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Is there any problem with letting a newly rebuilt engine sit for quite some time before firing it to break in the cam? Does the cam lube degrade over time or anything like that? Any other things to consider?
Maybe not the answer you're looking for, but here it is: an engine testing stand. I'm in the process of building one. As I'm in the same boat. I have 2 motors coming in and I want to make sure they're runable before I go through all the trouble of dropping it into my projects. Not to mention the other motors sitting out back. it'll be a simple set-up with the lifting half of my cherry picker bolted on the front, and my engine will hang as I set the mounting bars in. I'll have one mounting bar for windsor and 335 series as they all used the same perches in a 78/79 F150 4x4. I'll have another for the IH v8's. it'll sit on a built frame with torsion axles and will be pulled by my lawn tractor or atv. I'll post pics as I go. Unfortunately I just had to buy a new washer for the wife, so it'll take longer than I had hoped for.
As far as cam lube....I'm not sure, but gravity takes its toll on everything else in this world, lol.
NOt too sure about the effects of letting an engine sit that long, but no matter how long or short of a time an engine has been assembled, and not fired, i prime the oil system and run it for about 1-2 minutes using an oil primer before ever firing the engine up.
The oil primers are pretty easy to make from an old distributor. Just make it so one end will fit on the oil pump drive shaft, and so that the other end can be chucked up in a dirll, and spin until you feel like you have put enough of a coating of oil on eveyrthing to protect it.