im getting a slight knocking sound from either the head or the bottom end but not 100% sure, checked the rocker arms but they were all tight. cant really identify where the sound is coming from, but up close the car sounds like a diesel. my first guess was the bottom end bearings on their way out. just changed the cam about 500 miles ago also.
any suggestions or is there a way i could check that the bearings have not failed without removing the head again

 

you dont have to remove the head to check/change the
bearings, only the sump needs removing and obviously
the bearing/conrod cap, although normally these would
only become noisy under load and not whilst idling.
if there is any discolouring or scoring then they need
replacing, other than that its quite hard to tell without
listening to it or knowing exactly where its coming from
i.e. top or bottom

 

the knocking gets worse under load if its the mains, try pulling away with the handbrake on

 

the noise does seem to go when i rev the engine, so maybe its something else can it be the starter as when i start it up it makes a strange noise at the end