How much $$$ for install of valve springs

[Danster]

What's a good price or average price for changing out the valve springs. I have the CC 980's with new valve stem seals.

Thanks in advance!

Dannyo

 

[stickybones]

If you bring your parts, I'd estimate about $250 for the labor.

 

[UNGN]

You need to add the price of valvecover gaskets, too. For someone who knows what they are doing its a two hour job. I've done a few for free, so $250 seems a little high.

 

[blackbuick87]

The springs are only $40. Buy the tool and do it on a weekend.

 

[Danster]

I've been doing all the upgrades myself thus far. I still need to complete the timing chain replacement. I'm waiting for the tensioner bolt from the dealer.

I don't have the tool and I don't have an air compressor. I've heard about the rope method, but honestly I can't picture how it's done.

I do have the valve cover gaskets and springs for the job, but no tools. How hard of a job is it to change out the springs? I don't want to screw up the car just yet

Anybody in big D want to show a newbie how it's done


Dannyo

 

[Buick T]

Dude the rope is the way to go. Take out all your plugs. Take a piece of nylon "boat" rope about 2.5 feet and feed it into a spark plug hole, put a socket on the crank or crank pully and turn it over until it won't turn anymore. Now the rope it tight against the valves and they aint going no where. Cover the oil holes in the head before taking the keepers off, use a little magnet tool like a craftsman pocket magnet. The tool everyone sells works really nice. Measure from bolt to bolt on the valve rocker pipe and use a piece of 1/2 or 3/4 emt to mount the tool on. You can do it !

BTW......most use the 980s with the damper (inner spring) and no stock cup for the closest to stock height spec.

 

[Danster]

How thick should the rope be? I take it you do this one at a time? By the way what is emt?

I may go ahead and try it after I purchase the tool. I will check with the vendors.


Dannyo

 

[timothydog]

Danster,

I did my springs and valve seals over last weekend with no major disasters. I was fighting 90+* temps so it went pretty slow with many trips inside to cool off . I'm an amatuer mechanic so it took me about 10 hours total (I had the time to spare). I had a compressor and the tool to hook up to the cylinders and it worked well for the most part. Most of the springs compressed well without the keepers binding up. I'd say 4 or 5 of the springs took a little extra work to break them free of the valves.

I think next time I do mine I will use the rope trick. I can see how the piston would push up on the valves and make it easier to unstick the keepers. Plus you don't have that noisy compressor in your ear all day

Bottom line: Get the Kirban tool and some rope and save yourself some money! Plus you get the satisfaction of knowing that they are done right. And you can clean up and spray the valve covers like I did. We're here to walk you through it, dude!

Tim

 

[Danster]

Thanks Tim for the encouraging words. I too am a amatuer mechanic and was a little nervous of doing it myself. I will give it a try.

Just need to find out from others what thickness of rope do I need to purchase.

Dannyo

 

[timothydog]

I would say shoot for around 1/2" wide.
Take a sparkplug with you to the hardware store and make sure it's not too big. The thinner the rope the more length you are gonna need. Get the yellow nylon type rope. You're also gonna need quite a big socket and wrench to turn the crank. Someone else should be able to verify that bolt size. But it is at least an inch from what I remember.

 

[OneLethal87GN]

I think the crank pulley requires a 1 1/8" socket.

 

[2QUIK6]

I was able to turn the crank by hand pulling on the IC fan, its kind of hard to get a socket on the crank pulley nut without removing the IC......
Now, with that said, you may want to do the timing chain/gear before or at the same time as the springs, you wouldn't want the added pressure of the springs to wipe out what might be left of that original plastic timing chain gear then you'll have a lot bigger problem.
*
I bought the spring removal tool from John's PErformance and it came with a peice of emt tubing to drill the holes in and use to put the rocker removal tool on. BTW, emt is electrical conduit.
Does make it real easy, key thing to be certain of:
1) Make certain that the piston is at TDC when removing the valve to make sure it doesn't fall into the cyl once the spring is off, make sure you have enough rope in there, and yes, its done 1 cyl at a time.
2) Make certain that when you depress the valve to remove the spring, that the pressure of the valve doesn't push the piston back down, I put a c-clamp on my flywheel to lock it in place as I did push the piston back down one time.
3) Definity plug all holes in the heads with something like little pieces of a paper towel to prevent the keepers from falling down in one.
*
Its more work getting the valve covers off than it is changing the springs.

 

[Danster]

Thanks for the info 2quik6!

Another question, how much rope would I need to insert into the cylinder? Just want be sure before I go dropping anything. I'll keep the c-clamp idea in mind.


Dannyo

 

[DKREDT]

When I did the rope trick I would back off the piston as low as it could go and literally stuff the crap out of rope in the spark plug hole. I think I used a 6 foot piece to make sure I always had the end.

A couple of times I had to re-stuff the hole to get the rope positioned properly under the valves.

I took out all plugs and used a socket on the alternator to turn the engine.

You can do it!

HTH

Joel

 

[Turbo 6 Justin]

I have done these a few times and it is really about a 2 hour project after you have done it but probably 6-7 hours if you are new at it. what I have always done though is one at a time bring each piston to the top then just put a little pressure on it tap the retainer with a hammer to release 80000 miles of pressure then fully compress and grab the keepers. I never liked the compressor routine because if you push the valve down at all you loose your pressure and it is loud having the compresor kicking on and off. I do not like the string thing as once while trying to remove a tensioner bolt (that would not budge even with a very big impact (taurus SHO) we tried to seize the motor with string and it ended getiing wrapped around the valve somehow, that was about 4 hours of screwing around through the spark plug hole to get the string off the valve, I will not do that again.

I see no problem if the piston is at the top (easy to tell just take a pencil and place it in the spark plug hole (make sure to hold on to it) and rotate the motor till the piston comes up) at least this has worked for me and seams failsafe. Anyone see any problems with this method?

 

[timothydog]

What if the pencil breaks?

 

[Turbo 6 Justin]

the pencil is only there to make sure the piston is coming up, I literally just lightly hold on to it and have never had a problem, I suppose you could use a long screwdriver too that way it can't fall in or get broke I just like the pencil cause it is soft, like the piston really cares since the last thing it saw was a hellacious flame wave anyway It the pistons are clean and not all carboned up you can actually just watch the thing come to the top.