Is it possible to change the cam in an
A-series without having to take the engine out and if so can it be done easy enough.
ie. cam followers won't fall into sump.

Thanks

I don't think so, but lets face it, it's not hard to pull the little Datsun engine, & if yoiu can beg, borrow, steal, or even buy an engine stand, [i have 3] then the whole job can easily be done in a day.

Remember that removing the timing case usually ruins the sump gasket, so the best way, in my view, is to buy all of the stuff that you need, including as new timing case seal, then pull the engine, slip it onto the stand, drain the oil, & have a cuppa while it's draining to give it time to drain well.

Remove the rockers & pushrods & refit the rocker cover.
Invert the engine, pull the pan & the timing cover. Change the cam & inspect the front seal very carefully,... & replace if necessary. It really sucks if you do this on a saturday, only to discover that you need a seal, it's 2:30 pm & you gotta wait till monday to get one.

Now is a good time to check the clutch if it is at all suspect.
Do this job right & you will be driving it by nightfall.

Yeah there isn't any way I can think of to pull the cam without having the lifters fall down out of their holes. But do they fall all the way down into the oil pan when this happens? I can't remember! Dodgeman's right, it isn't very hard to just go ahead and pull everything out. I had my brother with me for a little while and we took our time and I later had the engine and tranny out by myself in less than 2 hours (I'm used to this). Just make sure you have all the parts you need before you start digging in (gaskets, etc) and as always it's a good chance to check out the internals of the engine to make sure things are looking good in there.

Anyone ever tried magnets to hold the lifters? Just a thought. I still don't think it would work since you've gotta pull the pan to get the front cover off... and the crossmember's in the way of the pan.

What about using really thick grease to hold em up.

just a thought

Thick grease, now thats a possibility, but i have a few questions.
Where do you put this grease?
How do you get it there?
How well do you think it will stick over the oil in the crankcase etc? [a closed engine is hard to wash down in there]
What do you do if one tappet falls down?
How do you remove all this grease when the job is done? [I presume that there is a fair quantity in order to be sure]

Even if these problems are overcome, 2332owner has a valid point about the front cover & pan.