acidburn2k2

sooo.....I just picked up a 96 accord LX. had to have the timing belt replaced so I got it for a fair price....anyways....while working on it, my butter fingers buddy dropped one of the acorn nuts that holds the valve cover on somewhere in the head. we pulled the rocker arm assembly and cam out and sloshed around the oil with a magnetic stick. so we're guessing it ran down one of the oil passages. If it is in the oil passage, it's in one of the ones on the exhaust side of the motor, closest to the distributor end.

any tips on removing it??? I'm afraid to crank my motor, after all that work with the timing belt, just to have this one nut mess up my whole engine.

Thanks for any input.

holmesnmanny

Do NOT crank that motor til you get it out.

Drop the oil pan. It's likely it dropped all the way down to it.

acidburn2k2

Thanks for the input. I was thinking the same thing of dropping the oil pan. on the other hand....if I drop the pan and the nut is not there.....any way to help "coax" it down?

the problem is: we are not 100% sure that it fell down the oil passage, however we have looked just about every where around that area and can't find anything

rockycat

You can check all of the returns with a coat hanger or similar. Pulling the pan a must to make sure.

acidburn2k2

so....I'm pulling the pan tonight. I am just trying to think of some scenarios where the nut is not in the oil pan, what I would do. has anyone heard or seen of something getting stuck in the baffle plate? like it dropped down the oil passage but landed on the baffle plate instead of going all the way down to the pan?

also, I will use the idea of running a coat wire down the oil passage to see if that helps.

anyone else have any ideas on what my next step should be if I do not find the nut in the oil pan?

hondamark35

try first coming from the bottom side with a coat hanger or similar to push the nut up if it's stuck in the passage. it may be jammed or may not be able to go down any further.


i guess it's not impossible to get caught in the main cap brace/baffle plate, but very improbably since they don't really line up that way.

acidburn2k2

Thank you for the input.

What I will probably also try is getting a small magnet and attaching that to the coat hanger (making sure to tape the magnet tight so that doesn't get lodged in there either lol) and then running that up or down the oil passage to see if I can "catch" the nut if I don't see it in the oil pan. I'm still not 100% sure on this method yet though, last thing I want is for something else to get stuck

burnoutboy

iTrader: (22)

Get a small TELESCOPING MAGNET... don't attach some magnet to a damn coat hanger man LOL. You'll end up with a magnet lodged in there too. I'd try the magnet first THEN take the pan off if it doesn't work.

Something like this.

Magnet

acidburn2k2

I already have one of those magnets, and I stuck it down the oil passage with no luck :-/ But yeah, I understand the fear of getting the magnet stuck in there too which is even MORE difficult to get out. only reason why I was considering it is because the coat hanger will flex to possible allow me to get into more places.

I'll probably just end up not messing with any magnets and just dropping the oil pan. I already drained the oil so as long as the cross member and exhaust bolts come loose fairly easy, it should only be a 15ish minute job

holmesnmanny

It takes about a half hour to do the oil pan gasket right. You might want to just get a new one. Make sure to use brake cleaner on the block to remove any and all residual oil before trying to put the new gasket on so it doesn't leak.

acidburn2k2

soooooo.....pulled the oil pan today and guess what was NOT in there......the acorn nut!!! little bastard is really hiding from me. there is no baffle plate underneath the oil pan so it's not there, I felt all around there to see if I could feel it anywhere....nothing. so I am fairly certain the nut is not in the engine. I used my telescoping magnet and the oil dip stick to run down the oil passages and still nothing.

on the other hand....anyone have any idea on scraping oil gaskets? seems like the oil gasket on this pan is probably original to the car, it is pretty much like plastic now, and like it's superglued to the pan. I spent about an hour just scraping half the pan and I just need a better way

holmesnmanny

its in your oil

acidburn2k2

I felt around my old oil with my magnet and nothing came out. there is no oil left in the engine. and I cleaned the inside of the oil pan good with some degreaser and stuff.....it's not there

burnoutboy

iTrader: (22)

There's a black hole halfway down the left most oil passage that goes to Asgard. Loki has your acorn nut bro.

acidburn2k2

It seems that way, maybe I'll have to get Thor involved, he can bring the avengers along only if Scarlett Johanssen Comes with him

smithers646

Just went through this last night with '94 Accord DX F22b2. Acorn nut down the oil passage near #2 cyl intake side- which was fortunate, as this side does not run straight down like the exhaust side passages seem to do. I could not see it, but figured it was there through process of elimination. In desperation, I think I created THE PERFECT tool for this situation:

1. Cut one leg off of a plastic hanging plant holder (18-24 inches long, thin, flexible, and non-magnetic plastic rod)
2. Search the refrigerator for a small, button-type magnet, and remove everything attached that's not magnet. The one I found was about 1/8 inch in diameter and fairly strong.
3. Clean one end of the plastic rod with acetone/lacquer thinner or other sure-fire degreaser. Let dry.
4. With your finger, wet an area with WD-40 on a hard, flat, non-magnetic surface. You're going for a coating, not a puddle. WD 40 is a great releasing agent for epoxies, btw. Put the magnet in the middle of this area, flat side down. If the top or sides of the magnet contact the oil, then degrease the magnet completely before proceeding to 5.
5. Mix up a small amount of 2 part epoxy (I used JB Kwik- 5 minute set, 1 hour cure). Apply a blob to the end and up about 1/2 inch. Ultimately, you're going for a teardrop shape of epoxy that terminates with the magnet.
6. Stand the rod vertically onto the magnet. You'll need to prop it there while the epoxy cures. Let it fully cure before you move it.
7. The epoxy should sag and make a thick connection with the magnet. If it doesn't (and the joint is thin), then AFTER curing, add another layer (like a fillet weld) of epoxy around this connection of rod to magnet. The thickness of epoxy here is the strength of the joint. Very important.
8. DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP: After full curing, remove the tool from the stand (you may need to pry a little with a blade), and stick it to a large, solid, ferrous metal something (e.g.) toolbox) and pull it off with the rod end. Try it several times, and include a little sideways pull too. If the magnet releases, and your tool passes the 'op test', then the joint is sufficient. If the epoxy breaks: well, be glad you figured that out BEFORE you put it in the head of your car! and go back to step 2 or 3.
9. Go fishing. You'll need to guide it past the rocker arms and valve springs, but once you're in the passage, it's pretty easy, as the head is aluminum. There are some other ferrous items down in there, but it should be obvious pretty quickly whether you have connected with a loose nut or a fixed part. Be gentle on retrieval.

This tool actually deflected toward the nut, which could not be seen from above. I snagged it on the second try (and there was MUCH rejoicing!)
Hope this helps- I can post a pic if someone wants one.