[Buick] Pre-Eco balance shaft removal experiences/opinions...

[Immortality]

Just did mine in the VN yesterday. pulled the balance shaft and gears and fitted the dual row chain. slight bit of vibration just off idle, but what VN doesn't already vibrate like hell? hehe. Initial drive shows that the engine seems 'freer' and quicker to respond to the throttle. Worked out pretty good.

that sound just about exactly what i noticed

p.s. if you do fit a dual row chain, i strongly suggest fitting the tensioner too (heard that some people leave them off). As without it there is still some chain slack even with a dual row.

thats odd, shouldn't need it with the double row. mine was bloody tight to get on, no problems with a slack chain

 

[GTP 85]

that sound just about exactly what i noticed



thats odd, shouldn't need it with the double row. mine was bloody tight to get on, no problems with a slack chain

Had a chat with my tuner and he showed me on an engine he had on a stand. A dual row chain on a V6 definitely will have some slack. when you back off the throttle the chain slops, which puts the cam timing slighly out of sync. Over time the strain on the chain, through the slop, causes quicker than normal stretch. my Vn was suffering from (said^) chain slop with the original chain. between each gear change i would have an annoying split second hesitation which we now know was the cam/ crank losing sync when the chain was quickly loaded- unloaded- then loaded again (i.e gear change)

before i took out the old chain i tested it, and even with the tensioner at full extension there was still slop in the flogged out chain, not good.

Just my own suggestion immortality, not gospel.. but i do it just to be safe

 

[Immortality]

still seems odd to me. maybe i was lucky? my old single row wasn't loose with the tensioner on. tensioner was showing some wear but nothing drastic. with my double row fitted it was just like the double row in the 308, no slop. maybe there is some variation in the cam bore location from the factory? see attached pic of new double row chain with ballance shaft completly removed from engine

 

[needwork2-4fillhabbit]

That a jp performance timing set? Or rollmaster? Also what did you do with the gaping hole left from no balancer?

 

[GTP 85]

still seems odd to me. maybe i was lucky? my old single row wasn't loose with the tensioner on. tensioner was showing some wear but nothing drastic. with my double row fitted it was just like the double row in the 308, no slop. maybe there is some variation in the cam bore location from the factory? see attached pic of new double row chain with ballance shaft completly removed from engine

Could be? My mechanic friend did say to me the early VN's were varied in their tollerances (i.e some new chains would fit snug, others would slop)

Mine is a Rollmaster btw, that sort of looks like a roll master too? and i have worked out exactly where the vibration comes in... between 1300-1500 rpm, shakes the hell out of the wheel for a few rpms. but meh, small price to pay.

That a jp performance timing set? Or rollmaster? Also what did you do with the gaping hole left from no balancer?

you just leave the hole open. the balance shaft is splash fed in the buicks, so dont need to block anything

 

[Immortality]

That a jp performance timing set? Or rollmaster? Also what did you do with the gaping hole left from no balancer?

it's a JP timing set, but i believe JP bought out rollmaster or was it the other way around.

pre-ecotec it's simple to remove the ballance shaft because it's only splash lubricated. on the ecotecs the rear bearing on the ballance shaft is pressure fed so it makes it just a little harder.

i honestly can't say exatly what rpm my vibration comes in, my rev counter just isn't that accurate i've always had a odd vibration @ approx 2700-2800rpm with/without the ballance shaft. mine was really bad but a new trans mount soon fixed it. a dodgy/tired injector can also cause engine vibrations. noticed that on the VS which just got a new set of injectors, so much smoother now

 

[beeb]

Good info fellas, keep it coming. For now though i'm only slapping a wrecker-special stocker in to get the car going with, i'll build something better later on...

 

[LeighGray]

Is it as simple as removing it? No oil galleries to plug up ect?

 

[losh1971]

Is it as simple as removing it? No oil galleries to plug up ect?

Hey man you have asked this already. Not considered good form to ask the same question in multiple threads.

 

[LeighGray]

Hey man you have asked this already. Not considered good form to ask the same question in multiple threads.

Just wanted to cover my bases as i had been told differently by a few different people.