Mk7 2.4tdci rwd engine rebuild issues - solid camshafts.

[denis france]

Hello,
I am rebuilding my jxfa 2.4 duratorq 2007. I have a reconditioned head, not the original one and after putting the cam shafts in and toquing up the cam cradle bolts the cam shafts are solid, I cannot turn them by hand. This happened right at the end of the day so I have slackend all the bolts again and walked away till tomorrow.. I'm wondering if there are different tolerances in manufacture whyich could cause this? Or anyhring else, I'm pretty sure the cam shafts are good as the engine was running fine apart from blown head gasket and turbo. All the bearing faces on the cam shafts are good and the journals machined into the head and cradle all looked good too.

Thanks,
Denis

[dumper]

The head and the cradle are a match pair and are machined as one and are matched as one.

[Airthies]

Which means if you don't have the cam cradle with the head it came from factory with.
You basically have a large aluminium paperweight I'm afraid.

If the new head did com with a carrier then use that one.

If you have used the one that came with the new head. Then it would appear someone has swapped it, by mistake or not, with another before you got it.

Sent from my A55ho11 using Crapatalk

[Jim Archer]

Have you positioned the pistons at the appropriate crank angle, so the valves clear as you pull the cradle down?

Jim

[denis france]

The head came with the cradle, I have not fitted the cam followers yet, but the cams are very stiff. I have been told in another forum this is usual and as the engine warms in normal use they will loosen, but from when I took the old head apart I know they were a lot loser and I could turn them by hand.
Thanks,
D

[denis france]

All sorted now thanks.
The cams did seem tight, but once the block was all back together with all the covers back on, the engine spun about as freely by hand as it did when I took it apart.