Kimberly Posted January 16, 2012 Report Share Posted January 16, 2012 I need advice on replacing timing chain in a '93 3800 engine. The cam and crank, as far as I can tell, are aligned. I can not get the cam gear to slide onto the camshaft shaft. It seems very tight to me. How tight are these new chains? Shouldn't I be able to do this by hand and not have to force the cam gear in place? Would the crankshaft gear being off a bit cause problems, do I need to shift the crank back or forth? This is not the first time I have worked on cars. I replaced the cam gear and chain in Mum's 1983 Buick LeSabre without problems. I decided to stick the cam gear bolt in just to hold the gear in place to check alignment. Just need someone that has done this job to let me know if it just slides on by hand, or what. And how much deflection should the new chain have, some, none, what? This is the first time I have gone into a 3800 engine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
19Cutlass94 Posted January 16, 2012 Report Share Posted January 16, 2012 You should be able to slide it on a little bit by hand, and the rest with the cam bolt. There should be a very small amount of play in the chain, maybe 1/8" or so. But there should also be a dot/marking on the crank gear, which is kinda hard to tell from the picture, a bit fuzzy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kimberly Posted January 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 16, 2012 Yes, my camera is not very good. If you look in the photo you can see a white dot on the crank gear, that is the timing mark. I was told that it would be tight going on but just wanted to make sure so that I did not damage anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
95 vert Posted January 16, 2012 Report Share Posted January 16, 2012 I generally have to take a hammer and "tap" on the cam gear to get it to seat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kimberly Posted January 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 16, 2012 The cam gear and chain is in place. Once in place, the chain is not that tight; I guess once it is in proper alignment. There is the proper deflection I would expect to see. The problem was that I was afraid of damaging the chain, or the gear, or shaft or pin and I could not see what was going on since it is just me. What I did was to place a suitable sized mirror resting on the crankshaft and AC bracket that would allow me to see the face of the timing gear. I could see the shaft and pin were in the proper place although I could not push it on by hand. I then put the cam bolt in place and using very light pressure on the socket wrench simply pushed the cam gear in place using the cam bolt. It slid easily into place without any effort. Being able to see the face of the gear and seeing that the alignment was correct did away with my fear of damaging something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Posted January 17, 2012 Report Share Posted January 17, 2012 dont forget to install a new tensioner! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kimberly Posted January 20, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2012 Yes, I replaced the tensioner. I have cleaned up the cover, removed the oil pump gears so I could make sure it was clean and no grit in place, removed the old front oil seal, and I am ready to put the timing cover back in place. Yes, I am working slow on this job. With the inlet and outlet for the water pump in that area, I can see where a leaking gasket can cause coolant to enter the oil through the front drain into the oil pan. I am wanting to know about what adhesive for the gasket should be used. Dad always coated one side of the gasket; usually the part side, with copper coat; he said that made it easy to remove the part if needed. Should I apply copper coat to both sides of the gasket, or is there a different recommendation? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
19Cutlass94 Posted January 21, 2012 Report Share Posted January 21, 2012 You dont really need to. Only reason that make those tack sprays and such is to keep the gasket in place while working. Its possible that when taking it apart itll help the gasket to stay on the sprayed side. If anything, just spray one side, and put that side against the block. Thatll make it easier to bolt everything up with the gasket staying in place. As long as your using the correct torque spec, you shouldnt have any leaks. That and some RTV on the bottom by the pan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kimberly Posted February 15, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 15, 2012 I completed this job, thanks for all the help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jevian_92 Posted July 24, 2012 Report Share Posted July 24, 2012 The 3800 series engines were manufactured by some several GM vehicles. This is the best engines of 20th century and also very powerful engine. 3800 series engines Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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