HANKY and HAYAPOWER and anyone else interested:

Again, thanks for you help on this.

I finally have some specific information that can help move forward the understanding of this situation. Today, I removed the old fuel pump from the engine and also removed other items that were crowding that area of the engine. First, I put to rest any concern that the pump could be put in incorrectly. After trial and error, I determined that there is no way to put that fuel pump into that hole other than the correct way.

I then inserted a wood dowel into the hole whilst leaning over from above the engine with a flashlight and peering in. I clearly saw the eccentric that drives the pump handle. It was loose to the extent that I was able to turn it a ways one way and the other with the dowel (I'm guessing maybe 90 degrees total). The cam sprocket was, of course, not moving. I do not know why the eccentric would not move (swivel?, rotate?) more than about 90 degrees as I could not get much traction with a dowel on an oily slick surface. It rotated far enough to be sure the dowel/pin was no longer holding it in place. I was able to move the eccentric in and out a little from the side with the dowel . Let me explain that - if you were to grasp the eccentric with your thumb and forefinger from the front, you would feel a bit of play as you pushed and pulled on it on one side or the other. However, since I did not have access from the front because the timing case cover is on, I pushed the wood dowel against the eccentric from the side (through the hole) and it had enough play to move from front to back slightly (left to right from my perspective looking in the hole from the side of the engine). As I was turning the eccentric with the dowel, I did not detect any "up and down" movement which I would have expected since it is mounted on a bolt that is not in the middle. Perhaps the movement is not sufficient to detect by such an imprecise method. This suggests to me that the bolt holding on the eccentric has come loose, and that the pin/dowel is no longer holding the eccentric in place.It explains just about everything I know about this situation.



So now I have the following questions:
1. If I start at TDC, is there a position I could rotate the crank to that
would put the eccentric at its closest position to the hole? (right now I
have the crank at TDC, but the cam sprocket and distributor is off by 180)
2. Am I correct to conclude that the bolt is loose and the dowel/pin is not
holding the eccentric in place?. Do my observations make sense?
3. How far up and down does the eccentric move? That is, how much does it
move the FP arm? (not very much it would appear)
4. Could the eccentric be held on only by the dowel/pin and its the bolt
that has come out?
5. Is the bolt holding the eccentric on also holding the cam sprocket on? Is
this looseness a concern for the cam sprocket?
6. What does this say about the safety of now starting the engine using a
temporary electric fuel pump?
(My concern was that the engine may be out of time and I could do damage
by having the camshaft out of synch with the crankshaft)
a. Could the bolt come out farther and cause damage?
b. If the fuel pump is reinstalled, and the engine run with it installed
what risk am I taking in the short run, given that the eccentric is loose?
c. Could the engine run indefinitely with the loose eccentric and the pump
installed? How about with the pump not installed and a plate over the
opening?
I guess what I'm asking here is if that now loose eccentric and bolt
could become looser, or even come off and get caught in the sprockets, or
allow the cam sprocket to come loose.
7. Can you think of a way to get more traction with my wood dowel, so I can
try to turn the eccentric farther?

I am interested in what you think about this

Again, thanks


Jerry

 

One thing to keep in mind; if this is an original cam gear (which I think you noted), then there is the large spacer that goes directly behind the cam gear that ISN'T used if it's replaced with a metal gear. The instructions for the new gear/chain may or may not state it, but as the jerk that put the new gear on and wondered where the noise was comming from , it's worth the notice.

 

You really have no choice other than to remove that timing case cover and do what has to be done. Since there are loose parts, that have given you ample warning by it quitting to run should be enough to let you know it has to be repaired. There are no shortcuts for this job. If you remove the accessory items from the engine without disconnecting them just lay them aside and you can get it done. I believe this job is much easier if you remove the radiator which isn't that hard to do.

 

Its possible that this engine has a 2 piece pump drive. They do spin and will have 'some' play. If the cam gear is tight the bolt isn't loose or broken.

One of the things that seems to get overlooked is the rubber hose from the hard line to the tank. They split and the mechanical pump can't pull/lift fuel. Electric pump still may..