valve spring change with heads on the car?

fiveohpatrol · 10-18-2001, 10:46 AM

heres the situation, i have about 115k miles on my car and my valve springs are worn pretty bad, the valves float about 5400RPM, I have a new set of springs and will be installing them with the heads on the car

a friend of mine has a tool to do it with them on the car and a fitting for a air line to go into the spark plug hole to keep the valves from falling down while doing it

BUT i would like to do it this weekend so i can make it up to US41 the weekend after and im not sure if he'll be available to help me so...

is there any way to do it without the air compressor (i dont have one in my garage) say if i borrow the tool to remove the springs and hold the valves up in a different way, or is that the only way with the heads on the car,

i have removed valve springs before but the heads were off the engine

thanks for any help

------------------
88 Notch, B&M Ripper, 3.73's, Ported E7's, Explorer int. w/ ported lower, pulleys, 1.7RR's, BBK headers, off-road H-pipe, flowmasters, subframes, 65mm TB, March ram air ,MSD coil, U/L control arms, 155lph f/p, Crane Adj.FPR, Nitto drag radials, best 1/4--> 13.76@101.4 on a 2.17 60ft

LX XLR8R · 10-18-2001, 11:12 AM

i cant think of another way to do it besided that...so just pay someone to blow on a tube thats connected to the sparkplug tool..

------------------
1987 black notch(ex 4 banger)
DSS 306 w/ main support...Elderbrock 6028 heads..gt-40 intake..24# injectors...70 mm tb..77 pro-m...accel 300+..mac full legnth..tremec w/ pro5oh...full MAC exhaust,off road h-pipe,long tubes, catback...ron davis radiator..subframes, control arms...CFDF II..o yea holley FPR sucks..dont buy one..
AIM=onesillynotch

89 Cobra LX · 10-18-2001, 01:58 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by LX XLR8R:
i cant think of another way to do it besided that...so just pay someone to blow on a tube thats connected to the sparkplug tool..

Hey, now, that sounds a little pornographic!

Fostang · 10-18-2001, 03:40 PM

Here is what I did on two engines. Bend a screw driver at about a 45 degree angle and stick it in the plug hole a then slowly turn the engine crank with a socket and ratchet from the crank bolt then when the piston starts to reach tdc you'll feel the it start to hold the screw driver in place. Make your it barely touches the screw just enough to hold it so it doesn't scratch anything. Sometimes you don't hit mark the first time so before you take the locks off when taking out the springs make sure it doesn't start to fall in.

------------------
67' Fastback-Mean Temper
67' Coupe Under Construction
70' Torino Cruiser
84' Svo Original

2FastLX · 10-19-2001, 10:40 AM

Drew, if you want to come by my work again tonight and do it there we can. You can probably rent the air line fitting from Auto Zone if nothing else, or buy one. They shouldn't be that much. If they don't have one or if it's too much you could probably go to a hardware store like Menards and find a fitting with the same threads as your spark plugs on one end and threads to fit a coupler on the other and buy a coupler. You're talking maybe $5.

fiveohpatrol · 10-19-2001, 10:50 AM

well that would work... but my new valve springs arent here at school with me, they are in indy, and we'd have to rent a valve spring compressor that way too

hell if he cant help me this saturday, i'll see if i can borrow the tools and bring some of my wrenches and such back so i can come over to your work sometime next week in the evening and get it done, it shouldnt take more than 2-3 hours or so to do

------------------
88 Notch, B&M Ripper, 3.73's, Ported E7's, Explorer int. w/ ported lower, pulleys, 1.7RR's, BBK headers, off-road H-pipe, flowmasters, subframes, 65mm TB, March ram air ,MSD coil, U/L control arms, 155lph f/p, Crane Adj.FPR, Nitto drag radials, best 1/4--> 13.76@101.4 on a 2.17 60ft

2FastLX · 10-19-2001, 05:05 PM

That'll work.

LX5liter · 10-21-2001, 11:50 AM

Another way to hold the valves up is with a piece of rope . Feed enough rope into the spark plug hole to hold the valve up and turn the engine by hand until the rope is contacting the cylinder head. It works!

------------------
Good luck!

B.R.
L.X. 5.0 coupe
Cruise control,power mirrors,...and Thats it!
( except for the supercharger )

fiveohpatrol · 10-21-2001, 02:06 PM

i ended up just renting an air compressor from a rental shop, not too bad to be able to do it in my own garage

it's great, i can actually rev past 5400, it feels like its got more top end now

one thing kinda confused me though, when i was about half way done, i picked up a new and an old valve spring and squeezed them by hand, to my suprise the factory one was harder to compress? maybe just the new ones have a faster recoil or something, oh well i know they are a hell of a lot better that the 115,000 mile stockers

thanks guys

------------------
88 Notch, B&M Ripper, 3.73's, Ported E7's, Explorer int. w/ ported lower, pulleys, 1.7RR's, BBK headers, off-road H-pipe, flowmasters, subframes, 65mm TB, March ram air ,MSD coil, U/L control arms, 155lph f/p, Crane Adj.FPR, Nitto drag radials, best 1/4--> 13.76@101.4 on a 2.17 60ft

