i consider myself to be somewhat knowledgable on the vq35, and i do alot of motor work on other cars as well (mostly honda's, and some subie's ej25/ej20, and 4g63's) such as pulling motors, trannies, dissassembling them, etc. but building a block is honestly something i wont do in my garage/at home/ ever, unless im doing it with a shop owner or professional at there shop. saving a grand and not knowing what your doing is much much worse than spending it and not sacrificing reliability. not to mention that everything would be done correctly, and accurately by somebody who can get it done faster, and quite possibly even teach you along the way. im not knocking your abilities or knowledge, but theres a reason these guys get paid for doing the work.

 

I recently purchased used VQ35DE heads for my upcoming build. I removed the cams and lifters then ran into a road block at the springs/retainters/collets. I was unsure which compressor to purchase but then I found this thread and came up with a homemade valve spring compressor. Basically all you need is a 7/8 socket and an extension and preferably a rubber mallet. I didn't have a mallet so I used a hammer. All it took was 1-3 good whacks and the retainers popped loose. Once I got the motion down the valve spring removal was a breeze. Thanks for the tip!

PS - I still might purchase the snap-on tool if I install my own valvetrain.

 

Holy crap! This thread is 4 years old!!!

 

I've learned my lesson, if you're searching for something specific on the forum, always make sure to check the last post date. Just the other day i posted on a thread from 03 lol

 

It is cool, haha