you must remove all of the parts on the front of the engine,water pump,altenator,etc.
after the water pump is removed you will see the timing cover,remove it also.
next you will see the timimg gears and chain,there will be a dot on each gear ,just line up the dots and remove .then pull out the cam,using old gear,and there you will find the lobes on the cam.
Yes, there would be subtle differences, but they are interchangeable.
no
Hydraulic.
no
yes
oil from the tappets running back into the valley
yes
If it has the factory hydraulic camshaft there is no gap or backlash.
1-8-4-3-6-5-7-2 is the firing order for ALL Chevy V8 engines, including the 350.
Most will, but some 95's use a roller camshaft. Also the cylinder head bolt holes for the intake are different.
The 1970 engine had higher compression, but the big difference is in the way horsepower was calculated. In actuality, the 1970 was only a little more powerful than the 1977.
Mine had a 350 turbo in it.