'89 roller-cam LA 360 w/Magnum heads - new roller lifters not pumping up

IMHO, you did the right thing.

At $64 for four pieces of cylindrical scrap iron, you bet I did the right thing ;)

Incidentally, the Sealed Powers (HT-2269) were marked as made in Mexico. They looked exactly like this, with that circular oiling bore:


The Melling JB‑2225's I bought look like this, and were marked Made in USA:



-Kurt