[Roverjosh]

Hey Roy, I have the Mazda Shop manual that used and I remember adding all the timing gears/chains on and that adding the head, like in the pics you see of Axel on the 1st couple pages of the thread.
If you want I can scan in the necessary pages from the shop manual and send them as PDFs. It is a pretty straight forward manual to use. WAY more user friendly than my F350 manual from Ford... that reads like a NASA launch procedure... lol

As for O-rings, just buy a box set from the Local Autoparts store and match it up to ones you have. Then you'll have tons of spares in other sizes as well.

 

[Axel Breaker Earl]

So, on the timing chain, there is a small steel cover on the large aluminum front cover/oil pump that you can remove and access the timing chain tensioner. On the timing chain tensioner there is a small "lever" that allows you to release the "grip" on the portion of the tensioner (piston) that pushes outward to remove the chain slack as the engine wears over time. You need to pull upward on your timing chain to keep some pressure on the "piston" so it doesn't fully extend and possibly fall downward into the lower portion of the front cover. Hopefully this is making some sense!

Once you release the "lever" on the tensioner, you should be able to pull more of the chain upward and fully compress the piston back into the body of the tensioner........this gives you some chain slack to mount/mesh the camshaft timing gear with the chain and then secure it with some plastic zip ties. You can then "lock" the piston in the tensioner by sliding a very small screwdriver (Phillips or Torx) that has the right diameter shank that fits into the lever hole and this will keep the piston locked into the tensioner body so it doesn't extend out.......and start taking up your chain slack that you will need to fit the cam gear back in place, once you have your cylinder head installed.

There should be only one O-ring for the oil port that inserts into the bottom of the cylinder head......and it comes packaged with a FelPro head gasket.

Pictures will be added after dinner!

 

[Roy Milam]

So, on the timing chain, there is a small steel cover on the large aluminum front cover/oil pump that you can remove and access the timing chain tensioner. On the timing chain tensioner there is a small "lever" that allows you to release the "grip" on the portion of the tensioner (piston) that pushes outward to remove the chain slack as the engine wears over time. You need to pull upward on your timing chain to keep some pressure on the "piston" so it doesn't fully extend and possibly fall downward into the lower portion of the front cover. Hopefully this is making some sense!

Once you release the "lever" on the tensioner, you should be able to pull more of the chain upward and fully compress the piston back into the body of the tensioner........this gives you some chain slack to mount/mesh the camshaft timing gear with the chain and then secure it with some plastic zip ties. You can then "lock" the piston in the tensioner by sliding a very small screwdriver (Phillips or Torx) that has the right diameter shank that fits into the lever hole and this will keep the piston locked into the tensioner body so it doesn't extend out.......and start taking up your chain slack that you will need to fit the cam gear back in place, once you have your cylinder head installed.

There should be only one O-ring for the oil port that inserts into the bottom of the cylinder head......and it comes packaged with a FelPro head gasket.

Pictures will be added after dinner!

Axel thanks for the information. I look forward to the pictures. Roverjosh is going to post some pages from a shop manual. With those pages, the pictures and the information you gave I will be able to finish my engine.
Thanks again.

 

[Roverjosh]

Yes, I found that little piston thing so bizarre but it works. Im attaching a picture. I used a safety pin to keep the "piston" compressed to do all the assembly. Once all the timing pieces were in, I could remove that safety pin and let the tensioner loose.
Is this what you're looking for?

 

[Roy Milam]

That’s a good picture of it. I think I understand setting it up. My concern was when I set the head on will the cam sprocket go on with out having to reach down inside the timing cover to release the tensioner?

 

[Axel Breaker Earl]

That’s a good picture of it. I think I understand setting it up. My concern was when I set the head on will the cam sprocket go on with out having to reach down inside the timing cover to release the tensioner?

Yes......with the tensioner piston fully compressed, it will. Of course the engine will need to be sitting at TDC on the #1 piston, compression stroke, and the harmonic balancer timing mark at the "0" TDC mark on the timing scale of the front engine cover. You can slide the harmonic balancer on and off to check this when your setting up the camshaft gear and chain for the final assembly.
You can (and should) have the cam gear zip tied to the chain as you see in some of these pics, before lowering the head onto the block to install it.

 

[Axel Breaker Earl]

Here is a couple of pics on how I have kept the tensioner piston/plunger at a certain position, when I was working with the timing chain......I have used an appropriate sized drill bit, and a perfectly sized Phillips Screwdriver.

