[DeTomaso] Dist gear material

[Mikael]

I know that this has been discussed before, but I still don't get it. In my
MME engine with a steel roller, the ICE dist has a bronze gear, and it's
quite worn now. And we all know what that means, keeping an eye on it,
changing frequently. How frequently was a surprise to me on a Denmark->Le
Mans->Venice->Denmark vacation in my 82 Z28 many years ago, it's not a good
feeling going fast on the German freeways, and then suddenly bum, backfires
and no power. That delayed my vacation a whole day, almost missed Le Mans.

 

Has the automotive world really not produced anything better than bronze
gears? And BTW, when they wear, the bronze goes in the oil? And ruins your
bearings?

 

I read about dist gears of other materials, but then suddenly they're not a
good idea after all. And of course the very last thing you want is to have
the teeth on your cam worn, then it's engine out time. So is bronze the best
insurance against that? And if the other alternatives work, why are the
bronze gears produced.

 

What does the OEM/factories use? Don't they use steel roller cams, and if
they do, what dist gear do they use? Those engines last for several 100k
miles, why do we bother with bronze gears? MME tells me I must use bronze
gear.

 

Mikael