Camshaft - New Old Stock

[AZJeepNut]

Newbie time... Engine internals are a complete blank slate for me so if anyone would like to offer an opinion on how to proceed with a "new" camshaft I'd appreciate the help. I ordered a replacement camshaft (gear-gear drive) from Walck's and it was as advertised - new old stock. Slathered with cosmoline and sealed in a cardboard tube. The label on the tube says it was packed in Feb. 1957, so that's about 56 years of storage in cosmoline. When I opened the tube the cosmoline was still viscous and could be wiped off. I id that and then wiped all the remaining gunk off with mineral spirits. Here's a couple of pics of what the cleaned camshaft looks like.

My question is what should I do next... try to polish the journals and cam lobes myself, or take it to an auto machine shop and have it done there?

[F Bill]

Are they smooth and just black coated or is that actual rust pits I see? If it is smooth I'd install it after cleaning off the journals with a scotchbrite pad....And definitely get some cam lube and have a new set of tappets in there too, or get yours resurfaced.

[AZJeepNut]

The journal and lobe surfaces are smooth. I've read a number of posts about polishing camshaft surfaces and methods/materials vary. What has worked best for you F Bill?

[F Bill]

I wouldn't do anything with the cam lobes as that black surface, if it is what I think it is, is designed to hold oil better during break in. To polish the rest, ideally chuck it on a lathe and spin it while holding some fine scotchbrite against it... You could use a three jaw chuck on a gear retaining bolt, or where the gear sits, and a center on the other end.

There is also fine abrasive cloth available in rolls at parts stores and at Harbor Fright, in very fine grits 320 and above that would work well too. I wouldn't get too crazy with it, as you just want it to be clean and smooth and not reduce the diameter any. You might even get away with it as is, especially if you have any wear in your cam bores.....Measure and check clearances before you install.

[CJPilot]

My �very picky� machine shop had no problem with Walcks NOS cam shaft.

Best of Luck, Steve

[AZJeepNut]

Thanks for the info and suggestions. The engine won't be reassembled for a while yet so the camshaft is off to meet up with the FoodSaver. Vacuum packing works great as long as you cover the sharp bits with a little cardboard.

[Carls_jeep]

In the close up photo of the nose of the cam shaft it looks to me like there has been a gear mounted on it. I would take it to a machine shop and have them look at it and decide if it has been used.

50+ year old cosmoline would be hard and very hard to remove. Something doesn't sound right or look right.

[AZJeepNut]

Good point! I did not notice the lighter band on the gear end. When i looked for info on best way to remove cosmoline I read that the stuff will harden and be very difficult to remove if it has been exposed to air. Since the cardboard tube was so tightly sealed that I could not remove the cap without deforming it I reasoned that the seal was probably good enough to prevent air infiltration, but who knows. I'll mic the journals and see if they are worn or re-machined.

[Carls_jeep]

It's a good chance Walcks bought it and never looked at it. It's easy to get tricked when you buy quantities of NOS parts.

[AZJeepNut]

I mic'd the journals and they are factory spec. :

2.1855, 2.1225, 2.0595, 1.6235

These numbers come from a post on G503:
http://g503.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=320542 that corrects data from the technical manual. (Can't get the name of the manual right now because the G503 message forum is down).

Carl Walck is still The Man!