We had to pull the heads again for the second time due to collapsed hydraulic lifters. It's a '54 Chrysler 331". I'm running a Clay Smith cam, 88-M-280-8-BHL, with adjustable push rods. Can I convert to solid lifters using the same cam, and push rods? I don't feel right about putting another set of suspect lifters back in.
Solid lifters require a different cam profile. Yours isn't the first story about "new suspect " plain white box no name lifters going bad. Is that what these were? Do a search and you'll find them. Who supplied the lifters ? Did you call them? What did they say
Yes, the first set came from Clay Smith Eng., and the second set came in the plain white box from Hot Heads. i called, and they said they'd never had a come back on them. I don't want to go through this again, and want to switch to solids. Can i still use the adjustable push rods? Thanks for the info.
Other people on here have reported problems with HH supplied white box lifters. Think there's still some lifters being made here. 812 is the part # from most companies, except one company that uses 812 for SB Chevy.
If you had parts being returned would you admit it to current customers? I am a bit curious as to the failure you call 'collapsed" and what condition/symptoms the lifter(s) did or did not exhibit to cause you to replace them. What year did you get the original parts from Clay Smith? As to replacements for the hydraulic units, there is some domestic supply, most notably from TopLine. The VL-8 is the generic part number for the EarlyHemi and the HT-812 is a compatible interchange, except for CompCams who uses that number for a shiverlay... Be advised, the CompCams 826 is now a B-RB part...ask how I know You must match your pushrod tip to what ever lifter you intend to buy. If your pushrods have a ¼ dia ball at the lifter end then you are not likely to find a solid lifter with that size cup/pocket. Generally, solid lifters have 5/16 or 3/8 dia cups. If you have a 5/16 dia ball on the pushrod then you can use the HT-2011 LA lifter as a hydraulic replacement. .
Solid lifters came with adjustable rockers, so that set up would work for sure. Im not 100% certain that your current adjustable pushrods will work with your new solid lifters. You'd have to have the parts in front of you to check. Or talk to someone who's used the parts you are looking at. If HH said they have never heard that before they are telling stories.
At least in my 392 there was a small spring loaded check valve under the rear main cap that served as a anti leak down valve. Kept the oil in the lifters when the engine wasn't running. Most people seem to think this is an oil pump relief. Not so. On my race motor this was removed and a plug installed, as I was running solid lifters and didn't need oil to the lifters. Prefered it going to the bearings. Have you removed or plugged that passage?
Are you sure about all of that ? Similar conversation here: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=806302 The spring loaded disc is NOT an anti-drain back device; the spring is on the WRONG side for that function as it is holding the disc TOWARD the pump. If/when there is a flow restriction through the filter then the oil will push against the disc and when the pressure is sufficient to overcome the spring the disc will allow oil to pass. As it is clearly visible when inspecting the complete assembly, the ball does indeed seat into the lower cage and provide an anti-drain back function. This will keep oil from draining out of the up-side-down filter as well as oil from the upper portion of the engine that may-might-can-will eventually find its way through the filter. Yes, if the oil drains from the oil galleys then lifter noise is likely until oil pressure is restored. Replacing the oem assembly does NOT restrict oil flow to the lifter galleys. If a restriction is required (certain old-time roller lifters) then the galleys themselves will require a sleeve. On some engines, the block is not drilled through and then only the bottom half of the assembly, the check ball, is used to keep oil in the filter. If the block is not drilled through then there is no by-pass function within the block; by-pass is then relegated to a full time pass-thru in the filter mount. Remember: these early cartridge filters do not have an internal by-pass as do newer spin-on types. There are several reasons for lifters to bleed down while sitting and once empty it can take as long as 20-30 minutes to force air out of the system. Bleed down can be a function of several things: excessive valve spring pressure; too-large of orifice in the lifter (different mfg's have different design requirements...); excessive lifter bore clearance; issues combined with physical location of the lifter in the bore (orifice positioned at the galley window). Another factor in noisy lifters is the cam. The base circle diameter affects the position of the lifter in relation to the 'window' in the lifter bore (connecting to the oil galley). This, combined with any one of the multitude of lifters having the nearly correct OD, but also having variations in the location of oil feed grooves, can/will affect the oil supply to the lifter. .
does the noise go away after it warms up? Maybe one has some crud in it? My stock 354 with NOS lifters always started noisy then quieted, everyone I spoke to said it was a normal hemi thing, and almost every stock hemi I've ever heard starts out a little "clicky".
Therein lies the problem. I bought the engine as an assembled long block over ten years ago, when I started building the car. I then changed to 354" heads to use the water ports on the front of the engine. It has Hilborn injection converted to EFI. The work was all done by a reputable engine builder in NH. He ran it on the dyno, and everything sounded fine. It then developed a lifter noise, and he replaced them. Unfortunately, he had a heart attack, and died 2 years ago. The lifters started to sound noisy again at start up, and then would go away. Now a couple are loud as hell, and the noise is constant. Upon disassembly we noticed that two of the lifters could be compressed with the pushrod, while the others couldn't. Obviously, I'd like to get a good set of hydraulic lifters, but don't trust the ones i have. The more expensive solution is a solid lifter cam, solid pushrods, and adjustable rocker arms. If i don't find a good answer soon, I'll go that route.
Although the 'white box' lifters are suspect from the get-go, they are usually responsible for flat lobes more than what you describe, and since the originals (apparently) exhibited the same problem it is unlikely a lifter problem and more likely an oil supply problem. You must first determine that the current lifter is of the correct design; we can only assume that the Clay Smith parts were. If the lifter oil feed groove is 'way-off' then problems will arise; if it is correct/close then oil feed to the galley is next on the list. .
A friend of mine had problems with two sets of white box, no name lifters in his 354. Replaced them with a set of Lunati 440 lifters - problem solved. Posted from the TJJ App for iPhone & iPad
are small block mopar lifters the same. i was at bakersfield a few years ago and broke a lifter. i went to a parts store and they said a 340 has the same number. i put it in and it worked fine. this was a solid lifter. i dont know if a hyd. will cross over. just a thought. if you are going to change to solids i will be selling my original 300 rockers and pushrods at the end of the year if you are in no hurry.
I think some of the late model Mopar hyd. lifters have the oil groove in a different spot than the original Hemi lifters. Ago
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