I'm trying to change the valve seals on my camaro, and I've been following the directions from some prior posts, but no matter how many times I hit them with a mallet, or anything else, the retainers continue to stick to the valve stem, making it impossible to take the keepers/locks out. Is there something I'm missing or are they f*cked or what? Help me out please. I can get pictures if they would help. Thanks in advance.

 

Sometimes they'rea real PITA to get to pop off, might just be crude in there making them stick and not fly out. Worst case scenerio, go down to the auto store and rent a spring compressor, weather it be the newer handle/lever style or the old turn screw type handle, either one will compress the spring and allow you to remove with a pair of needle nose pliers.

 

I have a spring compressor, and the problem is that the whole retainer assembly on the top sticks to the stem, so when I compress the springs, the valve stem doesn't stick out at all.

 

Are you putting a socket over the spring before you hit it? If you're just hitting the tip of the valve itself with the mallet nothing will happen.

 

Yeah, I've tried everything. I've hit the retainer with a socket over it, without a socket, from the sides, from the top, everything I can think of. I haven't been hitting it *that* hard, but I've hit it hard enough to have some play in the retainer. It will rotate a bit, and there's oil coming out when I hit it. It's very frustrating.

 

Are these heads on the engine in the car, or heads on a bench. If on the car how much air are you blowing into the cylinder. You can easily apply all 120psi which most garage compressors are capable of into the cylinder with no problems.

Have you tried squirting some brake clean onto the retainer to help loosen up debris? and then whooping them?

 

They're on the car, and I'm using a piece of rubber hose, since i don't have the fitting for my air compressor. I haven't tried spraying anything in there. I have carb cleaner, would that be ok? Or should i get brake cleaner? The air hold kit I bought from autozone didn't work, as the fitting didn't clear the clunky-@ss exhaust manifold.

 

I wouldnt even use air. When the valve opens where is that air gonna go? out of the cylinder. I bet when you smack the retainer the valve is just moving down and absorbing the impact. Get some nylon rope and feed it into the cylinder then turn the motor over so the piston pinches the rope against the head - Now try hitting it.

 

I've already done that...I'm using rubber hose instead of nylon rope, but I already cranked it so its pinching...

 

88TPI, he has a spring compressor, so once the air is applied the the cylinder the air is gonaa stay in the cylinder since he's not whacking it. If you've done stuff like this you know this already this and must have just not read his post I grabbed this quaote from.

For the air chuck, I've always used my compression tester. I remove the hose from the guage, install the approiate fitting to connect the air chuck to, REMOVE the check valve in the hose deisgned to keep the compression reading in place...whalla an easy way to get air into the cylinder since compression chekcers can be installed into almost any header/manifold set-up. Keep in mind most factory cylinders see anywhere from a MINIMUM of 145 psi on up.

I just use brake clean casue it's potent stuff and dries very quickly, carb cleaner will work also, your just trying to lossen up the varnish the old oil has left between the retainer and the stem.

 

I have used brake cleaner to de-varnish parts. It works just as IHI described. Give the tops of the retainers/locks a little squirt and let it soak in. After my car sitting 9 months without doing anything, pretty much my entire valve train froze up. Lifters, retainers froze to locks, the works. Its a PITA, i know. Just try spraying some brake cleaner on them. It loosened them up for me...