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OHV Timing chain PLEASE HELP!


jrny4rbys

Forum Member

Joined
Oct 14, 2025
Messages
16
Points
101
City
South Mills
State - Country
NC - USA
Vehicle Year
1997
Vehicle
Ford Ranger
Drive
4WD
Engine
4.0 V6
Transmission
Manual
So my son and I have been very slowly working on his Ranger. The weather and life just hasn't made it easy to get to. Anyway, we finally buttoned it up today and it's not running. We did the timing chain components (we were already there, so why not) and the camshaft synchronizer and valve cover gaskets. So, after the truck wouldn't start, I was doing some digging. I think we installed the top timing cam upside down.

The only video I could find on the webs doing a timing chain replacement on a 4.0 OHV had, with cylinder 1 at TDC, the bottom crank key at 12oclock. The top cam had the dot also at 12 o'clock. (see video screenshot). This is what we followed.

But, and I can't find this but in one place - (on charm dot li) - I found a picture that shows, with cylinder 1 at TDC, the bottom crank key at 12 o'clock and the top cam with the dot at 6 o'clock! Please don't tell me we followed the only video we could find on this and it was wrong. (see screenshot of drawing)

Please help - do the dots point both at 12 or bottom at 12 and top at 6.
 

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So my son and I have been very slowly working on his Ranger. The weather and life just hasn't made it easy to get to. Anyway, we finally buttoned it up today and it's not running. We did the timing chain components (we were already there, so why not) and the camshaft synchronizer and valve cover gaskets. So, after the truck wouldn't start, I was doing some digging. I think we installed the top timing cam upside down.

The only video I could find on the webs doing a timing chain replacement on a 4.0 OHV had, with cylinder 1 at TDC, the bottom crank key at 12oclock. The top cam had the dot also at 12 o'clock. (see video screenshot). This is what we followed.

But, and I can't find this but in one place - (on charm dot li) - I found a picture that shows, with cylinder 1 at TDC, the bottom crank key at 12 o'clock and the top cam with the dot at 6 o'clock! Please don't tell me we followed the only video we could find on this and it was wrong. (see screenshot of drawing)

Please help - do the dots point both at 12 or bottom at 12 and top at 6.
I have a feeling you did it upside down. Not the 4.0 but other engines I've done the dots were always close together.
 
Well, I was hoping i had a picture while my engine was apart but nope.
 
It's crazy. The video we found was a 4 part series on just this motor. It was very well done. So we followed his steps. It's so hard to find good solid info on this motor.

I think you are right @alwaysFlOoReD . I think he (and therefore we) put them upside down (both dots at 12). The drawing screenshot is supposedly out of a Ford manual. I'm assuming they mostly know what they're doing!
 
So we put the motor at TDC. Removed the #1 plug. Laid a screwdriver there for up/down notice. Rotated till we felt the "poof" and completed to TDC. I pulled the synchronizer cap and the key cap fit perfectly. So I'm not sure what's going on! Do the dots really matter? If you rotate the motor twice, you have the dots at 12 and 6. Do it twice more, they're at 12 and 12. Did the fact that we installed it at 12 and 12 really mess this up? I'm posting a link to running videos below.
 
rebuilding_a_ford_4-0_engine-150.jpg
The dot on the cam gear and the dot on the crank gear should be pointing at each other.

Sounds like you're 180 degrees out of time.
 
I watched both videos, the 2nd vid shows that it does start and kind of run,

My first guess is you have a couple spark plug wires on the wrong plug.
 

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