Installing Web Cam
 

I am in the process of putting my son's 74 1.8 engine back together. We dropped the crank in last night and rolled the new Web Cam in place. I just happened to be reading a certain Dr's little book this morning and he warned that when installing an aftermarket cam with bolts holding the gear on, that the bolts must be countersunk to clear the back of the oil pump. Sure enough, I trial fit both my old pump and new HD pump and both hit the bolt heads on the cam. If I remove the lock washers, they clear. I was looking for opinions whether I should try to drill the gear to allow the washers to sit flush, or leave out the washers and use Loctite RED on the bolts.

Would also suggest PP put a warning about this in each Web Cam box. It would have been upsetting to get the case together then to find out I didn't have clearance.

Greg Schoolar

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If I were you, I would be tempted to do both. When I installed an aftermarket cam in my motor, I countersunk the holes, used red loctite, and ground off a little on the oil pump casing. Also, on the new oil pump, you want to make sure the "tine" (the thing that fits in the cam to turn the pump) is the same length as the old pump. On the high flow pumps, they tend to be a little bit longer and put more stress on the cam bearings.

I believe we had a member on the board that put together his engine without using red loctite only to have to tear down the engine at 3000 miles because the bolts had backed out and were rubbing the casing.

Hope this helps,
Paul

Thanks Paul, I'll do all of the above. It's hard keeping a 16 year old from rushing ahead and doing things without checking them. This will be a great lesson.

By the way, did you just countersink for the washer, or did you go deep enough for some of the bolt head also?

GS

Hey guys, are there any balancing issues to be worried about by removing material from a rotating mass?

I will be getting a Web Cam #73 soon and have been curious too.
Thansk
kerry

I just recently rebuilt a 74' 2.0 and replaced the stock cam with a Web Cam. The heads of the bolts that came with the cam were machined down to clear the oil pump. I also sen the old cam gear to Web Cam and they countersunk the bolt holes where the cam mounts to the gear. They did a great job. Their phone number is 909-369-5144.
I rebuilt a 72' 1.7 when i was 15 and finished it when i was 16 and drove it for 5 years. I know exactly how anxious your son is. My dad also helped me. Now i'm 21 with a 74' 2.0 that i rebuilt on my own. The 914 is a great learning car.

We use highly modified pumps in most all our engines, and cam bolt interferance is a big concern. We have to clearance the pump, and the cam bolts to get a minimum clearance.

Clearancing the pump is a scary thing to do, we do it with great care..For countersinking, be careful to measure how much thread protrusion is present after the countersinking is finished, they can contact the case on the backside..

I have a huge problem when using straight cut gears, as the cam gear is a bit thicker..

I use red loctite on cam bolts, all of them.

Balancing a cam is quite hard, and actually not needed in most cases, as it turns so slow in comparison to other rotating components.

Thanks guys for all of your input. Instead of countersinking, I rigged up my home Bridgeport Mill (drill press with mortising bit) and machined off .050" from the front face of the gear (thickness of the washers pluss a little). I then took about .030 off the back of the oil pump casting where the idler was pressed into the pump case. I now have .070 of clearance. We will use the Red Loctite on the final assembly.

One other Loctite question, how about on the conn rod nuts?

Greg Schoolar