someone mentioned this to me in another thread. i couldnt find it again tho anyway i took the timing cover off the '91 roller engine, bolted up the fuel pump ecentric(sp?) but the '77 timing cover i was going to use didnt work because the dowl pins in the block were too large to fit into the timing cover. can i just pull them out of the block and go? thanks
I pull the dowels out of my big blocks so I can get the front cover off to change cams without having to lower the oil pan. The trick I have used is to make an alignment sleeve that outside diameter will be snug going into the cover and the inside diameter be snug for the bolt to drop into. When I put the cover back on I start the two bolts with the alignment sleeves and then I slide the harmonic balancer on to center the seal over the balancer. I have thought their only function was to make sure the seal is correctly aligned with the crank. If you slide the balancer on and center the seal before tightening down the cover and water pump you will probably be all right without making sleeves. Put the oil pan on and tighten the pan to cover bolts last so the pan is drawn to the cover rather than the cover being drawn to the pan. Make sense? The sleeves just allow me to pull the cover down to position when the pan is already installed. Probably more complicated than it needs to be, but it seems to work. Cleaver
The 80's & up small blocks have timing cover alignment dowels, not pins. Yea, you can remove them from the block if they don't work with your timing cover. You'll just have to align the cover using the balancer and hope you have it straight so the front seal doesn't leak.
ok, thanks fro the replys guys. im going to call up napa tomorrow and order a new front seal tomorrow. im sure the one from 1977 isnt going to improve my chances of making sure it properly seals
