Is there such thing as a good lifter?

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Bakerlite said:
I don't subscribe to the worn lifter bore stopping a lifter from pumping up theory for one simple reason.
You don't need very much oil pressure to prime a lifter. In fact you can pump them up by simply submersing them in oil and working the plunger up and down.
I don't think anyone is dumping all their oil pressure out of a lifter bore unless the lifter is missing.
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Correct, also is the proof of the hundreds of slap WORN OUT engines I've seen through the years with no signs of lifter tick. Zero. Now, If there's a lot of sludge in the pan and it gets into the pickup, that will cause lifter tick in a second. But if the lifters are ticking, it's only one of a few things. Bad lifter, almost non existent oil pressure, or worn parts.
 
Agree, the so-called lifter bore problem is a lot of who shot John. These are old, used engine blocks that produced 000s of trouble free miles after leaving the showroom. Why would lifter bores be suddenly out of alignment?
 
Hyd lifters & noisy hyd roller lifters. H-D introduced the hyd lifter about 1948-49. You can imagine how light the valve spring tension was back then.
The hyd mechanism worked fine with FT cams because they had limited lift & aggression. Roller lobes are more aggressive & have more lift; that requires more spring pressure. The same hyd mechanism that is in the FT lifter is in the roller lifter. No wonder they fail, they are simply inadequate for the load. Bandaid fixes like tightening internal clearances to work with increased spring pressure reduce bleed down just introduces new problems: smallest piece of debris will jam the lifter. Then there is the pressure angle problem that only roller lifters have; this can distort the body, cause internal leakage & bleed down.
So I use sol lifters....
 
I like a good flat tap solid lifter for the street there is less to fall apart and take out an engine. My son likes roller lifters. He said roller lifters dependability have come a long way depending on who you get them from.

My street engine was getting a solid flat tappet
Bakerlite said:
I don't subscribe to the worn lifter bore stopping a lifter from pumping up theory for one simple reason.
You don't need very much oil pressure to prime a lifter. In fact you can pump them up by simply submersing them in oil and working the plunger up and down.
I don't think anyone is dumping all their oil pressure out of a lifter bore unless the lifter is missing.
Click to expand...

Putting that oil into the lifter while fighting spring pressure is the issue. If it can bleed between the bore and the lifter easier then entering the lifter cavity you'll have a problem. The stronger the spring pressure the worse it gets.

If the bore size wouldn't matter why would there be a clearance specification from manufactures? Wear on any pressure lubricated part in an engine creates a pressure loss.

One other thing , Soaking your lifters in oil overnight is a thing of the distant past. It is recommended you install them empty and prime the engine while turning it by hand so they preset themselves at the right preload height under pressure.
 
The lifter is filled at zero spring pressure, when the valve is on it's seat, and the valve train is only loaded by the internal spring in the lifter.
High spring pressure/ lifter bleed down is a separate issue.
Clearance is there for a number of reasons, including too little clearance, but I still don't think it could be worn that bad ( within reason) that it would bleed off so much oil that the lifter would starve. You would think if that's the case, then all the lifters further down the line would also be starving.
More likely, the oil is just going into the lifter and getting squirted right back out again.

Funny how it went from pre priming a lifter to not doing it before assembly..I wonder what changed...
 
Last edited:
Bakerlite said:
The lifter is filled at zero spring pressure, when the valve is on it's seat, and the valve train is only loaded by the internal spring in the lifter.
Hi spring pressure/ lifter bleed down is a separate issue.
Clearance is there for a number of reasons, including too little clearance, but I still don't think it could be worn that bad ( within reason) that it would bleed off so much oil that the lifter would starve. You would think if that's the case, then all the lifters further down the line would also be starving.
More likely, the oil is just going into the lifter and getting squirted right back out again.

Funny how it went from pre priming a lifter to not doing it before assembly..I wonder what changed...
Click to expand...
Pretty observant fellow here, and he ain't wrong.
 
Different manufacturers call for more preload than others. Magnum engines, for instance, called for .080 to .090 preload.
I use .030 on others..like stock style LA.
Others have the bleed hole higher or lower..and then you can preload it so its 90% collapsed and the spring will control it. Knowing the location of that bleed hole helps.
 
Sewing machine oil does not work well with hydraulic lifters.
I never had any problems with hydraulic lifters using 20w/50.
Come to think of it I never had camshaft or bearing failures either.
 
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