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new 4/13/2004
The inspection device that I'm familiar with is known as a Borascope (or
maybe Bore-a-scope). It's a fiber-optic device that allows you to see around
corners and illuminate dark cavities.
The reason I'm familiar with this has to do with my failure to install
spark-plugs prior to beginning to bolt the valve covers back on after my weekend
cam weld. Couple that with a fumbled nut that I couldn't find anywhere and a
person starts asking "how can I look inside the combustion chamber without
removing the heads". After looking for a rental Borascope it turned out we had
one at work. What a relief. There were no rentals to be found and they are
pricey to purchase.
Brent
'97 welds, scoped and ready to go back together
'94 MTX
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What nut could you drop into the combustion chamber? The Valves do not open far
enough to let anything that you remove from the motor other than dirt and a
broken plastic cowl pin into the chamber. Unless your talking about dropping
things down the spark plug hole.
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Rear valve cover has one bolt w/stud and nut. Its within 3 inches of the drivers
side rear spark plug hole (as I'm sure you know). I wasn't thinking and began
reinstalling valve covers before I installed the new plugs. Never saw where it
went but knew it could easily fall through the tapped spark plug hole.
Especially the way the valve covers are shaped. Wasted a whole bunch of time.
Brent
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It holds the noise resistor on… I don’t think it could fit but I could be
wrong.. I'm making up a little write up for plugs and the differences on the V6
and V8 right now.. Ill open a valve and test it, Ill want to bet my left nugget
that it wont but until it happens well never know.
I'm glad that you noticed it was missing rather than just bolting it together.
Also one thing to check.. Top right corner of the vanity cover.. Is the ring
insert there? If not look in cyl number 8 intake valves.. do it anyways just in
case.. Look down there and as best a you can behind the valve where it hides
sometimes.
This will be a bench test BTW. LOL
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The stud and nut is smaller than the fastener used to bolt the valve covers on
and, although it is flanged, I'm sure it will fit through a 12mm hole. At least
I was sure enough that I went to great lengths to verify that it wasn't down in
the hole.
Thanks for the heads-up on the vanity cover ring insert. I noticed that the
vanity cover 'ear' you refer to was cracked and the ring did fall out as I
lifted it off. Found this piece no problem.
I know I don't have to tell you but let me say it anyway........Dropped parts
are a real liability when working on this motor.
Brent
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I had one of those little rings fall out of my own vanity cover while doing a
plug change. My procedures when working on the SHO are that if there is an open
hole and a small object, Murphy will make sure that the 2 meet. Therefore I
sequence my work to minimize exposure to open holes, i.e. I don't pull out plugs
and leave them out. Also I am careful to not hold any small objects around the
top of the engine while the intakes are off. I have not checked what will and
won't fall past the valves but I don't want to have to fish something out past
the secondary butterflies either. I have even gone so far as to tape up the
openings as soon as the intakes come off as a safety precaution. You guys are
talking about what parts come off of the engine and whether they will go past
the valves, but on 2 separate engines I have found small bolts laying on top of
the head right beside the lower intake. If I was a little less lucky at the time
either of these might have been knocked into the intake ports when the lower
intakes were removed, and these bolts were small enough that they might have
gone past the valves. I don't know where the little bolts came from- they didn't
appear to come from the engine and I didn't remove them from anywhere. Now I
check very carefully for debris and whatever before pulling the lower intake.
Steve
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I pulled a metal cowl clip out of my surge tank the first time I took it apart.
:(
Paul Nimz
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Hint***********
Leave the surge tank on and connected when you remove the intake.. taking it all
apart as the one picture shows will cause stupid POOP like this to happen.. I
could have said ***** but its not as bad as crap
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It is sometimes a very fine line between things that are useful vs things that are funny - I think this is a multi-purpose post. Thanks to all who contributed. I think.
U.L.