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REF: Engine Mechanicals - Sub-01H

Test Fitting Cams

Factory fitting of the cams is (or rather was) all about noise control. 1)
By selecting the cam gears sized specifically for the engine they were going in, they could walk that fine line between noisy and too-tight.
The noise from the gears being a tad loose doesn't hurt anything. Too-tight however can cause localized tooth heating and failure.
So when you replace the cams with non-original cams, you just have to make sure you're not too-tight, which is why you should do a basic test fit.
Aftermarket cams are all made on the loose side and you rarely get into trouble when using them.

In 2000, they changed the tooth cut on the pinion connection to the #2 cam, to a “high contact ratio” design.
This tooth design apparently got the noise level down to an acceptable amount without having to deal with multiple gear sizes.
There's only one size for each.

In 2001, this change was propagated to all the cam interconnecting gears as well.

To do a basic test fit of your cams.
Install all 4 cams in the gearcase with the pinion gear removed.
Use a fair amount of assembly lube in the bushings and in the gear teeth.
Rotate them by hand and make sure they all spin freely without binding.

Then, install all 4 cams in the cam cover and make sure they spin freely without binding.

Test fitting cams in the cam cover 2)
Test fitting cams with the cam cover installed 3)


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