Making Some Change to my SC'd 6.2. Looking for input

[Foggy]

Ok... so... my edelbrock supercharger is toast... I ran methanol injection thru it and ruined it... I can't afford to have it rebuilt
right now, plus lead time is 12 -14 weeks on rebuild... I need to be able to tow very very soon... couple of weeks.
I am putting back on OEM intake manifold and deleting the AFM/DOD totally


So, I have removed heads, cam, dod lifters etc...

Picking up heads from machine shop tomorrow with new PAC 16915 springs installed.. New seals, etc
My cam is a VVT Gwatney performance 212/222 .553 lift ... I have already done the VVT cam phaser mod to
limit the VVT degrees.. (although not sure I need it with this tiny cam)

ANY How... I really don't want to drop the front diff, rack, etc to get the oil pan off...
I have Zero oil leaks and my oil pressure is totally within specs hot/cold etc
BUT, I am paranoid of the timing chain tensioner... I do have on hand the LS2 "bowtie" tensioner, timing chain, new oil pump, pick up, all the parts....

I don't even know IF i could get the timing chain "right" without removing the oil pump, chain etc.

What would you guys think ??????
2014 Denali 117K... I've owned it since 97K - 3 years... Had maint records when I bought it. And I'm OCD on maint and really
everything !!!
BTW: did the CHE trunnion upgrade - easier than I thought... Will be putting that in with new cam, cammotion lifters, gm lifter trays,
So, main mods will be the upgraded VVT cam, 1 7/8 kooks headers w. exhaust..
This is a tow vehicle,,, I just wanted more when I bought it for towing... Thought SC would be the easiest

 

[Geotrash]

Ok... so... my edelbrock supercharger is toast... I ran methanol injection thru it and ruined it... I can't afford to have it rebuilt
right now, plus lead time is 12 -14 weeks on rebuild... I need to be able to tow very very soon... couple of weeks.
I am putting back on OEM intake manifold and deleting the AFM/DOD totally


So, I have removed heads, cam, dod lifters etc...

Picking up heads from machine shop tomorrow with new PAC 16915 springs installed.. New seals, etc
My cam is a VVT Gwatney performance 212/222 .553 lift ... I have already done the VVT cam phaser mod to
limit the VVT degrees.. (although not sure I need it with this tiny cam)

ANY How... I really don't want to drop the front diff, rack, etc to get the oil pan off...
I have Zero oil leaks and my oil pressure is totally within specs hot/cold etc
BUT, I am paranoid of the timing chain tensioner... I do have on hand the LS2 "bowtie" tensioner, timing chain, new oil pump, pick up, all the parts....

I don't even know IF i could get the timing chain "right" without removing the oil pump, chain etc.

What would you guys think ??????
2014 Denali 117K... I've owned it since 97K - 3 years... Had maint records when I bought it. And I'm OCD on maint and really
everything !!!
BTW: did the CHE trunnion upgrade - easier than I thought... Will be putting that in with new cam, cammotion lifters, gm lifter trays,
So, main mods will be the upgraded VVT cam, 1 7/8 kooks headers w. exhaust..
This is a tow vehicle,,, I just wanted more when I bought it for towing... Thought SC would be the easiest

Sorry to hear that your SC is toast. :-( That seriously sucks, man.

When I pulled the tensioner out of my 2012 back in December 2020 it had around 112K on it, I think, and was fine. But I chose to replace it with the bowtie kind since I was going with a non-VVT cam. Not sure if it's okay to run a bowtie tensioner with a VVT cam, so that's another question.

That said, it is impossible to get the original tensioner off without dropping the oil pan and removing the oil pump. However, if the tensioner looks good and you decide to leave it in place, it *is* possible to finagle the timing chain in order to get the timing marks aligned correctly without dropping the pan. IIRC I either stuffed some rags under the crank sprocket or wedged a screwdriver in there to keep the chain from dropping off the crank sprocket (maybe both).

The good news is that if you end up replacing the tensioner, dropping the pan doesn't actually require dropping the front diff all the way out like the manual says. All I had to do was drop the crossmember, the steering rack, and the passenger side of the front diff to get enough clearance to get the pan off. It still adds half a day to the job, but much less than taking the diff all the way out.

 

[Just Fishing]

diff is really easy to pull (if you have air tools and or a good electric impact).
I have gotten really good at it...



use some ratchet straps to hold in the front cv's compressed.
Gives you plenty of room to get the diff in and out.
from there it's a straight drop down as long as the cross member has been removed.

don't even try it with the crossmember in place.

You don't need to completely drop the rack, I just zip out the 4 bolts that go to the frame, and let it hang there.

I also have a motorcycle jack, works perfectly as a front diff support/lift...


I tried to do this with the diff in place, but it's so much easier with it out of there.

 

[Foggy]

Well, time is getting short So I'm going to just put in the cam, lifters, etc..
No oil pan removal. i watched a couple of videos of the worn out chain tensioners and
mine looks ok.. I did a dry run with just the VVT cam phaser gear (no cam as my assembly
lube hasn't shown up yet) and I CAN get the chain back on and lined up correctly
with the "DOT" on the crank gear... So I'll keep my new pump, pickup, and chain in
my parts bin for when I pull this motor eventually or have the front Axle out to change
my gears to something better for towing - 3.73/3.90 in the future

Just hope my OCD doesn't get too deep leaving this as the oe chain and pump

 

[intheburbs]

6.2 is a hotrod motor, it's not a heavy-duty towing beast. That's why you only find it in half-tons.

Leave the supercharger off.

I tow an 8600-lb trailer with my 6.0, all over the country, including the Rockies. 50 fewer HP, 16,000 lbs, and while I'm not winning any races, I'm not holding up traffic, either.

I assume you have the 3.42 axles. Regearing to 3.73 or even 4.10 would be a big help and you won't have to worry about melting the aluminum block.

My 09 Sierra Denali gets very little towing duty. Frankly, it's just not what it was built for.

 

[Foggy]

Got the cam and timing chain with gear and vvt sprocket (with phaser limiter installed) ..
Got the pistons and everything all cleaned up. Ready to put cylinder heads back on... Trunnion upgrade done !

Question for you guys that have done the dod delete: which way did you put in the lifters ???? The little oiling hole facing
inwards toward center or outwards ???? I have the CamMotion Lifters , I've done some searching and can't find a
definitive answer.. The only thing i've found is "it doesn't matter" .. I'm too ocd for that !

 

[Geotrash]

Got the cam and timing chain with gear and vvt sprocket (with phaser limiter installed) ..
Got the pistons and everything all cleaned up. Ready to put cylinder heads back on... Trunnion upgrade done !

Question for you guys that have done the dod delete: which way did you put in the lifters ???? The little oiling hole facing
inwards toward center or outwards ???? I have the CamMotion Lifters , I've done some searching and can't find a
definitive answer.. The only thing i've found is "it doesn't matter" .. I'm too ocd for that !

I installed mine with the oil holes facing the centerline of the engine.