I think this warrants some further investigation. The result implies that the cam starts lifting 150-160 degrees from the lobe center. This would really be odd.

I did; if you don't know when the valves were last adjusted, I see no reason not to give yourself a clean starting baseline.

unusual. Consider the possibility that the cam has worn somewhat along the areas prior to the lobe lift. If this phenomena is evidenced along several lobes to a varying degree, maybe there was excessive wear induced by a bad/no adjustment somewhere in the engine's life. But especially if this is consistent for several exhausts and intake, I think this possibility is sort of remote. Maybe there was a manufacturing defect in the cam grinding where the lobes were not ground concentrically with the bearing surfaces. These cams may have been controlled via an SPC inspection routine assuming thorough knowledge of the setup, and stuff does happen, even with MB.

__________________
'82 300SD - 361K mi - "Blue"

"Good judgement comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgement."

listen, look, .........and duck.

This was the case for all the intake valves and I checked about half the exhaust valves as well. The last time I adjusted them, I thought I'd just lost my touch, and it was nagging on me that I hadn't done it right. That's why I went back and re-did it. Now that they are at least consistently adjusted, the engine seems to run a bit smoother.

But that brings up the circumstances of the engine. It came from a Denver wrecking yard, and I bought it off the guy that pulled it. It sat for a while, 9 months or so, and there was a bit of rust on the cam lobes, I presume from some water getting in the valve cover. I greased them up well with moly assembly lube before starting, and the finish on the lobes looks good now. But there may be some unusual wear going on as a result. I have not taken the time to measure how much the lash varies over the lobe rotation, but the valve train is not excessively noisy.

__________________
'83 240D with 617.952 and 2.88
'01 VW Beetle TDI
'05 Jeep Liberty CRD
'89 Toyota 4x4, needs 2L-T
'78 280Z with L28ET - 12.86@110
Oil Burner Kartel #35

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b1...oD/bioclip.jpg

"I referenced all the clearances with the cam lobe vertical."

WHY ?

Does the shop manual not say 180 degrees from the place you are checking ?
That puts it out about the 1 or 2 oclock position I believe...

Just figured it was close enough. Other OHC engines I've worked on, just having the lobe off the rocker pad is close enough. That way I can adjust all the valves with only a few rotations of the crank rather than having to go under the car to turn the crank 10 times.

It's quite the learning curve to make working on this 617 diesel. Assumptions I make from years of Japanese engines are turning out to not be useful I suppose. At least I have the peace of mind that the 617 engine is not losing my adjustments, I'm over that hump.

__________________
'83 240D with 617.952 and 2.88
'01 VW Beetle TDI
'05 Jeep Liberty CRD
'89 Toyota 4x4, needs 2L-T
'78 280Z with L28ET - 12.86@110
Oil Burner Kartel #35

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b1...oD/bioclip.jpg

I would also believe that it is close enough. I'm fairly sure that most folks on this board do not set the cam exactly 180 degrees from the rocker arm for each valve. In fact, I seem to recall that some people try to do all the valves with just one movement of the cam.

Something funny is going on here.

I don't understand making those assumptions at all... given that the manual is so specific.
It says :

"The cam peak must be perpendicular to rocker arm"

And while that is poor translation from German to English... the picture clearly shows the cam peak at about a 1 o'clock position .... directly (180 degrees) opposite the place you are using your feeling guage.

While I certainly won't question the manual, Greg, the implication is that the base circle on the cam is very narrow and that each valve would require careful movement and precise positioning of the cam.

10 valves=10 cam adjustments prior to adjusting of valve.

Kindly post below if you adjust the engine in this manner.

Now, Greg, I'm not trying to defend a procedure that may be in error. I'm just attempting to get some data from those members who currently set the valves in a different manner than what the manual specifies.

you can do it all within one 360 degree rotation of the cam......I just do each valve as the lobe is opposite of the measurement point.........works well on Hondas too..........

__________________
Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
---------------------
Section 609 MVAC Certified
---------------------
"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche

I think the implication is that they start the lobe before it would show up just by looking at it... and may help with the wear and longivity by minimizing the blow to the valve train.....

AFAIK, there is a difference of 144 degrees of crank angle between the valve events on each cylinder. It is therefore impossible to set the valves with the lobe opposite the measuring point, on all valves, with one 360 degree rotation of the crankshaft.
(I am assuming the aforementioned quote is a typo and you meant "crank")

I mean 360 degree rotation of the CAMSHAFT........thats 2 rotations of the crankshaft. It will take that to get lobes where they need to be to be adjusted.

__________________
Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
---------------------
Section 609 MVAC Certified
---------------------
"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche

You did not mean "360 degree rotation of the camshaft".

I know you did not mean this because you are smarter than that.

It can certainly be done within 720 degrees of crank rotation... no matter how funny the cylinders are placed.....
I don't know how many " stops" it would represent on a 5 cylinder...
On my Ford tractor four cylinder it can be done in two stops.