Frozen camshaft

[Deleted]

Ok...it's all fun and games until I break something. Nothing is broken...yet...

I've got my old MB engine almost entirely taken apart. The last major remaining component is the camshaft. Current, the tappets have been pushed upwards and out of the way. However, the camshaft will not budge. Neither clockwise, counter-clockwise, in or out.

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to free it up and pull it out? I have been soaking it with my favorite penetrating oils while searching the web for help.

-Bo

On the flip side, I found the date stamped into the bottom of the block where the oil pan fits: 7 5 44. Someone just had a birthday.

[Haines Garage]

You need a BFH!!

[Deleted]

So, are you implying to knock out the rear freeze plug and drive it that way? I'm going to stand down until one of the more experienced gents happen along. No offense, HG, but you are a wild man. Lol

[Deleted]

 DO YOU HAVE EVERYTHING REMOVED VALVES  ETC..

[Deleted]

In a unanimous vote between me, myself and I, this glorious triumvirate has now come to the conclusion that this forum is the worst place on the interweb. A nice guy (me) asks a simple question when he seeks the intellect and wisdom of jeep builders before him and the ONLY reply he receives us from the court jester, a babbling incoherent borderline idiot minus the savant. "Beat with a big hammer"

Whatever. Time to hang out somewhere else. Bubba is obviously dominating this joint.

Oh, and by the way...I safely removed the seized cam shaft. I dug deep into the far reaches of my mind and found Carl Spackler (Bill Murray), the assistant greenskeeper at the historic Bushwood Country Club. He said "I have to laugh, because I've outsmarted even myself. My enemy, my foe, is an animal. In order to conquer the animal, I have to learn to think like an animal. And, whenever possible, to look like one. I've gotta get inside this guy's pelt and crawl around for a few days."

So I thought to myself...."time to become a stuck cam shaft"

That's when it occurred to me that I should take my trusty brass hammer and do a tappity tap tap dance and apply penetrating oil on the front of the cam shaft. It wasn't long before I had movement. 30 minutes later, I'm holding the cam shaft in my hands. The engine is completely taken apart.

Thanks for nothing, mejos.

[Deleted]

Oh...hey Hillbillease. You posted while I was typing. My above post doesn't apply to you!

I did have all the valves removed and the tappets were pushed up and out of the way of the cam shaft. This is an engine that was seized when I got it. Just about everything was gummed up and stuck (pistons, valves, cam shaft). Got it all disassembled now. Hopefully on Thursday I will be able to drop it off at the local machine shop and wait for the verdict.

[Haines Garage]

Sir Moose. Droppings,
You have exactly 30 minutes to tell the truth,
The Whole Truth , and Nothing But The Truth!!!

Starting now......

[Deleted]

Seems as if Deputy Barney thinks something is amiss. I guess he is right. Between the tapping, I used a bit of gentle leverage to get the cam shaft rotating. I screwed in 2 bolts into the front of the shaft and wedged a crow bar in between them. And the like I said, I applied a gentle pressure. Lubricating oil, taps, crow bar. Repeated several times.

There. That's the truth.

[Barney Fife]

Not the one I am looking for.
Clocks ticking ski!!!!

[Deleted]

The truth??!! The people on here can't handle the truth!!

Besides, it wouldn't be good for your image. They might actually think you can restore something and aren't just the bumbling fool hearted jolly joker. If they knew that you called me and told me what to do today....then they JUST might look at you in a different light.

[Haines Garage]

I will call that score one for you!
You deserve it .
That's the whole deal though! We are supposed to help each other out , and have FUN !

Gave it to Ole Haines ! Gotta hand it to you !

Remember though .... You taught me to weld !
So now we are even .....

Look out !!!!

[Deleted]

A note: there is only one camshaft bearing at the front of the engine. If the machine shop says the rear two holes are badly rusted, you can install Ford flat head cam bearings and fix the block. I've read this, not done it. Those blocks are getting hard to find and fixing it is worth it. Glad you won the battle Moosey! Oil

[Deleted]

Leaker...thanks for that tip. I've heard about the rear surfaces going bad, but did not know that there was a chance of fixing it. I'm thinking they will be okay, although I admit I don't know what I'm looking for! Eventually I was able to spin the shaft with my hands and it did not seem to bind on anything, so I am hopeful. The pistons were 20 over, so at some point this thing has had some work done. I'm hoping it still has some life left. I'm going to try to clean it today and take it to the machinist tomorrow.

[Deleted]

I guess I should post this on my hypothetical selling a jeep thread, but I found this thread first. Moderator, feel free to move it. (Yeah, right...like he does anything except yell at us for being off topic. He kind of reminds me of the old guy at the golf course that fusses over slow play, but doesn't do anything to improve the situation.)

Anyways....got a call from the machine shop. Talked to the same guy that laughed when I mentioned Schiller's name. My July '44 engine block came back with a clean checkup: no cracks in the head or block! The cylinder walls will need to most likely be bored out to 60 over. No surprise there as they looked rough. The valve seats are just fine. We will put in new guides, though. The crank will go to 20 on the mains and 40 on the rods. The cam shaft is ok.

Sooooooooo.....that was fun news to receive. I was a bit worried about cracks, but all is well now.

[Haines Garage]

I am really glad for you.... Honestly!!
But. YOU SUCK!!!

[Deleted]

 YOU ARE LUCKY YOUNG MAN..I JUST TOLD A MAN AFTER HE BROUGHT ME TWO L-HEAD BLOCKS THAT HE STILL DOESNT HAVE ONE THAT IS USEABLE...BOTH HAD CRACKS ALONGSIDE THE DIZZY ( DISTRIBUTOR  FOR YOU MID-WEST NON WILL-IS FELLOWS )...

[Deleted]

Jul 23, 2014 17:42:02 GMT -5 @hillbilly21 said:

 YOU ARE LUCKY YOUNG MAN..I JUST TOLD A MAN AFTER HE BROUGHT ME TWO L-HEAD BLOCKS THAT HE STILL DOESNT HAVE ONE THAT IS USEABLE...BOTH HAD CRACKS ALONGSIDE THE DIZZY ( DISTRIBUTOR  FOR YOU MID-WEST NON WILL-IS FELLOWS )...

I KNOW! Right??! After hearing so many tales of woe about all of the blocks and heads that HG went through and now the couple that you saw, I figured I was going to be SOL. This engine already had the head removed when I acquired the jeep it was in. It was seized and had tons of nuts inside it....like squirrels were living in the water jacket or something. I was doubtful it could be saved. Now I am ecstatic. It's a June/July 1944 motor going in a Feb/Mar 1944 frame and body. That isn't a perfect match, but it's a lot better than the '42 GPW engine that is already in place.

[Deleted]

 YOU LOOKING FOR POLITICALLY CORRECT BLOCK ?? LET ME CHECK OUT THE F-SCRIPT ENGINES I HAVE AT THE SHOP ..

[Deleted]

I'm removing the GPW to make room for the MB engine. The tub and frame are WILLYS, so I guess I'm making it closer to original. Of course, both axles and the transfer case are GPW, sooooo it is still a mixed breed kid? Does being 1/8 American Indian still get benefits from the gov?