UPDATE:

Today I removed the radiator, freed up the condensor, pulled off the oil pan, crank pulley and timing cover.

I would say the main thing I found is that the timing chain seemed very loose. I've put together a bunch of SBC motors (mostly LSx) and none of them have had chains this loose. Definitely good that I'm replacing it.

For those that have replaced cams in these motors, I've read that you can do it without disconnecting the AC circuit. I have the condenser all freed up, and really don't see any way to get the needed clearance without disconnecting it. Any advice?

There will be a week or two gap until my next update as I'm still awaiting parts.

 

I had a ton of play in my timing chain also. Be sure to set the TDC correctly when reinstalling. Here are some notes I took in my "Doing a Major 100k service" thread. This is from post #56 in my thread. Almost at the same place you are currently at. If you need any pictures or info on the front cover and oil pump gears it is right after the timing chain info.


TIMING CHAIN INFO:

I started rebuilding the Disco and I started with the timing chain kit. When I first looked at the timing chain after removing the front cover I thought it had a lot of slack, but I wasn't sure if that was how it was supposed to be so I wanted to wait for the new chain to compare before saying anything. So I took measurements to see just how much slack was in the chain after 100k miles.

1) I screwed the crankshaft bolt back in and rotated the bolt clockwise until it reached TDC (Top Dead Center).


2) Then I measured the inside of the old chain for stretch using a digital caliper. (I made sure to measure both chains from the same points in the chain.) The measurement was- 4.126in


3) Next I took a 1/2" socket on the impact gun and took out the camshaft sprocket bolt and took off the old timing gears and chain. The old sprockets took a little strength to get lose but they did come off by hand.


4) With the old chain and sprockets off I fit the 2 new sprokets and made sure they were at TDC. Then I took the camshaft sprocket off and put the chain on it and put it back together and torqued the bolt to 37lbf.ft.(Note: When putting the new camshaft sproket on, it will not feel like it is on all the way. Don't use anything to force it on, instead use the bolt and it will press it on as it tightens.) The difference in slack between the new and old chain was very obvious even with the naked eye. The old chain had a ton of play in it and the new one has almost none at all. Just to get some numbers on it to compare I measured it also and it was- 3.604



There was a difference of about 1/2inch in the old/new chains- .522
The difference when trying to move the chain by hand is night and day. Like I said there was a ton of play in the old chain and it also made a slight tick when moving it. I think this may be one of the slight ticks I was hearing with the engine running.

 

Fantastic. Where did you source your timing chain/gears and oil pump gears from?

 

I got almost all of my parts from Atlantic British. Here is a part list I made for that thread:

I just wanted to make a quick post and list the parts that I've ordered so far for the project.

Atlantic british:

4 Valve cover bolt-Short $1.95ea $7.80
4 Valve cover bolt-Long $1.95ea $7.80
2 Gasket-Exhaust Manifold To Pipe $7.95ea $15.90
1 Head Bolt Kit $79.95
1 Oil cooler pipe O-Ring $2.95
1 Oil Pan drain plug washer $0.95
1 Timing Chain Kit $109.95
1 Hose- Thermostat to Water pump $84.95
1 Hose- Radiator Top $67.95
1 Oil Pump Gear Kit $99.95
1 Water Pump- Brass $159.95
1 Hose-Radiator Lower to Thermostat $13.95
16 Bolt Exhaust Manifold $2.95ea $47.20
1 Head Gasket Set Composite V8 BOSCH $169.95
1 O-Ring Oil pickup tube $1.29
1 Gasket-Muffler to Tailpipe $10.95
1 Thermostat $31.95

Parts: $913.39
Shipping: $35.06
total: $948.45

Kingsborne:

1 8mm wire set- Blue $35.87
Shipping: $15.54
total: $51.41

Glowshift:

1 Universal Single Gauge Swivel Pod $6.99
1 Tinted 7 color oil pressure Gauge w/Extended wire harness $64.98
1 Oil Filter sandwich adapter $29.99

Free shipping
total: 101.96

In total I've spent $1101.55 on parts so far.

 

You: "I had a ton of play in my timing chain also."
_________________________
Steel Timing chains do stretch to some degree. Summit racing sells a double row timing chain that fits the Rover V8 engine (I used it once on engine rebuild), that is double the width, far less likely to stretch.

 

Update:

Boy its been a while since I've worked on this project, but I finally got some more parts in and made some more progress. Today I replaced the rod bearings and removed the old cam. The new cam (pn 53229) from crower is a direct fit replacement for the standard LR cam, so no need to get it machined to fit.

New camshaft on the left



Here you can see that its set to use the stock thrust plate and camshaft gear index.


And the rod bearings. Left side is the uppers, right the lowers. Uppers look beat.



Next up is getting the heads off to the machine shop, replacing the main bearings, and then re-installing everything. It'll likely take a while as I haven't ordered everything I need yet.

 

It's good to see you are still chipping away at it. Those bearings do look about done. Keep up the good work and keep the pictures coming.

 

And continues the SLOWEST Disco rebuild thread everrrr.

Today I rebuilt the rocker arms with new rockers and new shafts. The majority of my day was spent removing the damn front cover gasket and water pump gasket. Its a serious pain in the ***. I also tightened the rod and main bolts. Tomorrow (fingers crossed), the cam, tappets, heads, rockers, pushrods, timing set, front cover and oil pan will go back on. From there it should only be a couple more weekends.



Front of the engine hasn't looked this clean in over a decade.

 

Very nice. Its coming along very well.

 

Nice job. I was wondering how things were going with your project. I love how clean and new everything looks. I almost want to tear my engine back down just to clean it up again. Almost