Lazor05

I am putting a roller block together for my 82 and ran into a problem. The 86 engine I have used an electrical fuel pump but I am using a mechanical fuel pump. The dowel in the camshaft doesn't reach all the way through the timing gear. Where can I get a longer dowel? I have the dowel for the 86 cam and the 82 cam. The 86 is shorter but even the dowel from the 82 is too short.
Help appreciated

tinman

Go to your local speed shop or a Ford specailty shop and get one that's longer from them. There are 2 differant lengths that I know of. You also might be able to get from Comp Cams in Memphis, Tn.........

mjr46

the dowel isn't suppose to reach all the way through, expecially if your using a mechanical pump, the excentric has a tab that locks into that hole too and if the dowel is flush then the excentric tab won't sit flat = then you will have a problem

Lazor05

When I took the 82 engine apart the dowel on the cam is what held the excentric in place. It didnt have a tab on it?

.boB

For some engines, the dowel is long enough to include the eccentric. I don't remember when they changed over to a tab. But if you only have a short dowel, the easy thing to do is buy a new eccentric with the tab. Getting the old dowel out can be a real bear.

When you buy a new cam, it usually comes with two dowels, 1 long and 1 short.

Lazor05

Ok so is the cam timing gear different for a roller and non roller? they are both HO firing order and stuff so they should be the same right? Im wondering because the dowel fits throw the old cam gear and engages the eccentric so I could just reuse it?

.boB

The timing gear is the same. If the dowel extends out through the cam gear and engages the concentric, then you don't need to worry about it.

One thing to watch out for with the aftermarket pieces is total length. With the cam on the bench, install the gear and eccentric. The dowel should extend up into the eccentric, but not all the way through the eccentric. The end should sit just below the surface.

If it sits above the surface, the washer won't sit flat, and the bolt will be stressed laterally. Eventually, the bolt will break. That's a bad thing.

Lazor05

Ok thanks guys I got it figured out.
The timing gear i bought was too thick and probably intended for the tab version.
So I reused the old timing gear with a new chain and everything fits perfect.