valve spring/rocker arm/cam replacment

[HondaBoy]

just wondering, i really should know this, but i later on plan to replace the camshaft with something of more high performance. being that, i will not skimp and be replacing the valve springs and rocker arms. i was wondering if using an over head valve spring removal tool would work when taking the springs off the valve? i have done this with the OHV engines, never a OHC that i can recall. but how we did this was turning the engine till the valve was closed at TDC then puttin compressed air into the cylinder to keep the valve from falling then removing the retainer and spring. anyone done this procedure on the OHC engines? just dont want to take the head off, but if its neccesary ill just go ahead and get another cylinder head, have it rebuilt maybe with newer larger valves and assemble it off the car installing it later when its finished.

[bobafett]

depending on the cam your getting, and the rpm you plan to bring the engine to, you may not even need new springs. of course you can take off the rocker arm assembly and inspect the pads to see if they are in good shape or not, but if you are just throwing on a 272, and planning on revving to 6500, i wouldn't even bother.

of course if you want 7500+ regularly, you will need to have some more careful consideration to your valvetrain.... and bottom end.

[HondaBoy]

nah, 6200-6800 rpm will be the maximum. although it still has pull up past there so maybe i should just build a spare head with stronger springs for higher rpms, then swap the head on when its all put together. see the new cam, springs, retainers and rocker arms arent that much cost wise, compared to other things. i was going to go with genuine honda rockers and still havent decided on the valve springs. may go with something after market for those. i think i will go with a 272, although a 282 would be really exciting. but i think the 3gee is going to be a daily or semi daily driver so 272 might be the best choice for that. an the car has an automatic as of now. dunno how its going to hold up with parts that actually add some power though. my carb comes this thursday. so next will come the cam. pretty much just easy stuff for now until i get ahold of a complete engine that i can dump some money into. also trying to get a new car ,so the cylinder head is where i'm headed for modding since its not going to cost too incredibly much.

[88Accord-DX]

You can remove the springs with no problem with that procedure. There is a valve spring tester to measure it's spring pressure, but that is specialty tool. For what your doing, you can check spring squareness & spring free length. Depending on the overlap with them high performance cams, don't need a weak spring at high RPM's. (valve float) Take some measurements on 'free length' to have a reference to go by. Do a leak down test first, so you know your valve is seating good.

[Hauntd ca3]

If yuo are going to use the original rocker arms, send them off to have the wipe surface reground.
Always best to in the long run.
I mean you wouldnt re- ring a motor with out a hone would you.
You run the risk of fucking you're new cam otherwise

[bobafett]

I have owned both 272 and 282...

The 272 I would totally recommend for daily driving, for me it was very compliant, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

The 282 is a lot of fun, but harder to set an idle, and it feels like half your power is gone until 3500, and they literally flip a switch and the car starts to pull really well.

Definitely not recommended with the auto.

[MessyHonda]

I have owned both 272 and 282...

The 272 I would totally recommend for daily driving, for me it was very compliant, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

The 282 is a lot of fun, but harder to set an idle, and it feels like half your power is gone until 3500, and they literally flip a switch and the car starts to pull really well.

Definitely not recommended with the auto.

i have a colt tri-flow stage 2 cam that is rated at 280 for the first valve and then 268 at the 2nd valve...so lets hope i still get some low end torque with it.

[HondaBoy]

well i think its time to get things together and get some new parts. i think i will be going with the delta cam. it really needs some midrange power instead of mostly top end, so i think the 272 grind would work nicely for me. and it would be driveable and still get decent fuel mileage. i'd like to get the new cam since i've already got the weber 32/36 and pacesetter header with a cat back exhaust. anyways i plan to get this done by august. its not going to be a very expensive mod either. i think i'll have to spend about $500 for everything i want to get. i'm going to also see about getting valve springs through delta since they had said they could get ones from comp cams for the A20. if not then i may try and get the paeco valve springs. so thats the plan.

[MessyHonda]

sweet...i figured to make power you just have to do a rebuild....so im saving up my money...but yeah good springs would be nice

[2oodoor]

I would be willing to bet, going by the reason you want to do this, you will not benefit by the expensive valve springs. All you need is the cam, and maybe the ACG which comes in way way under 500 bucks.

[HondaBoy]

this engine isnt going to run more than 7000 rpms. so that being said i would probably be well off with either the paeco springs or OEM prelude springs. i would probably reuse the keepers, seats and retainers. the valves alone from honda are going to be about $150 shipped. i'm not sure on the shipping with the paeco, but it would likely be in the same price range. so i may just go with some honda parts. i may be able to do this project for about $400, including the cam. i can get the head gasket for like $25. i might see about getting the ports opened up and matched to the header and intake manifold also. so that might be able to be budgeted in.

