so i was removing the valve spring on the intake side, cylinder closest to the firewall. and after replacing the seal i go to put the spring and keepers back on, somehow i lost grip of one of the keepers and it fell into the oil passage

tried picking it up with a magnetic wand, no dice :/

now would it have just fell to the bottom of the oil pan or what? i hope thats the case. i ordered a couple new keepers at oriellys.

 

Wow...thats why I pull the head when working on the valves....sucks for you.
Id pull the head.

 

not sure if it will drop all the way . but if not try a heavy duty wet vac .. maybe able to suck it up.

 

Yeah, any time you're working with the valve cover off, stuff rags in places where things can fall and not be recovered.

same applies to carbs, intake manifolds, and spark plugs. Just remember to remove them before closing them up, though.

 

replacing the intake manifold and valve cover gaskets on my pa's 99 crownvic, i stuffed paper towels in the holes BUT... one of the towels soaked up some coolent then shriveled up and fell in the hole. i got it out, but even when you put towels in the holes make sure your careful. id try a bit more with the magnet, or get poke a screwdriver down there and maybe it will move and be easier to suck up.

 

didn't everyone tell you to remove the head in the first place?


without removing the head, there's a VERY good chance that you've disturbed the head gasket, not matter how hard you've tried not to, and you'll probably have issues later on with it... just a warning...



My best guess is that it probably wouldn't have fallen all the way down to the oil pan. I believe it would have to make a few turns in order to get there. I'd try both the techniques listed above; use a good high-power shop vac to get it to maybe move as close as possible, and try the magnet again

 

get a more powerful magnet.

 

Here is a saying to live by when working on your car "Do it Right or do it Twice"

 

ahh!!