Part 1. Preparation and safety
Objective
- Remove all head components.
Personal safety
Whenever you perform a task in the workshop you must use personal protective clothing and equipment that is appropriate for the task and which conforms to your local safety regulations and policies. Among other items, this may include:
- Work clothing - such as coveralls and steel-capped footwear
- Eye protection - such as safety glasses and face masks
- Ear protection - such as earmuffs and earplugs
- Hand protection - such as rubber gloves and barrier cream
- Respiratory equipment - such as face masks and valved respirators
If you are not certain what is appropriate or required, ask your supervisor.
Safety check
- Compressed valve springs have a large amount of stored energy. Be careful working around compressed valve springs.
- Make sure that you understand and observe all legislative and personal safety procedures when carrying out the following tasks. If you are unsure of what these are, ask your supervisor.
Points to note
- Place all the valves from the heads in their proper place in an organizer tray with all the other components of the valve train.
Part 2: Step-by-step instruction
- Separate valve keepers and retainers
The first step in removing the valves and springs is to break the seal between the retainer and the keepers.
When the valve is in the head there are two angled pieces called keepers that fit into the top groove in the valve stem. The spring retainer is held in place by the angled shape of the keepers and the pressure of the spring pushing up on it. When everything is assembled, the valve stays closed.
Over time, the retainer gets stuck to the keepers and you need to break them apart Use an ordinary deep socket for this which goes over and around the valve tip without damaging it, and only hits the retainers.
Sometimes a keeper will come loose when you hit the retainer, letting you pull the spring and retainer right off.
- Remove keepers and springs
For the other remaining valves a valve spring compressor. This type of spring compressor is easy to use but you do need to have a strong hand grip. There are other types like this one but they are a little harder to use and have a tendency to pop off the spring.
All valve spring compressors push on the retainer and compress the spring far enough for you to remove the keepers.
Needle-nose pliers or a magnetic pickup tool are ideal for removing the keepers, then release the compressor. Make sure the spring and retainer go immediately into the valvetrain organizer in their respective slots.
If there is an umbrella seal on the valve stem remove it and discard it. These seals should not be reused.
If there are any spring shims in place, carefully put them with their springs in the right spot in the organizer tray.
- Remove valves
Sometimes a valve tip will have a burr on it. Use a fine grade file and carefully rub out the burr and then slide out the valve.
Place all the valves from the heads in their proper place in an organizer tray with all the other components of the valve train.
Source: CDX Global
