blackozvet

pictures of my winter project, i needed to replace the valve seals and figured i might as well replace the springs and put 1.6 roller rockers on at the same time.
did some research on CF and with Summit Racing before buying the parts and found out that i could only use the roller tip rockers as the studs on the iron heads are not long enough for full rollers.
I bought the spring set (sum-174001) which included the valve springs, Viton valve seals, clips and retainers for $64. Comp cams 1.6 roller tip rockers (cca-1416-16) for $166.
As it is a heads on job i picked up the valve spring compressor ($8) and the flexible air valve holder ($10).

this is the air valve holder, one end screws into the plug hole and the red fitting clicks into the air compressor line.



first step, get the rocker covers off, mark and remove all plug leads, and then after consulting the FSM find top dead centre on number 1 cylinder, use a torch in the plug hole to make sure the piston is right up, make sure the 2 rockers on #1 are both up, then to be sure its on the right stroke check #6 cylinder and 1 of the rockers should be starting to push down on the valve. when thats all done we start on #1 by removing both rockers.


fit the flexible line into the plug hole on #1 and plug other end into compressor line, then fit valve compressor tool onto stud and pull down, this should expose the retainer clips enough to pull them out.
Lesson #1 ; leave all the spark plugs in or the compressor will spin the engine over like a starter motor !
Lesson #2 ; retainer clips that have been in an engine for over 20 years arent in a hurry to come out ! use a steel tube and hit the retainer down a couple of times with a hammer, this will loosen them up.


now put the tool back on and pull down to get the clips out.
Lesson #3 ; buy an extendable magnet to get at the clips (around 10 to 15 dollars) they are worth their weight in gold !


once you have the clips out and pulled the old valve spring out, get the old seal out (some of these are like their clip cousins and take some persuasion !) clean up the seat and area as some of the old O rings will be in pieces around the area. when putting the new seal in put a small amount of grease around the top hole and slide gently down, you can use that steel tube to help seat the seal (pushing gently) (some photos out of sequence sorry)


once the new seal is in, put the new spring in, i used the original retainers, pull down on compressor tool and put clips in. now its time for the rockers to go on, put the lube on the grooved pivot ***** and in the pushrod recess before putting it on the stud.


now its time to tighten the rockers up, again referring to the FSM, tighten the locking nut up while rotating the pushrod with your fingers until the pushrod goes tight, this is zero lash, then turn the locking nut another complete turn, this preloads the hydraulic lifter.


The FSM tells us the rockers can be adjusted in the following order with the #1 piston at TDC;
Exhaust 1, 3, 4, 8. Intake 1, 2, 5, 7.
so these are the ones we do before we rotate the engine 360 degrees which brings #6 cylinder up to TDC and do the remainder.
Lesson #4 ; after doing both rockers on #1, i started on #3 exhaust and discovered that the pull down tool wont work with the TPI inlet runners that curve outwards. I had to buy a screw down valve spring tool to do the job ($22) but these are a better tool than the pull down as it leaves you with 2 free hands to get those pesky clips in !


Hope this helps if anyone is thinking of doing this job, I have just finished doing all 16 but need to tidy up a couple of other engine bay things before firing it up.

Muffin

Well done, well written, well documented. Should help anyone doing this repair.

Chatman

Please explain:

"did some research on CF and with Summit Racing before buying the parts and found out that i could only use the roller tip rockers as the studs on the iron heads are not long enough for full rollers."

I have been running full rollers for something like 20K miles on my 86 including several track days without problems.

JAKE

Iron heads, press-in studs, 1.6 rocker arms, narrow pushrod slots in the heads = High Probability of Bent Pushrods due to pushrod binding in the slots. Been there.

Be sure to check all the clearances, ESPECIALLY the slots.

Jake

JackDidley

Nice job. With 35000 miles my 87 had that puff of smoke in the morning. I should have put the seals in then. Instead, I put up with it for 4 years. It was a good excuse for heads/cam/intake at the time though.

blackozvet

Thanks for the feedback guys,
in relation to your query Chatman, the advice i got was not to use full rollers with the press in studs, i know that a number of people say they have used them without problems, but being in Oz if i order something and it isnt usable it is cost prohibitive to return the item to US and pay at least $50 each way, if I was in the US it would be worth the risk at $20 postage. I figured the 1.6 roller tips would be just as good for a street cruiser.

thomasanonymous

I have the exact same air valve holder. I realy couldn't use it because the plug area is so tight. I have a tough time just changing plugs. Did you remove anything else to access the plugs?

JrRifleCoach

The air system has its advantages. But when air is NOT an option
I hand feed a section of rope into the spark plug hole and run the cylinder up on the compression stroke.
Works just as well. And cannot fail if the air compressor stops