Having a drill bit or small screwdriver inserted through the lever's hole, effectively keeps pressure on the lever which in turn, holds a pawl against the serrations in the top of the tensioners piston/plunger and therefore doesn't allow the piston plunger to push outward, or out of the tensioner body, via the spring that is behind the piston/plunger. If you understand all of that!

Here's the FelPro HG and it's O-ring.....

 

[Roy Milam]

Here is a couple of pics on how I have kept the tensioner piston/plunger at a certain position, when I was working with the timing chain......I have used an appropriate sized drill bit, and a perfectly sized Phillips Screwdriver.

View attachment 12084

View attachment 12085

View attachment 12086

View attachment 12087

Having a drill bit or small screwdriver inserted through the lever's hole, effectively keeps pressure on the lever which in turn, holds a pawl against the serrations in the top of the tensioners piston/plunger and therefore doesn't allow the piston plunger to push outward, or out of the tensioner body, via the spring that is behind the piston/plunger. If you understand all of that!

Here's the FelPro HG and it's O-ring.....

View attachment 12088

View attachment 12089

View attachment 12090

Thanks Axel! i got it figured out now. Also I do have a fel pro head gasket and it does have the o ring pictured so I’m good there. I appreciate you and Roverjosh replying with pictures and explanations. It helped a great deal.

 

[Axel Breaker Earl]

You're welcome Roy! Start you a thread on your truck/engine, and lets see some pics!

 

[Roy Milam]

You're welcome Roy! Start you a thread on your truck/engine, and lets see some pics!

I will do that. Not sure how to post pictures but maybe I can figure it out.

 

[Cussboy]

I will do that. Not sure how to post pictures but maybe I can figure it out.

If I can post pictures, anyone can. At the bottom edge of the "Reply" window, the 11th symbol is a rectangle with a picture of a mountain in it (just left of the little picture that somewhat looks like a camera). Click on that, and you have option of uploading a photo already saved on your computer or phone, or by pasting in its URL. I use a laptop (now on Windows 10 !!!) so may be a little different using a smartphone.

 

[Roy Milam]

If I can post pictures, anyone can. At the bottom edge of the "Reply" window, the 11th symbol is a rectangle with a picture of a mountain in it (just left of the little picture that somewhat looks like a camera). Click on that, and you have option of uploading a photo already saved on your computer or phone, or by pasting in its URL. I use a laptop (now on Windows 10 !!!) so may be a little different using a smartphone.

Thanks Cussboy. I posted in new member introduction and was able to post pictures of my truck, however I posted four different pictures but it posted five of the same picture. Not sure how that happened but I’m going to try it again.

 

[Roverjosh]

Hey team,
Quick post. I’ve been slowing working on the truck.
I’ll do a larger post with more updates later.

but the quick question is, how hard should I clean the inside of the bell housing and do I need to line/grease up the new throw out bearing before I slap the motor in?
That’s the old TO bearing. New one is not in yet.

see pic below.

 

[Cussboy]

I'm experienced in old VWs, and Your bellhousing looks fine to me. And I haven't heard of anyone greasing a new throwout bearing on anything.

You'll use a clutch tool to align the clutch disc before the pressure plate is installed/bolted down to the flywheel.

 

[Roy Milam]

I agree with Cussboy. No need to clean bellhousing. Also, I,ve never greased a throw out bearing.

 

[Axel Breaker Earl]

I usually put a light coat of wheel bearing grease on the shaft that the throw out bearing slides on.......as well as a small dab on the ears of the clutch fork where it rides on the throw out bearing. I don't grease the contact area of the pressure plate-to-throw out bearing. You probably do not want to have any grease on the clutch disc splines, as that can be slung outward and onto the friction material of the clutch disc and therefore the surfaces of the PP and flywheel.

If you have all of the oil/grease out of the bell housing area, you're good to go! Get-R-Done!

 

[Roverjosh]

Hey everybody. Thank you for all the great suggestions. Yeah I would have thought that we didn’t want to line the throw out bearing because then all that grease would end up on the clutch and ruin it. But as this is technically my first clutch I’ve done myself, I figured better to ask.
I do plan on putting a very light coat of Moly lube in the input shaft. I have my clutch installed on the engine with the supplied alignment tool. So I should be good there.

I think I am about to put this motor back in! This is exciting!!!

 

[Roy Milam]

Did you install a new pilot shaft bearing?

 

[Cussboy]

A little grease on the transmission shaft splines, and put a little on the starter teeth.

 

[Axel Breaker Earl]

Did you install a new pilot shaft bearing?

This!! ^^^^^