10-18-2001, 10:46 AM	#1
fiveohpatrol I'd rather be basketweaving Join Date: Feb 2000 Location: Indianapolis Posts: 2,551	valve spring change with heads on the car? heres the situation, i have about 115k miles on my car and my valve springs are worn pretty bad, the valves float about 5400RPM, I have a new set of springs and will be installing them with the heads on the car a friend of mine has a tool to do it with them on the car and a fitting for a air line to go into the spark plug hole to keep the valves from falling down while doing it BUT i would like to do it this weekend so i can make it up to US41 the weekend after and im not sure if he'll be available to help me so... is there any way to do it without the air compressor (i dont have one in my garage) say if i borrow the tool to remove the springs and hold the valves up in a different way, or is that the only way with the heads on the car, i have removed valve springs before but the heads were off the engine thanks for any help ------------------ 88 Notch, B&M Ripper, 3.73's, Ported E7's, Explorer int. w/ ported lower, pulleys, 1.7RR's, BBK headers, off-road H-pipe, flowmasters, subframes, 65mm TB, March ram air ,MSD coil, U/L control arms, 155lph f/p, Crane Adj.FPR, Nitto drag radials, best 1/4--> 13.76@101.4 on a 2.17 60ft

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10-18-2001, 11:12 AM	#2
LX XLR8R Dirk Diggler Join Date: Feb 1999 Location: SLOATSBURG, NY Posts: 1,931	i cant think of another way to do it besided that...so just pay someone to blow on a tube thats connected to the sparkplug tool.. ------------------ 1987 black notch(ex 4 banger) DSS 306 w/ main support...Elderbrock 6028 heads..gt-40 intake..24# injectors...70 mm tb..77 pro-m...accel 300+..mac full legnth..tremec w/ pro5oh...full MAC exhaust,off road h-pipe,long tubes, catback...ron davis radiator..subframes, control arms...CFDF II..o yea holley FPR sucks..dont buy one.. AIM=onesillynotch

10-18-2001, 03:40 PM	#4
Fostang Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2001 Location: Stockton, Ca Posts: 599	Here is what I did on two engines. Bend a screw driver at about a 45 degree angle and stick it in the plug hole a then slowly turn the engine crank with a socket and ratchet from the crank bolt then when the piston starts to reach tdc you'll feel the it start to hold the screw driver in place. Make your it barely touches the screw just enough to hold it so it doesn't scratch anything. Sometimes you don't hit mark the first time so before you take the locks off when taking out the springs make sure it doesn't start to fall in. ------------------ 67' Fastback-Mean Temper 67' Coupe Under Construction 70' Torino Cruiser 84' Svo Original

10-19-2001, 10:40 AM	#5
2FastLX The Photoshop Guru Join Date: Feb 2001 Location: Mecca, Indiana Posts: 1,419	Drew, if you want to come by my work again tonight and do it there we can. You can probably rent the air line fitting from Auto Zone if nothing else, or buy one. They shouldn't be that much. If they don't have one or if it's too much you could probably go to a hardware store like Menards and find a fitting with the same threads as your spark plugs on one end and threads to fit a coupler on the other and buy a coupler. You're talking maybe $5.

10-19-2001, 10:50 AM	#6
fiveohpatrol I'd rather be basketweaving Join Date: Feb 2000 Location: Indianapolis Posts: 2,551	well that would work... but my new valve springs arent here at school with me, they are in indy, and we'd have to rent a valve spring compressor that way too hell if he cant help me this saturday, i'll see if i can borrow the tools and bring some of my wrenches and such back so i can come over to your work sometime next week in the evening and get it done, it shouldnt take more than 2-3 hours or so to do ------------------ 88 Notch, B&M Ripper, 3.73's, Ported E7's, Explorer int. w/ ported lower, pulleys, 1.7RR's, BBK headers, off-road H-pipe, flowmasters, subframes, 65mm TB, March ram air ,MSD coil, U/L control arms, 155lph f/p, Crane Adj.FPR, Nitto drag radials, best 1/4--> 13.76@101.4 on a 2.17 60ft

10-19-2001, 05:05 PM	#7
2FastLX The Photoshop Guru Join Date: Feb 2001 Location: Mecca, Indiana Posts: 1,419	That'll work.

10-21-2001, 11:50 AM	#8
LX5liter dude5l Join Date: May 2001 Location: Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada Posts: 603	Another way to hold the valves up is with a piece of rope . Feed enough rope into the spark plug hole to hold the valve up and turn the engine by hand until the rope is contacting the cylinder head. It works! ------------------ Good luck! B.R. L.X. 5.0 coupe Cruise control,power mirrors,...and Thats it! ( except for the supercharger )

10-21-2001, 02:06 PM	#9
fiveohpatrol I'd rather be basketweaving Join Date: Feb 2000 Location: Indianapolis Posts: 2,551	i ended up just renting an air compressor from a rental shop, not too bad to be able to do it in my own garage it's great, i can actually rev past 5400, it feels like its got more top end now one thing kinda confused me though, when i was about half way done, i picked up a new and an old valve spring and squeezed them by hand, to my suprise the factory one was harder to compress? maybe just the new ones have a faster recoil or something, oh well i know they are a hell of a lot better that the 115,000 mile stockers thanks guys ------------------ 88 Notch, B&M Ripper, 3.73's, Ported E7's, Explorer int. w/ ported lower, pulleys, 1.7RR's, BBK headers, off-road H-pipe, flowmasters, subframes, 65mm TB, March ram air ,MSD coil, U/L control arms, 155lph f/p, Crane Adj.FPR, Nitto drag radials, best 1/4--> 13.76@101.4 on a 2.17 60ft