Thread: Valve spring retainer clip woes

So I was changing my valve springs and when I was changing the first one, one of the retainer clips flew out and it looked like it fell down into the chain/oil pump cavity.

I tried to get it with my magnet tool with no luck. I then removed the oil pan and it was not there.

Any tips? I really don't feel like removing the oil pump.

Maybe stick your magnet down there, then blow some compressed air in to get it to shift around, and if you are lucky it will stick to the magnet.

I once retrieved a ziptie using my 5hp shop vac with a 4' length of syphon hose (duct taped to the vac hose end).

The first thing to do is to confirm it's really down there and not laying somewhere outside of the motor.

Always cover that bad boy up, live and learn. If it fell in the timing cover it's definitely in the lower oil pan. Check around the chain guides and the chain and make sure it didn't get lodged in there somewhere. I'm with Hank on this one though, are you sure it's in the motor?

I meant to cover it, I even got the towels to do so but then I got distracted and forgot. Anyway, what's killing me is that I'm not sure if it actually went down there, I kinda saw it fall down there but can't tell for sure.

It won't be in the oil pump. It might have come to rest on or behind a chain guide or its on the crank. It likely would have gone all the way to the pan. Another possibility is that's its in the head still and you haven't located it. It could have also dropped down one of the oil return passages in the head. If so it either fell to the upper pan or it is resting on the top of the block. I had a shim do this to me before. Tore both pans off to find it didn't even fall all the way down lol. Odds are, it bounced out of the engine and is on your floor somewhere. Good luck finding it if that's the case lol.