Timing gear sheared 12 teeth

[Turbofan]

39 Ford deluxe my fiber press-on cam gear sheared 12 teeth, what are my options? Jim in Maryland says he's got a procedure to replace the gear in the engine in the car. Is this feasible or am I pulling the engine? Crank gear looks fine.
Or do I pull the heads, pin up the valves, get the lifters out of the way and replace it that way while still in the car?
Any input appreciated.
Tom in Albany NY area

[KiWinUS]

More info on engine. Rebuilt when? How many miles? Use oil? Hard to start? Noisy? Fume out breather or exhaust. Etc.

[jimTN]

I would never ever use a fiber timing gear. Your biggest problem is cleaning the mess out so that none is left to mess up the oil. You can read in many of the repair manuals how to remove the old gear and put a new one in. NOS press on gears are available in solid alumn.

[Kube]

The repop fiber gears are prone to rapid failure. A very old NORS gear is fine. A New one? No way.
You are lucking you didn't trash the engine.
Getting out all the little pieces is very important as advised in post #3.

[Bored&Stroked]

You'll need to pull the oil-pan at the very least - to hopefully getting as much of the crap out of the engine as possible. I think it can be done in the car - though getting the gear pressed on in the right orientation will be fun.

I'd probably pull the engine if it was mine - to ensure I get everything cleaned up and so I can guarantee that the gear is correctly installed. Obviously, it is a lot easier to press the gear on when the cam is out of the car.

While I was at it - checking out the cam, lifters, valves, etc.. Might be a good time to go through the basics . . .

[tubman]

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Another reason I'm a "8BA Guy".

[petehoovie]

Originally Posted by Turbofan

39 Ford deluxe my fiber press-on cam gear sheared 12 teeth, what are my options? Jim in Maryland says he's got a procedure to replace the gear in the engine in the car. Is this feasible or am I pulling the engine? Crank gear looks fine.
Or do I pull the heads, pin up the valves, get the lifters out of the way and replace it that way while still in the car?
Any input appreciated.
Tom in Albany NY area

Example of what a stripped fiber timing gear looks like...

[alanwoodieman]

can be done in car but I second the recommendation of aluminum or old nors

[Turbofan]

How do I replace IN THE CAR !?!

Does anyone have a procedure and a tool?!?

Looking for aluminum press on but I can't source....will pay someone for a good AL gear

Thanks

[GB SISSON]

Originally Posted by Turbofan

39 Ford deluxe my fiber press-on cam gear sheared 12 teeth, what are my options? Jim in Maryland says he's got a procedure to replace the gear in the engine in the car. Is this feasible or am I pulling the engine? Crank gear looks fine.
Or do I pull the heads, pin up the valves, get the lifters out of the way and replace it that way while still in the car?
Any input appreciated.
Tom in Albany NY area

Looks like you're in a tough spot here. Specially with the summer driving season beckoning. I like your idea of 'pinning up the valves', easy enough, but getting the lifters outa the way, what about those really powerful magnets from the hardware store that look about the size of a nickel. They are extremely powerful and would slip right in there.

[Kurt in NJ]

Looks like the other areas are mostly chewed through , what condition is the crankshaft gear.
Rough worn crankshaft gear will chew up any timing gear.
Original lifters usually had a hole a pin could be put in to hold up the lifter

[Bored&Stroked]

My take: You'll spend more time and go through a lot of aggravation attempting to fix it in the car. By the time you go through all of that, you could have the engine out of the car, taken apart on a stand . . . fixed and back in.

It really isn't too hard of a job to pull an engine - and you'll be able to thoroughly inspect, clean and fix things as they should be fixed. In the end, you'll be happy you did it the "standard" way . . .

Okay . . . too much coffee for me this AM! LOL

[Kube]

Originally Posted by Bored&Stroked

My take: You'll spend more time and go through a lot of aggravation attempting to fix it in the car. By the time you go through all of that, you could have the engine out of the car, taken apart on a stand . . . fixed and back in.

It really isn't too hard of a job to pull an engine - and you'll be able to thoroughly inspect, clean and fix things as they should be fixed. In the end, you'll be happy you did it the "standard" way . . .

Okay . . . too much coffee for me this AM! LOL

And in my opinion, you are 100% correct with your advice.
Other then the "too much coffee" part. No such thing as too much...

[Ronnieroadster]

Turbofan I have seen a similar issue like yours in the past it was a press on NOS Ford fiber gear. The failure was caused by the cam not having enough cover clearance. It took a while after the install before the gear teeth sheared off it happened because the cam seized against the cam cover.
Sadly the engine needed be completely taken apart to clean out the material and for the cam to be removed so the damaged gear could be pressed off and the new gear pressed back on.

However if Jim in Maryland has a way to do it while the cam is still in the engine I would like to see how that trick is accomplished. If such a task was possible then Ford and KR Wilson would have made the tools needed to this. Since I have never seen such tools I doubt its possible.

Unless maybe holes are drilled into the hub then threaded for some size hardware and then a one off custom puller could be used. But if that's how its done where's the metal chips going from the drill and taping steps?
Ronnieroadster

[Bored&Stroked]

I'm sure somebody has "done it" . . . and I am also sure that I could do it faster and a whole heck of a lot better by pulling the engine. Also, I could sleep at night knowing that I did the job as it should be done and maybe even get a bonus . . . if I fixed/updated any issues found while it was apart.

B&S

[Turbofan]

Does anyone have an aluminum press-on cam gear?

[KiWinUS]

Originally Posted by Turbofan

Does anyone have an aluminum press-on cam gear?

Maybe but you have never answered post #2.
Not sure how you can get any correct answers without knowing answers to the questions asked.
I have never changed a Ford flathead press on gear in car but have changed dozens of Aussie Holden 6cyl. With press on fiber gear with steel hub. In car.

[tubman]

Originally Posted by Turbofan

Does anyone have an aluminum press-on cam gear?

While the later bolt-on gears '39-'48 and '49-'53 are available on the aftermarket, the earlier "press-on" aluminum gears seem to be made of "unobtanium". Is it possible to use a later ('39-'48) cam?

[bobH]

There is an old V8 Times article about someone changing a press-on gear, in the car, I think on a 32, basically at the side of the road. Not saying this the the right way to do it, but, back in the day, some of us 'older-types' didn't know any better.

[KiWinUS]

Not “Unobtainium” can use bolt on gear cam. Need long nose for 3bolt distributor or shortnose cam for 2 bolt distributor with an adapter button.
But who knows. The entire engine may be completely worn out. The original poster won’t tell us. Refer post #2.