timing set gears of, steel, iron, billet

[LASVEGASLSC]

Changing out original timing set on my 388Km mark VII (only because water pump is leaking)....looking at choices, I see iron cam and crank gears steel cam and iron crank, and billet gears....all with double roller chain of course.....What did the factory use? Not looking for or needing anything exotic.......Thanks

[ September 25, 2005: Message edited by: LASVEGASLSC ]

[gadget73]

I think they're steel from the factory. The double roller set I bought was a Cloyes brand and I think it cost me like $26 from my local auto parts store.

[Jud149]

quote:Originally posted by LASVEGASLSC:
Changing out original timing set on my 388K mark VII (only because water oump is leaking)....looking at choices, I see iron cam and crank gears steel cam and iron crank, and billet gears....all with double roller chain of course.....What did the factory use? Not looking for or needing anything exotic.......Thanks

Out of curiousity, do you know if your timing set is the original on that 388k mile engine? I've got 150k on my '91 Mark and have wondered if I should swap it out.

[AceFrehley03]

Every person that had called about my car asked about the timing chain to see if it had ever been replaced, some saying that a timing set was only good for 70K-75K miles. You got almost 400 on your stock chain?

(Team America reference) You have balls. I like your balls.

[hrlmk7]

i've got 205,xxx and counting on my original stuff.i just keep an eye on the timing (checking it on ocasion). tongue.gif

[LASVEGASLSC]

Thanks Gadget.

Yup. it is original....ACE, 388,000KM....240,000 miles..Ford did a good thing with the HO engines re the roller chain......My 87 T CAr, with a link chain set up....and plastic over aluminum cam gear...went 340,000 Miles......Regular oil changes....LSCMAN, whom we have not seen around this site for a while, road raced his Mark VII, was on original T Chain at well over 240,000 miles. My Mark VII chain is still within spec, but with everything off of the front of the engine, the timing cover is only an additional hour to Re and Re.

[ September 25, 2005: Message edited by: LASVEGASLSC ]

[Drake_tr7]

I put a gear drive on mine (mistake,I don't reccomend one) but the factory chain was perfect that's what is in the gt-40 motor

[Drake_tr7]

oops! at 150k perfect shape...

[LASVEGASLSC]

well, changed out water pump, hoses and timing set.....have a friend who was going to rebuild his 88 Mustang 5.0..decided to go for a 331. He had a Ford OEM timing set in the box..and the price was right.....Anyway, as I stated earlier, the original was still in spec.....3/8 inch slack on the loose side (recommended max service limit is 1/2 inch...but I have seen em with 3/4 inch plus and still running AOK and pass smog......Broke one stud.....one above the lower hose......heat and PB Blaster could not make it move.....drilled and tapped and Autozone had the correct stud for $7.99.....AOK.... :D :D :D

[gadget73]

When I pulled my 120k HO apart it was still in service limits. Barely, but it was there. I've known a whole lot of engines with waaaayy more miles than 75k on the original timing parts. Usually they don't hop and cause problems till well over 200k, tho by then the timing has probably drifted some.

Gear drives are nice, but too noisy for my taste. They do make "quiet" ones which are somewhat less noisy but still a double roller chain is a whole lot quieter. If it was a weekend drag strip warrior I'd probably not think twice but I don't want to listen to that in a car I drive on a regular basis. Heck, I hate the clutch fan and AC compressor noises on my car as it is.

[skarhed]

quote:Originally posted by AceFrehley03:
Every person that had called about my car asked about the timing chain to see if it had ever been replaced, some saying that a timing set was only good for 70K-75K miles.......

The 70-75,000 mile figure generally applies to timing belts on the small 4-cyl O.H.C. engines. As others stated, even the link type chains (unless red-lined frequently) are good for several multiples of that. Those with nylon toothed cam gears tend to fail due to the teeth rounding off, not the chain failing. A good quality double-roller type will probably last longer than you in a street driven car.

[WALTSAUTO]

skarhead is correct
timing belts ( 3cyl 4cyl 6cyl )
had a typical recommended service life of
60,000 mi -- Toyota is the only one who pushed the factory spec to 90,000 mi --have seen several go past the time and several that have not -- so its a toss up --

The standard 5.0 ( Mercurys / Fords / Town Cars ) had the nylon tooth / aluminum hub cam gear flat chain which the nylon disintergrated usually around 120,000 to 160,000 miles ( oil changes did not appear to be a factor ) and when I contacted Ford about the use of what I considered to be defective design, the response was that the nylon/aluminum was a lot quieter running then the standard chain / gear config which kept the drivers happy ( no funny noises )
( also the reason to stay away from gear drives )

The HO engines had the roller chains which
with good oil and change schedule will usually run to overhaul --

When you have the front torn down as far as you did, and the mileage indicated, its always a good idea to replace the chain and gears regardless of backlash test results --
I have always replaced with roller chains
regardless of the original configuration
--

[ September 26, 2005: Message edited by: WALTSAUTO ]