I've read many forums on lashing valves on here and almost all of them say to do it hot. I don't necessarily mind doing that, but many old hat mechanics seem to say you can set the lash cold.
Is there any reason this wouldn't work? It seems like the suggestions I've heard for flat tappet cam engines is to:
Use a breaker bar with the correct socket
Spin push rod by hand
Tighten (or loosen) all rockers until there's just a bit of tension against the rod
This should get you to zero lash
Rotate engine 90 degrees, repeat on loose valves
Repeat until nothing is loose
Go to all bolts and do a 3/4 turn tight - this should be the preload
Since this puts the engine at zero lash, I assume you could go back and adjust with a feeler? Or just use a feeler right from the start?
It seems silly to do it hot/running and fight with jumping rockers and oil everywhere when the expansion of the parts should be graphable / known... wouldn't that leave you with a cold feeler thickness and a hot feeler thickness?
(okay maybe I do mind doing the lash while hot, a bit)
It really depends on your cam and what the manufacturer recommends. That video is for a Chevy, no relevance here. When I rebuilt Ford or Chevy engines, I only ajusted hydraulic cams 1/4 turn in. What cam and engine are we talking about. If you are talking about a 60's slant six and a factory cam, the factory procedure is .010" gap (measured with a feeler gage) for intake valves and .020" gap for exhaust valves hot and running. It is a piece of cake using a ratchet and universal socket. You can't get it any better than 360 degrees on the cam lobe and operating temperature for your engine. You can also do it static and checking every once in awhile and hope you are at the lowest point on the cam lobe.
