Hi all, thanks in advance for your input. I've decided to tackle the head gaskets on my 3.0L '94 4Runner and had a question about the camshafts and the process of removing them. I was following the loosening sequence per the FSM, but I wasn't fully paying attention to what was happening. The front two bearing caps were totally loose when the spring tension from the valves starting pushing the cam up at pretty funky angle. Eventually the loosening sequence went out the window and I worked faster to get everything undone. What are the odds of bending a 3VZE camshaft this way? Is there any way I can check to see if it is actually bent?

 

Put the outer cam journals on V blocks and use an indicator on a middle journal to see if it's bent.

 

It is normally the passenger side cam in which some of the lobes are still riding on the lifters, a slight turn of the camshaft will get it off the lifters and will prevent what you experienced.
Your camshaft is more than likely fine. 2 things to check though are: 1) the flange on the passenger side cam that rides on the inside of the first bearing cap can crack . 2) the bolt holes on the passenger #1(front most) cam cap and driver #5(rear most) cap are notorious for stripping out. The bolts only engage a few threads. I eventually had to stud mine.