Dropped a part in worst possible place in engine - ideas?

[Multibeemer]

Originally Posted by Doru

I had both upper timing covers off when I lost that metal part.
I haven't removed the lower timing cover, so I can't comment on that.
You could try (after removing belt, fan, etc) to turn the crank by hand (very slow!!!), and if it doesn't turn one way, then you know it's lodged between the chain & crank. But you incur the risk of it falling further down, if it's indeed lodged in there, if you move the chain in the opposite direction (the chain goes down at an angle, and is wide enough to keep a small part wedged between it and the crank).
The space is very tight, and I couldn't work any light in there.
The reason I was lucky, was because I "swept" probably the whole bottom of the upper oil pan without any luck. The only possible place left was... the chain (or down one of the holes to the lower oil pan).

GL

Doru,

I have a question for you. Since the piece that fell into my engine ispart of the chain tensioner, do you think there's much risk of the chain skipping a sprocket on its gear as a result of turning the engine, given the slack on the passenger side of the chain? I turned it VERY slowly as you recommended, and watched the chain carefully as I was turning it, and I'm pretty sure it didn't jump a tooth, but someone on an E39 forum who has had a lot of experience with timing the cams on an M62 feels that the risk is significant enough to warrant having to re-time the cams, which is a nightmare I don't want to get into if at all possible, especially since I've learned that I can probably retrieve my part by simply removing the lower oil pan. So, the last thing on earth I want to do is spend upwards of $200 in tools and parts to remove the lower timing chain cover to confirm that my chain didn't skip a tooth. What would you do if you were in my situation? Thanks.