Hi all,

 

I have uninstalled my hydraulic tappets from my engine head (MH 1.3 55hp carb). I want to know how do I check if they're still in good condition or not ?

I thought I can leave them for 1h in a bowl of oil for example but then what's next ?

no need to soak them in oil ,,its not a sponge 

 

if they depress by hand theyre tired , if theyre hard theyre good 

 

if youre fitting new rings and bearings to this engine because you think its worn out then i would fit new tappets too , typicly the head parts wear first ...so valve guides and tappets would be the first thing to replace 

Yes I'll use new tappets and new valve seal for the mk2 (on which I'll fit new rings and engine bearings).

I was asking this because once the mk2 is finished (or maybe at the same time working on the mk2), I'll restore the mk2f but I won't use new rings and bearing on it. I'll fit the same engine part I've taken appart (if and only if the rings and bearing are ok). Of course I'll also replace the valve seal on the mk2f. I mean I'll be on very tight budget on the mk2f so in cas the tappets were still good. Unfortunately, I've done the test you told and I've only 3 tappets hard to press (the rest are easy to depress by hand).

 

Concerning the valve guide and seats on both engines, I won't be able to replace them. This involves taking the head to a professional and I can't afford the price. I only hope the engines are not as bad as they can be. I know refreshing the head should mean new valve guide and seats but I can't (may be later if I have the budget but that means new head gasket etc...)

you can take the tappets apart and clean them if money is tight

19 minutes ago, steveo3002 said:

you can take the tappets apart and clean them if money is tight

 

I didn't know hydro tappets can be restored or repaired. This is interesting since time is not an issue for my mk2f.

I'll get back on this subject when I'll be on it. For now, according to your test, I have only 3 tappets ok on a total of 16 (2 engines).

Edited 22 November, 20214 yr by cedreex

I've found that whether individual tappets are hard or easy to compress after removal depends partly on how long since the engine was last run they are removed, and the cam angle(s) the engine was stopped at, I believe.

 

Tappets that are under significant load because of the particular cam position, removed some time after engine was last used will tend to have bled down, be relatively empty of oil, and thus easily squeezed by hand. Ones that were unloaded will still be full of oil and hard to compress. 

 

I think if you ran an engine up to temperature, stopped it and removed the tappets immediately, they'd tend to all be stiffer.

 

Makes sense in my head and from my limited experience. Anyone agree?

Unfortunately, it doesn't help to tell which ones may be good and bad.

 

 

yes they will /should pump up after running ...its just perfect ones dont bleed down for a long time , new ones will be hard in the box 

 

it may be the difference between a silent start up and a tick for seconds or several minutes , before i changed mine one would tick until the oil was hot if parked for 2-3 weeks

 

with new ones it can sit 4-5 months and no tick