollow. The cam lobes are all good. No signs of uneveness or ridges on any of them. None of the others look scratched up at all to me...at least nothing you can fee. The camshaft has me puzzled. I was hoping to ID it so I could see if I should replace it for a better performing one or put it back in (which would have been a great way to save a few bucks). On the cast surface behind that first round section (with the oil grooves), it's stamped USA. The in front of the dizzy gear, it has M|70 I don't know if that's a 1 or a vertical line. Then behind the cam gear, it has 3 stars punched into it. Then on the flat surfact at the end of the cam, only the numbers 398. I can't find anything in the Old Hemi parts number guide I have and can't find anything online that would identify the cam. I'll probably just get a new one so I have known components in the engine. I had the combustion chambers measured, and I have 100cc heads. I measured the cylinder and stroke of the piston to figure out cylinder volume and I should be around 8.5:1 compression ( much more than a stock Industrial would have been from what I've read). So a nice cam would give this motor some muscle to push my very heavy 52 Dodge Truck and be able to manage the towing duty I plan on using it for.
Hey, i live in Broadway NC about an hour drive straight down 421, I have a cam bearing install tool. Will do it for free, also build hot rods, my baby is a chopped 51 shoe box with a 4.6 OHC in it.
Paul...that's really cool. I decided to take the shortblock to the engine shop that's doing the heads. There's just a bit of gritty grime still in the engine and I don't want to take a chance that I'm going to spend money on these parts only to let crap ruin them. I might as well do it right and have the engine hot tanked and cleaned properly. I would like to get together when it's time for me to get it running on a stand though. I could use some help making sure everythings setup right so I don't blow the thing up when it's all together. I just spent tonight getting off my engine stand and put on the homemade engine cradle so I can load it up in my truck tomorrow.
If you hot tank it You have to change the cam bearings, the chemicals will ruin them, no problem with start up, send a message and I will come up and show you the right way to start the engine so no damage problems, a favorite uncle gave me a 1949 to 1959 Chilton has all the specs needed.
Dan, that looks like a piece of what once was wire braided hose to me. I've sold a lot of it and it sure looks like wire braid to me. Good luck on getting specs for that cam. Aren't you glad you went ahead and removed it?
we're going to fully clean the engine & change all the bearings. Don't think we need an overbore on the cylinders...just clean them up, new rings and reassemble it the right way. New cam will be one that produces power in the low to mid RPM range. With the heavy truck it's going it, that's where I need the power. Rock...feel free to come by anytime and you can check out the truck.
Yeah, you're doing the right thing...tank it, and hopefully get any other garbage out of there. Recall that the oil galley on the driver side has the rear plug inside of the valley, just ahead of the dist drive gear. You have to remove the plug from the outside of the back of the block and then reach through to access the internal plug. These plugs can be a real m.f'r. to unscrew...I usually drill them out. When you are ready to install a new plug, first drill a 0.040 dia hole through the centre. At least until it gets plugged, it will provide additional lube to the dist gear. .
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