Method and apparatus for rebuilding valve guides

Claim 1

In an internal combustion engine having a plurality of valve guides within which a series of valves are reciprocally mounted, at least some of said valve guides including a sleeve-like member positioned within an elongated cylindrical bore in said engine, the improvement in said member comprising said member being thinwalled and formed from phosphor bronze, said member, when installed, being substantially coextensive with said bore such that said member terminates substantially flush with the axial extremities of said bore and having the form of a cylinder having a substantially straight longitudinal exterior surface which contacts said bore and a substantially straight longitudinal interior surface which contacts the stem of the valves, said member including an offset longitudinal slit formed therealong and extending the length thereof, said longitudinal slit comprising at least two interengaging finger portions which abut each other at the circumferential edges of said member; said member, in relaxed condition prior to insertion in said bore, being expanded in cross section larger than the diameter of said bore with the sidewall portions bounding said longitudinal slit being separated from one another, said member, in confined condition after axial insertion into said bore, being radially compressed by and in tight abutment with the inner diameter of said bore so that said member is generally circular in cross section with the sidewall portions bounding said slit being in abutment with one another, said sidewall portions being retained in such abutment and said member being retained within said bore by the radial compression of said bore.