[bobafett]

for just a 272 i wouldn't bother with valve springs. I had my 272 in a motor with 275,000 miles on it, and beat on it pretty good. Admittedly I did not take to 7000 rpm daily, but it saw 6000+ every time I drive it. I think the motor isn't even all that thrilled to be up that high unless you have a good header and exhaust and the rest of the supporting mods to keep 7000rpm happy. But yeah I would just wait until valve float becomes an issue.

[HondaBoy]

well, with the transmission adjustment as it is now it wont shift past the redline, exactly on the line. i had it asjusted where it would go near 8000 rpm, but readjusted it since it was hard to shift having to let off for each shift. anyways, as that being, just the cam would be great. wouldnt have the remove the head and that would also save a chunk of cash. so that sounds about right. i'll probalby just go for the cam then. and with the cam alone, i would likely spend about $200. so thats in my budget. i already have a new timing belt and tensioner to install. my A20 just needs that little extra pep. already has the weber 32/36, header and cat back. might opt out for a new high flowing cat and replace that damn donut flange joint on the mid pipe with a flex pipe when i replace the cat.

[oscwrestler]

how do you get the springs off of the preludes heads? i tried today and took off the rocker assembly and i still couldnt get them

[AccordEpicenter]

dont go over 7200rpm hondaboy, your gonna stretch the rods/rod bolts if you go wayy over that. 8000 is a death wish. You should be fine with the stock springs/retainers to 7000-7200 ish

[cygnus x-1]

To get the springs off you need a spring compressor. You compress the spring enough to remove the little retainer pieces that keep the top washer from sliding off the valve stem. This picture might help:




It's kind of a bitch until you get the hang of it.

C|

[HondaBoy]

i plan to run it at the recommended rpms. this thing wasnt meant to run over 7000 rpms. and right around there, the power doesnt increase, mostly stays about the same then just drops. so the 6200~ redline is just fine. i will likely replace the rocker arms just to be on the safe side and also order the prelude valve springs. i'm hoping to get this project done around october or november if not sooner. but i've got other things going right now with my subaru legacy so i'll see. the 3gee is running great as of now and now just needs a new air conditioning system to be a comfortable cruiser. that which i'm going to be doing also, hopefully within a few months or so.

[2oodoor]

how do you get the springs off of the preludes heads? i tried today and took off the rocker assembly and i still couldnt get them

You can get them off by just getting a tough socket that will straddle the valve stem and keepers but fit on the top of the valve spring retainer. Take a hammer and pop the socket real good and the keepers will come out, then you can grab the spring assemblys. Keep in mind though this drops the valve on the piston, but you are not concerned if you are not using that head.
This is not the procedure you use when changing valve seals BTW, you never want the valve to fall in a operable engine.

[HondaBoy]

yeah. i have also thought to go find another head. have that fixed up all nice. ported and whatnot then throw the cam in that one to swap onto my engine. then i can have a nice stockish head if i ever have a problem. so there's some things to think of before i decide on my cam. like i said, i'd like to get this done by late fall/winter. the bottom end will stay stock, its in very nice shape still. but i might just get a whole engine just for shits and giggles. that way, ever have a problem, then i really dont.

[MessyHonda]

yeah. i have also thought to go find another head. have that fixed up all nice. ported and whatnot then throw the cam in that one to swap onto my engine. then i can have a nice stockish head if i ever have a problem. so there's some things to think of before i decide on my cam. like i said, i'd like to get this done by late fall/winter. the bottom end will stay stock, its in very nice shape still. but i might just get a whole engine just for shits and giggles. that way, ever have a problem, then i really dont.

like i said i would do a compression test to see the health of your motor....its always better to rebuild the whole thing but i dont have the money right now to do a full high end rebuild

[HondaBoy]

i dont have the money for a real good rebuild either. if i was going to rebuild it i'd want to let a shop do it for me. but thats sort of what i wanted to do. so maybe i should just get a whole engine. have the bottom end built all bad ass, then have the head opened up and install some nice valve train components. but later on with the block build, i'd probably just store the block and have the head worked on because a head swap is really easy and cheaper for me. not really going to be racing the car, just needs some more power.

[HondaBoy]

well i've been driving the 3gee. when shifting the automatic manually i can get the rpms up around or past 7000 rpms. has a lot of top end pull. but still worried about valve float. do y'all think the prelude valve springs will be sufficent with the use of the Delta 272 cam? or should i used the comp cams vlave springs available? its a price difference issue though. not running it like this very often though. also needs a 5 speed, auto just aint cutting it! haha.