Hi, I'm putting a 63 401 in a 28 model A. The engine came out of a bashed up 4 door Electra. When I bought it, the engine sounded like it had a collapsed lifter or stuck lifter ( so I hoped ) It run but had a tick. After I dug a little deeper I found it had a chewed cam lobe. Long story short I installed a new cam, lifters, cam gear , crank gear, and timing chain. It is now going back together. What is the best way to pump up the lifters ? I noticed when I torqued down the rocker shafts that none of the valves are being opened. I would think it best to pull the spark plugs and crank the engine until I have oil pressure showing correct ? Then re-install the plugs and it should fire then ? Is there another way of pumping up the lifters ? Is all this sound normal for new lifters? It's my first nailhead so I just don't want to wreck anything. Thanks in advance. I will post a picture in the next day or so when I get it finished. It's going to look badass with two Rochester 2 G's sitting up top.
Did you use a new cam or a re- grind? A re-ground cam requires longer pushrods.......maybe about .030" ? To answer your question, you can put them in a cofee can with oil in it and just pump them up and down with a pushrod to suck some oil into them. But if your valves aren't opening that sounds very strange to me. uzzled: The lifters should fill when you start it up though. Sometimes you can disconnect the coil wire and crank it over a few times before starting to help fill them. Filling the oil filter first also helps the lifters get oil pressure built up quicker too. You may even want to use 5w-30 oil for the break in, that will flow nicely into the lifters. One more suggestion......have you checked to be sure the oil passages in the front of the block coming from the front cam bearing are clear? Those like to get clogged up with sludge. The oil won't get to the lifters or the heads if it can't get through. Also, loose valve guides will cause clicking noises. It is also not uncommon for the rocker arms to worn, and that will cause noise also. I like the remanufacturered ones with bronze bushings in them......they last longer. I'm not sure who makes them though. Good luck, hope this helps! :TU:
Unfortunately it's back together so I hope the oil hole you mentioned is clear. All the small block chev cams I have installed said not to pre-lube the lifters so I didn't on this build. This is not an ideal situation as the rocker arm shafts have wear and the rocker arm tips have bad wear as well. I also have no doubt that the valve guides and cylinder bore taper is way beyond spec. Having said this, it is a budget old skool rod so that goes with the territory. It was running when I bought it, so I have no doubt it will continue to run with the new stock grind camshaft . I figured if I like the car I can rebuild the engine next winter when money allows. I think I will remove the spark plugs and crank it until I get oil pressure, that way there is no compression to fight until the lifters fill. I will post pics of the engine tomorrow. Thanks for the advice.
Intersting looking, should look good in a rod. Did you make the Alternator brackets ? I am assuming you are not going to run Power Steering on this. How did you do with your lifters ?
Hi, yes the upper alt. bracket is a cheapo Mr. Gasket one I bent to fit, and the bottom one is home made which bolts through the therm. housing. No power steering. I haven't started to build the frame yet so I'm 6 months away from starting this engine but I like to have things figured ahead of time. I have an old mechanic buddy that has been around since these were new so I'll ask him what he thinks about my lifter issue.
you can also get a priming tool from TAperformance... just remove the dist. prime the oil pump and system
