I've been tearing down the 351 roller cam motor I bought for my Mustang and tonight when I tried to remove the cam it wouldn't slip out like every other cam I have ever removed in my life. In fact, I had to put a pair of vice grips on the snout and it was hard to turn.

I have everything removed, lifters, distributor, the plate that keeps the cam in, so I know it isn't anything like that, and I have done enough cams to know that part isn't holding it. What I was able to do was make a quick puller that utilizes the 3/8 bolt that goes into the center of the cam and by tightening it down I got it to move out of the first set of bearings, but when the journals started to enter the bearings for the next portion of the move, it stopped dead.

I am not worried about getting it out, I will buy some 3/8 all thread tomorrow and fashion a longer puller to bring it out the rest of the way, but I would like to know how the bearings got so tight on the journals. Have any of you run into this before?

The rest of the engine looks machinable, it is a Ford reman engine and is already bored 40 over, but the machine shop says 60 shouldn't be a problem, especially since it will be a mild engine. The mains and rod bearings and all the crank journals look good, so I don't think the tight cam created any problems that way. I will be running a different cam with new bearings, so that part doesn't worry me.

Oh, as I was pulling the cam with my puller a very thin ring of the number 4 cam bearing came out with the cam, like the bearing was too small and I had pulled the edge of the bearing off. Any ideas?

Thanks guys.

Don