I need a vtec head, and I can pick up a 99 si head minus the caps and cams for $150. My concern is with the caps, am I going to be getting myself into a situation similar to trying to put the 3 main caps and girdle from a gsr onto an ls, and having the crank not turn? If the head is machined with the caps in place, there could be problems replacing the caps with ones from a different head..? Any of you guys have any input on this?
Thanks

p.s. the damn search wasn't working, I don't know if this has already been asked..

 

I had this problem. The only way you can swap cam caps is to have it line-bored so that you don't bind/break a camshaft.

That caps and head are line-bored together at honda, so the caps match exactly to only the head they were made with.

 

The above comment is correct. That is probably why the head is only $150. Most people here say that a head without the cam caps is worthless. I'm not familiar with how much it's going to cost to machine new caps.

 

yeah, as you guys can tell from my first post, I strongly suspected that, but I just thought I'd ask anyway because my other friend says he has extra caps..oh well, I guess I won't get it unless the caps find their way out of the seller's ***..
Thanks for the input..

 

See if you can find a local machine shop and how much they would charge you to line-bore it. Might be cheap enough to make it worth it.

 

just get used cam caps.. its gonna work.. i had the same situation but a P&P head and bought used ones and it works good.... i know i dont wanna jinx myself (knocks on wood)!!!! and i been racing my car! probably if u get new ones then thats when u have to have a machine shop machine it....

 

The only way I would replace the cam caps without machine shop assistance is if I figured out what the clearance is supposed to be between the caps and the cam, and then plastiguaged every cap, and it checked out. A couple of my friends have just thrown them on and hoped for the best, but for me, no way..

 

The problem with plastiguaging them is that you will only determine the clearence, and not the roundness.

Caps are honed for each head, thus it is highly improbable that you will find a set of caps from one head that will not have issues in another head.

To know for sure, you will have to check for roundness with a set of mics. Torque the cap in place, minus the cam and check side to side vs. top to bottom. Then you will know for sure.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Cuda70 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">To know for sure, you will have to check for roundness with a set of mics. Torque the cap in place, minus the cam and check side to side vs. top to bottom. Then you will know for sure.</TD></TR></TABLE>
Exactly

 

Roundness could be a problem with the journal with the cap in place, but only because the cap would be up or down with reference to the centerline of the cam..the plastiguage would easily show this..

 

Not only up and down.The cap and head can be out of alignment side to side.Some people get away with swapping caps, and some have a cam seize and waste the engine.
Glenn

 

damn, true, it could be off side to side too..for some reason I just assumed the up and down difference would be more probable..

anyway, 3 pieces of plastiguage would still show this, 1 at the top and 1 at each side, near the intersection of the cap and head

 

Using more than one piece of plastigauge will screw up your readings.If you have .002" clearance ideally each piece would show .001" if they are 180 degrees apart.This as not an ideal measurement.Even a bore guage won't help because it has no reference to the centerline.You could go old school and use Prussian blue to find the tight spots.If you insist on doing this torque the head and cams on the block without the rockers and make sure the cams spin freely.
Good luck,Glenn

 

Yes, I'm reviving a dead thread.

Has anyone working at a machine shop line bored cam caps on a Honda head? I just don't see it working without increasing the clearance.

 

I have been able to get away with using a light pressure on the hone and only remove material from the tight spots a few times.Otherwise you need to cut all the caps and rehone back to the correct diameter.
Glenn

 

How much play is there with the honing?

 

Same as stock if you cut them and hone.I think its in the .001" to .002" range.I'd need to check my notes.
Glenn