THIS CLOSE to first time start/cam break in, some quick questions

Hi guys,

I know I've been saying for months how close I am to FINALLY getting this old plow truck running, but this time I mean it! Anyway, I've asked this question on another site that many of you guys know of, and had zero replies....maybe it's too elementary to even address? I just torqued all the rockers (positive stop, stock rail rockers) down to 22 ft-lbs, not caring if the lifters happened to be on the base circle of the cam or not. I figured the plunger in the lifter would collapse to a point anyway, and they would pump up when oil pressure was applied. Was this correct? I am SUPER paranoid about the pending cam break-in. My combo is as follows:

'69 429, bone-stock long block (C9VE-A heads)
Comp X4262 cam (.514/.524, 218/226, 111) with stock springs
RPM intake
750 Edelbrock carb
MSD distributor and 6AL
2"/3.5" fenderwells, 3" Flowmasters (yeah, they're too big and too loud, but the price was right)

It's been 10 years since I've broke in a cam. I've got 16 oz of GM EOS mixed in the Valvoline 10w30, I coated the lifter bottoms with the Comp Cams red sauce, and right before I'm ready, I'll pre-lube the oil pump with a drill. My concerns are:

-Do I have the lifters right?

-How can I prime the mechanical fuel pump to minimize engine cranking? I guess I can pour fuel in the carb until it runs on its own......

-I've turned the engine over by hand maybe 10 revolutions - did I wipe off all that red sauce?

-Hope I got the ignition right and timing close....

-Hope the intake installation is OK, and no water gets in the oil (see what I mean about paranoid??) I won't know until after shutdown (or lock-up...)

-Should I continue to run EOS or equivalent after the initial break-in?

Any thoughts on this or moral support would be greatly appreciated. The wife is NOT happy about how long this swap has taken, or how much over budget I've gone. If I frag the cam this close to snowfall, you guys will read my obit in the near future.

Thanks in advance,
Pete

I'm not sure what the lift limit is on stock positive stop rockers, some one will be able to verify. But if the lift is OK, the you should be OK with the hydraulic lifters.

You could check lifter travel by getting a rocker on the base circle and loosening the rocker bolt. Tighten it down 'till you just feel some drag on the push rod while spinning it in your fingers. Then count the turns till the rocker bolt is tight, should be around 1/2 turn.

I would be looking to put some Valvoline RACING oil in, it still has the zinc. The EOS is a good idea. I would think it would be good insurance for a little while. The stock springs should be gentle on your cam.

The best way to get it running quickly is to pour gas into the vent tubes of the carb, on a Holley style carb, you can fill it till it gets to the sight plugs. By the time it uses that fuel, your pump should have caught up.

You do want it to start right away. Have your timing light hooked up already, have screw drivers ready for carb adjustments, fan on the rad or water running in the rad, etc

Bill

X2 on what Bill said... Also, after initial break-in, you don't "have to" continue running the EOS in your engine, but it wouldn't hurt to put it in after you put fresh oil in after the break-in... But, I would at minimum keep running the VR-1 Valvoline in it... One other thing, after the break-in, drop the oil and filter immediately and re-fill with the VR-1 and a new filter... Again, if you have it, I'd put in another bottle of the EOS on the initial oil change... Good luck...





Doug...

Whats EOS?

It stands for Engine Oil Supliment. You get at your friendly GM dealer. You can wear your dark sunglasses so no one recognizes you!!

It has high amounts of zinc etc, good stuff for break-in.

Bill

It's an oil additive distributed by GM called Engine Oil Supplement... It's basically the same as the new Comp oil additives and some of the others that add lots of ZDDP and other crucial components back into your oil for doing flat tappet cam break-in... GM discontinued it a couple years ago, but re-introduced it a short time later but for some reason took alot of the ZDDP out... I bought the last case that our Chevy dealer had when they discontinued it the 1st time... Until they discontinued it, alot of guys around here would put 1 bottle in every other oil change if they were running flat tappet cams...








Doug...

Thanks to all! I'll check the lifters tonight. Is the VR-1 worth draining out the regular stuff (don't forget that magical EOS already mixed in, at $24 for 16oz!!). If the VR-1 can stand alone without supplements, I'll just run that all the time. It hurt me to shell out $50 a quart for the Chevy juice, but I figured it was cheaper than getting the engine hoist back out.

Anyone know off-hand how to hook up the factory F250 tach to the 6AL?

Thanks guys,
Pete

Pete, if I was doing tha cam break-in with VR-1, I would also put in the EOS or equivelent additive for the initial breakin... You'll be fine to just run the VR-1 by itsself after the break-in... If it were me, not ahving the VR-1 in there now, I would use the full qt. of the EOS with the conventional oil... Like you said, it's better than pulling out the hoist again...







Doug...

I used Joe Gibbs BR in mine, broke in just fine. No need to mess with additives, it's all in there for you.

The gibbs oil is awsome stuff. The only downside I see is that it would cost like 300+ for an oil change on a 8 qt pan!! At least thats what they are charging for it around here. Have mercy! But its all in what you want.

Thanks to all! By Monday, you guys will hear either how much my neighbors love 3" Flowmasters, or that I have a rusty plow truck with a bad cam for sale!

dexter wrote:The gibbs oil is awsome stuff. The only downside I see is that it would cost like 300+ for an oil change on a 8 qt pan!! At least thats what they are charging for it around here. Have mercy! But its all in what you want.

Gibbs web site lists a 12 qt. case for $89. I paid about 30% more here in the UK. $300

Woo Hoo! It popped off fast, and I got to 2500 rpm quick like a bunny. No leaks anywhere, and it got hot fast. Temp bounced around a lot, but 210 was about where it stabilized. I suspect some air trapped in there somewhere caused the spikes up to 230. Almost shut 'er down, but I figured 50-50 mix could handle that much. And it went back to 195-200 in a few seconds time anyway. 2500 for 10 minutes, then I'd go to 3000 to 2000 and back a few times, then hold 2500 for 10 more minutes. A small exhaust leak on one side, and some faint clatter inside the valve covers. All was fine until I shut it off. It just stopped. Hard. Like, "WHAAAAAAAAAAA (click) UH." Since I was more interested in watching my 4 year old daughter play with her new toys (her birthday was Sunday), I didn't check into it. Hopefully, it wasn't too serious. Tonight - fresh oil, top off the coolant, bleed the brakes, then go see if I can stripe the road out front. BTW, 4 out of 5 neighbors poked their heads out of the front doors, to see what all the commotion was about. I'd like to think they're excited to see the plow truck is ready to go.

Thanks everyone, for the moral support!

The CompCams #159 oil additive is $11 for a 12oz bottle....works good .

Glad it lit off for you so good.

Let it rip!!

Bill