What holds the camshaft in???

This may be a dumb question.

I bought my 63 Riviera with the engine out and the cam already removed (had gone bad). As of today, the engine is all assembled, but it seemed strange to me that there wasn't any kind of a keeper on the front of the engine to hold the camshaft in. Does the timing chain and gears do this job? Am I missing some parts here? Please, can anyone comment on this? I am hoping to fire the car up tomorrow.

Thanks in advance,

 

Tming chain and gears help hold it in place but the main thing that keeps it in it's place is the fact that the cam lobes are ground with a built in taper so that as the lifter rides on the lobe it pushes the cam rearward. Bob

 

Bob,

Many thanks for putting my mind at ease......and for such a quick response :TU:

Hopefully by tonight I will be....:3gears:

Thanks again,

 

The older ones also have a retainer clip on the cam.

 

So when you say the older ones also have a retainer clip on the camshaft.......is a 1963 an older one? If so, where do I find such a clip? Is it just an internal snap ring that I can pick up at a hardware store or ?

Thanks much,

 

Yours are not an older one, just assemble it and go :3gears:

 

Thanks to everyone who responded!:beer

 

I think the last year for the snap ring was like 60-61? There are also cam bumpers on the timing covers.