Indian Rope Trick Update.

Hi as promised the guy gave a demonstration of removing a valve etc with the head in place. The engine was a'flat' four cylinder with a stuck exhaust valve. It had the head and bore all in one so simple head removal was not possible: -
He did the rope trick to remove the valve collets and spring. the valve was completely stuck so he GENTLY hammered it out of its seat. Before it came completely clear of the guide he took a length of fairly soft wire about 1mm thick and bent a hook on one end. The bend was essentially slightly smaller than the valve stem diameter(like he said guess work)he then inserted the wire into the cylinder and pulled it tight around the valve stem. then tapped the valve completely free of the guide and let it swing out of line. He then used a reemer and cleaned the guide. then-- with a bit(lot) of fiddleing and patience he re-inserted the valve stem. gripped the end and removed the wire. put the rope back in and refitted the spring etc. JOB DONE. started engine. perfect. The guy did say that an 'upright' engine was a bit more difficult. However I've got to say that I was really amazed with how easy he made it seem. MTF

Sounds a lot like my trick of replacing a Chevy V8 hydraulic lifter by working it to the back of the "valley", then plucking it out through the distributor hole, then working the new one in the same way.