Grey timing gears

[EJ_Dave]

While I've got the grey out of the car I want to eliminate one of its weak points- the fibre timing gear.

Both steel and alloy gears are available and I'd like some guidance on the pros and cons. I'm told the steel ones are noisier but the alloy ones are more expensive ($224 vs $141 from American Autos).  

Cheers,

Dave

[HYSTERIA]

Dave,

I would recomend the steel timing gears, they are much stronger than the fibre gear and they are quieter than the alloy sets. The steel gears in my car are not really noticable unless you are revving it out while accelerating. A mate of mine has a set of alloy gears in his red motor and you can't hear yourself think while the car is running, the sound was pretty cool for the first 15 minutes and then it just gets annoying.

cheers
Jay

[4hammers]

Hi Guys.
I think the alloy gears your mate has would be straight cuts. They are very noisy.
In my opinion & I have done a fair bit of research on this, the Grey motor is better off with the alloy gears. They will flex slightly & are better balanced.
The steel ones are of course heavier. The cam front end is a little fragile on the Greys, so that flex is important. Steel gears have been known to shear the front of the cam off with frequent revving.

Hope this helps.
Rob J  

[EJ_Dave]

Thanks for the advice guys. I think I'll go with the alloy set.

Dave

[Martin]

Dave,

If you haven't quite made up your mind yet, I've just read your query.

I've put an alloy timing gear in "Jim".  They are a bit noisier than the fibre gear, and when I first put it in it was so bad I thought, "Poop!  What have I done?"

After about 300 miles it suddenly quietened, though, and now the noise level is quite acceptable IMHO.  But it still does whine louder than the fibre gear and has taken away the genuine Grey engine sound.  Pity about that, but having done 2 fibre gears in other Holdens I've had, I'm willing to sacrifice an incorrect engine sound for the reliability.  At driving speed, you wouldn't really know.

The only steel one I've heard is Surfer Boy's and that is loud and metallic.

Martin

[colt]

With the steel timing gear you should also replace the crank gear. They come as a matched set. You cant hear the steel gear in my car. My car is pretty noisy though.
Colin

[Burnsy]

Alloy gears should also come with a new matched steel crank gear.