Al '92 Chevy

I have a '92 Chevy Silverado I decided to rebuild the engine of. It's the K1500 4WD with the 350. It had a blown head gasket, but would start before I did anything; however, now I don't know what to do.

I bought a rebuild kit from Summit Racing Equipment, pulled the engine out and ripped the it down to the block, had it machined by a shop, put in the new pistons and rings, oil pump, gaskets, cam shaft and lifters (recommended by the shop) and everything else I had removed and cleaned.

I have now put the engine back in the truck and everything back the way it was before I removed it but it will not start. It will crank and crank but it won't fire.

When I first installed the distributor, I had not marked it, and the engine would crank and back fired when I tried to start it. Now I have corrected it, following the instructions in the Chiltons manual I've been referring to for the rebuild, but it still just cranks and cranks...

I would appreciate some suggestions please.

Camaro 69

You'd want to be sure you didn't install your cam gear out of whack by 180 degrees. Below is an illustration. Make sure you had your rotor pointing to #1 cylinder on the compression stroke, and none of the plug wires are crossed. Could also be that your valve lash may not be set right.

Al '92 Chevy

Okay, thanks. I installed the timing chain and gears exactly the way it was when I took it off, with the two marks right by each other (#6 TDC in the graphic), but I didn't check where each cylinder was. I have the roter pointing at #1 and have double checked the wires. Would the valve lash being too tight cause this? I was afraid it was too loose, so I tightened them just past the specified torque.

Camaro 69

There's a 50/50 chance that you got the timing chain/gears on correctly. With the two marks facing each other as you had them, the #6 piston had to be the one at TDC. If #1 was the one at the top, you're going back inside the timing chain cover. Best thing to do is remove the left valve cover and see what position the valves are at when #1 is approaching and at TDC. For the lash, a little more than recommended isn't going to prevent the engine from running. But a lot, to where the valves aren't closing will.

jwruss

Most likely you have the distributer 180 out. It should point to number 6 cyl when you install it.

Al '92 Chevy

Hey, Thanks for the suggestions guys. I'll get to it when I've got some time.

Al '92 Chevy

Guys, thank you. I got it started last night. I changed the cam gear 180 degrees and then adjusted the distributor and it started right up but won't idle. Would the lash being a little tight cause the engine not to idle?

Camaro 69

If it's a little tight, no. If it's way too tight, yes.

Al '92 Chevy

Yes sir, you were right. I adjusted the lash and got it to idle and run pretty smooth, thanks.