Cylinder Head Refit Question - Updated

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Mosser
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Post by Mosser »

All 3 caps must be flush for the oilways to work properly, did you torque the cap bolts to the correct setting?,
It sounds like something is wrong there, the caps are numbered and must be fitted in the correct positions, you will see a number cast into the top of each cap relating to its position, otherwise there is something trapped under the cap (bit of dirt??) or the camshaft isnt timed properly and you have trapped a valve against a piston
Might be best to take the cam shaft out and go through it all again i think
billy_bob
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Post by billy_bob »

I think you are right mosser - it seems like it might be a bit of trapped dirt. The caps are on in the right order and the right way round, although they were a bit of a git to get on to the studs. I guess they are supposed to be tight fitting?
Camshaft coming off again ...
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AndersDK
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Post by AndersDK »

carefull now bb -
I'm in line with Mossr on this -
Something must be a at it's odds, since the cap wont come down.
As the camgear most cap is oddly shaped, it can not be mixed up with the 2 other caps.
Me thinks it's the axle seal that's teasing you.
the cap must be fitted without seal - then fit seal when cap is down.
- because the sharp edges of the cap will grip on the seal circumference and clamp part of the seal.
billy_bob
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Post by billy_bob »

Erm ...
Should the caps be very hard to get over one of the studs? The reason I ask is that I found this the case. Now when I want to take the camshaft back out I cannot pull the caps from the studs. When I put the caps on I had to <i>really</i> force the side of the cap furthest from the cockpit (pointing forwards) and they really didn't want to go on. Got them there but now I am wordering if I have done a boo-boo ...
Say it ain't so and if it ain't so, how can I remove the caps again? They seem to be made from a soft alloy and I guess all surfaces need to stay machine-flat, so no screw-driver levering?
What can I do???
bxbodger
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Post by bxbodger »

Sounds like a nightmare....if the caps pulled off easily, they should go back reasonably easily; assuming the right caps are on in the correct order, and you have got the same head and caps back that you took in to the engineers ( it's not unknown to get bits from different engines back-I have seen this happen[:I] ) is it possible that the heads been dropped, or bashed, and the studs are slightly bent out of line, which would cause just this problem? they would only have to be very slightly bent to make it very difficult to get the caps back on.
You could try some, but not too much, heat from a blowtorch to get the caps to expand slightly to make them easier to shift, but failing that it's going to have to be gentle screwdriver levering- as long as you are slow and careful it should be o.k., and then you can see whats wrong.
I know it's a bit late now, but there's an old adage- if it doesn't fit- don't force it!!!
billy_bob
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Post by billy_bob »

Thanks bxdodger.
It turns out I don't know my left from my right - had the whole lot on back-to-front. And your right about the <blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">if it doesn't fit- don't force it!!!<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote"> ... it seems that Citroen leave one stud slightly thicker than the other to ensure you don't get mixed up; yeah, right!
Anyway, got them all back off by fabricating a puller-type-tool that screwed into the top of each cap (where the camshaft cover screws in) - slowly turned and up they came one at a time.
Another fine mess there!
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