stuck lifter removal tool

grumpyvette

Administrator
Staff member
if you've ever disassembled an engine with flat tappet lifters that had a great deal of mileage and a wiped cam lobe you probably have seen a lifter stuck in the blocks lifter bore,as the cam lobe wears it tends to mushroom out the lifter base and burr it badly

HRDP_0606_01_z+flat_tappet_cam_tech+broken_lifter.jpg

thats hardly rare when a cam lobe flares the lifter base thru extensive wear.

now in some cases its just varnish and crud and a spray of carb cleaner and marvel mystery oil will allow you to pull it out with some needle nose pliers, in other cases the base of the lifters significantly burred , the lower edge is flared out preventing easy removal from the lifter gallery side,and the lifter base is concave and you'll require a lifter removal tool, if its only flared to a minor degree. the tools bottom collet has a lip or ridge that mechanically expands as you extend an internal thread section forcing two-6 hooked edges to expand outward, into the upper lifter ridge in the lifter body when the shaft is screwed into that tool head,that tool head holds the lifter firmly by the the snap ring groove or retainer spring in the internal groove, in some cases the spring or snap ring needs to be removed before the tool can get a grip, so be aware of that.
If the tool won,t remove the lifter, easily, its more than likely badly over expanded and the cam lobes almost certainly long past use, and forcing the lift out will groove the lifter bore to an unacceptable level,or crack the block and lifter bore if the lifters remove upward so your only real choice is to pull the engine, remove the rotating assembly and, pull the lifter as high in its bore as it will go and slide out the well worn cam then allow the lifter to get tapped out downwards after the cams removed, so it falls into the lower engine.
OR
IF you've got room in the engine compartment you might want to pull the non-stuck lifters first then pull the cam and slide in a 24" long and about 3" wide section of thin aluminum sheet metal, or poster board bent into a U shape that will prevent the lifters from falling into the lower engine, then you knock each stuck lifter into the cam bore and remove it out the front of the engine with a long magnetic retrieval tool, sliding it out along the u-shaped aluminum support or poster board bent into a U shape that will prevent the lifters from falling into the lower engine, but screw up and you drop a lifter into the lower engine mandating the engines removal to retrieve it
Obviously in an ideal world you don,t want to try this the first time with the pistons and rods in place, as the lifter could fall into the lower engine if your not careful,become jammed and damage other parts, when it drops into the lower engine, but... yes it can be done successfully
you can get a section of thin wall pvc pipe,made into a tool designed for this, or make one carefully rolled poster board and tape or exhaust tubing that fits into the cam bearings that's long enough to reach to the rear of the block, and still leave you 6" for a handle (24" will do) and cut a groove along about 1/3rd of its diam. along its top surface so you in effect have a round section of pipe, acting like a large spoon, to catch the lifter in as you push it out of the lower end of the lifter bore into it so you can then slid out the defective lifter WITH SIGNIFICANTLY LESS chance of it falling into the lower engine but Id suggest duct tape over the end to form a barrier to a loose lifter sliding out the far end,or engine disassemble will be required and Ill save you some grief, a long extender magnetic tool is occasionally needed to turn the lifter so it fits in the pvc pipe as the cam diam. is less than the lifter length.

Then simply insert that tube into the block and then gently tap each of the stuck lifters to push them out thru the bottom of the lifter bores so they will hopefully drop into the half round tube so you can then gently remove the tube with the old lifters in it and hopefully not in the bottom of the oil pan.
BUT a WIPED CAM MEANS LOTS OF METALLIC CRUD IN THE OIL AND THE POTENTIAL FOR DAMAGED BEARINGS,
Im assuming you want to pull the engine and rebuild it?

lifters worn that badly have left metallic crap in the lower engine
if the lifters are firmly resisting being removed,pull them up as far as they will go easily then slide out the cam, then after the cams out and the cranks out you can tap them out so they fall thru the lower lifter bore, if your not removing the engine you can pull the cam and slide a pvc pipe section , on which youve, cut a large open notch, and glued a strong magnet thats a bit smaller than the cam diam. into the cam journals and place the notch under a lifter and tap it thru so it falls into the pvc section that acts like a catch tube, each lifter gets removed separately and duct tape over the inserted end of the pvc pipe prevents lifters from falling out of the open end
you don,t need to pull the tube out each time a magnet retrieval tool can be used to pull out the lifters in the tube

wmr-w9101_w.jpg

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/WMR-W9101/

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http://www.joetoolcompany.com/lis13750.html

http://www.bosstoolsupply.com/index.asp ... odID=11828

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/WMR-W ... mage=large

https://www.ebay.com/i/402584062207...1291&msclkid=d17e7155654a1a20769a115a09f43c68


if the lifter base is well worn you can bet the farm the cam lobe is most likely also worn, and you'll need a lifter removal tool to pull the damage lifters up out through the blocks lifter bores
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if the lifters are very badly damaged, it may be best to remove the push rods , use strong magnets to hold the lifters in place and remove the cam, then slide a section of pvc pipe with the upper half removed and let each individual lifter fall into the pipe and be removed one at a time and be removed rather than risk damaging the lifter bore walls, dragging the damaged lifters out through the blocks lifter bores
wmr-w84004_w.jpg

lifterpuller.jpg


if the bases are burred up from a worn cam, a tool like this is used to pull them, it has a lip that expands and grabs the lifter and a slide weight used to knock the lifter out like a slide hammer
 
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