I have been trying to do a search and i have not got the answer to my question.....

i have limited auto expirence, and I am in the middle of replacing my mechanical fuel pump, but how do i get the pushrod to go up?

i have grease and lubed the rod up, but i cant figure out what to do to move the rod up to slip the fuel pump in correctly.

Im afraid of doing something stupid or hurting the engine and i am most likily overlooking the obvious, but what do you do to move the pushrod?

thanks for any imput!

 

You just push it up. It slides very easily. It will only go just so far though, because it runs into the cam eccentric that drives it.

So if it's not going up far enough to easily put the pump in, turn the crank one full rev, which will turn the cam ½ rev, which if the rod is on the high spot of the eccentric now, will take it to the low spot, and allow the rod to slide much farther up.

 

That's a good start. But, keeping the rod up out of the way while you install the pump is another matter.

Here's the old "trick" for doing that:

On the front of the block on the corner with the pump there are two threaded 3/8" holes. One will have a bolt in it that isn't holding anything on. That bolt hole goes through to the pushrod. Take out that bolt and find one that is a little longer. Push the rod up and insert the longer bolt until it holds the rod up there (just finger tight - you don't want to wrench it and put a mark on the rod).

Install the pump, remove the long bolt and re-insert the short one (if you don't have a bolt in there, you'll have a nice oil leak). Bingo, job done, no bent fuel pump arm, no wrestling with having a fat finger sticking in the same place as the pump while you try to hold the pump and insert a mount bolt at the same time, etc.

 

whew....well it was a PITA to say the least, but yea, i just loosend up the two bolts on the plate, and it was enough to slip in a paper clip, which allowed my to hold up the rod with my finger, then just tightened up the plate bolts, the wham, slammed in the fuel pump in time to get the rocker arm beneath the pushrod....and i make it sound so simple and it took me like two hours to do

thanks for the suggestions and tips....ill have to remember them for future refrence