Topic: Head cover off. Look good?

[stereosilence]

Hi. I have my head cover off (doing a cam swap). I have never seen the inside of the engine before at all. Can you tell me if anything needs addressing in here? The only thing I see is that there is some sort of dust on the dimples and there was oil under the breather cap. Take a look:

[DustyRags]

It's hard to tell from the photo whether it's reflection, oil shine or actually weirdly worn cam followers, but make sure that those paddles are evenly worn, if at all. In the picture, some of them seem a bit off (I got called on the same thing, but it turned out to just be weird oil shine in the photo).

Also, make sure your rockers aren't loose- others will know more about it, this is just what I know what to look for now that I'm halfway through my first top-end rebuild

[Dimitri13]

Change the rubber pucks!!! If not you WILL regret it.

[dave500]

yeah like dimitri said replace those pucks,use a little hard setting compound on them,while its off remove the points cover and have a go at seeing how the cam timing marks align just for practise,,also the cover goes back on easier in this position,,you should have the valve tappets backed right off before removal as this also makes the install easier,,dont put any pressure on those front four screws in those little "ears",youll snap them off so easy,get the cover mostly squared down then once the cover is close to closing home you can start tightening those ones.

[stereosilence]

What do I do if the wear on the paddles is uneven?

What are the rubber pucks, what do they do, and where do I get new ones?

When I line up the timing marks on the point covers, what am I looking for on the head?

[DustyRags]

Uneven cam follower wear is grounds for replacement, I believe. The "pucks" are those flat rubber disks about the size of a quarter (2.5 cm for Canadians and Euros). They keep oil in the head from running all over the place- they're important. Use new ones. About $6 each. I got mine from Charlie's Place in SF, but I imagine any Honda dealer can get them for you.

For the timing, check the manual.

Oh, yeah, get a manual. Get two. Compare them. Read them. Read them again. Check the forums. Know as much as you can, because only through knowing can you know what you don't know, and only by knowing what you don't know can you find out what you don't know so you know what you don't know and can know more about what you don't know so you'll be more aware of what you still don't know. Got it?

[stereosilence]

I have a manual. So, it looks like there is some uneven wear (at least part of the paddle is a little shinier than the other). Only on one can I feel any unevenness/pitting.

The manual doesn't mention the pucks or rocker wear. Is there anything that discusses what they do and how to evaluate them? Also, do I have to replace all o-rings and seals? I just popped the top to swap the cams. I don't want to do a new seal and oring every time I open it.

[stereosilence]

I also noticed there is some damage to the metal lip beside the teeth of the cam sprocket. The teeth aren't damaged, but part of the sprocket toward the center from the teeth are are dinged. Is this a problem?

[DustyRags]

In theory,  you want to change the seals "every time you open it"- in practice, that's because used seals get hard and hold their shape, but any rubber seal only works if it can deform to the surface it sits on. Try the fingernail test- press a fingernail into it, and see if it leaves a groove. If you can catch a nail in it, it's probably not going to seal correctly. They're cheap, and cheap insurance against (more) leaking.

Not sure about the damage- this is probably beyond my ken. Can you post pictures?

[killersoundz]

Look at the tappets on the ends of the rocker arms too. If they are noticeably worn I would replace those. I paid $40 for 8 new tappet screws, but mine were so worn I would have never gotten an accurate valve adjustment with them.