1996 Chevy Dually Truck - Cylinder Heads & Hydraulic Roller Cam - Head Games, Part 2

13.The stock Gen V timing chain is thinner than an earlier style cam, and the three bolts that hold the cam on are a smaller diameter.

14.The stock timing chain cover is cast alloy and ribbed for structure, because it does more than simply hold in some oil and seal the crank snout. The Gen V uses a crank trigger that mounts in the timing chain cover to provide the injection system with an rpm signal.

15.On assembly, make sure there is a 0.250-inch gap between the block and lifter link bar in the cam rotation. We had no problems, but it was close, and you know how manufacturers change things up, so just make sure you check the clearance.

16.This really bitchin' cam degree tool by Comp Cams came in handy for telling us where the cam was in relation to the crank. The stock timing chain gear doesn't provide cam adjustment, and as far as we know, there is no adjustable timing chain for this style cam. The cam was cut on a 112-degree centerline and in the stock timing chain alignment installed at 108 degrees. If you subtract what the cam was cut on from how it actually installed, you will have the total center. So, 108 from 112 is actually 110 degrees.

17.The cam is not radical, but it's merely slightly enhanced. So, the adjustment on the poly locks is the same as a hydraulic tappet setup. Remove the lash and three quarters of a turn more sets the adjustment.

18.Here is the reluctor wheel that provides a rotation signal through a sensor. This has to fit under the timing chain cover, which is another reason why the timing chain is thin.

19.With the cover in place, you can see how the sensor interacts with the reluctor. So, if you wanted to convert your Gen V to an early cam, you would need to figure out a way to use something like an MSD crank trigger to provide the proper pulse and frequency to the ECM.

20.There have been great advancements to the combustion engine in the past few years. One of these advancements is sealing management. Later gasket designs provide a more complete seal and a longer sealing life. This adds to the life and performance of the engine.

21.The intake is comprised of a two-piece casting. The bottom section holds the injectors and some sensors. Even though we disassembled the intake completely, you won't need to remove the fuel rails or injectors. This will make your disassembly and reassembly easier.

22.When you order the 1.8:1 rockers from Comp Cams or Summit Racing, make sure you instruct them to replace the standard poly locks with the shorty poly locks. Otherwise, the standard locks will interfere with the valve cover. Replacing the valve cover with a taller version is not an option because the throttle body sits right over the passenger-side valve cover.

23.You can see the shorty poly locks sit significantly lower (left) than the standard locks (right).

24.The exhaust manifold uses studs for fasteners for half of the exhaust system. When we pulled the exhaust manifolds off, the nuts stuck to the studs and pulled them out of the head. To ensure a good seal, make sure the studs are installed first and use some Loctite to hold the studs in place. Then, install the manifolds and nuts, and torque them down.

25.Another way to ensure the exhaust has a good seal is to use high-temp ATV around the gasket.

26.The rest of the reinstallation process involves simply plugging in the electronics and accessories.

This mod will work without an after-cat exhaust, but since our truck's old exhaust was shot and we wanted to ensure the exhaust was free-flowing, we installed a Bassani after-cat system to fix our rotted exhaust problems.

The after-cat was easy to install. We simply cut the stock exhaust off at the right length and slid the Bassani system on and clamped it in place.

The ECM needed a new program, so it also needed to be sent to Z-Industries to have a specially tailored program put in so the mods would render a similar result.

We had Ron at Z-Industries work with us on a premium program that would work with this combination of parts and cylinder head mods. Stay tuned, because the next installment of this series will optimize the tune and render the best results.

Another mod that can be made is to upgrade the factory 60mm throttle body to BBK's 80mm throttle body. This will make sure you have the best possible throttle response by adding more available air to the intake tract with less throttle position.