Bent my first pushrod.

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seabee

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I've been trying to dial in my fist engine rebuild (273 with adjustable rockers) and after setting the lash post break-in I noticed the Cylinder 4 exhaust lifter was really loose. I figured I had accidentally skipped over it during assembly and set it to .014. After trying to tune it today I was getting some noise from the passenger side valve train so I checked it again and it was still way loose so I pulled the pushrod and rolled it on a granite counter top. Sure enough, there was a slight wobble in that rod. I did the same to the other rods on that side and they seem to be straight.

So my questions are; since I spent so much time and $$ on this motor should I just replace all of the pushrods to be safe? Since the rockers are adjustable is there a sweet spot for rod length I should look for since my heads were decked? The current rods are 7.5".

Any advice is greatly appreciated.
 
That, losing lash, is usually a REALLY bad sign... It may be eating that lifter/lobe.
 
I agree....I would drain the oil and see if it is full of metal shavings...that sounds like you wiped a lobe on the cam.
 
+1 on possible cam. If the exhaust valve isn't opening due to the bent rod, Then the cylinder pressure will cause other problems like #1 bending the intake push rod. Lot's of checks needed to be safe Now Start by checking the Cam. Then make sure the oil passages are lined up on the bearings etc...
Take your time and don't worry too much. You'll get it fixed up:glasses7: Best case scenario is that the rod just got Tweaked some how but they need to spin so even a tiny bit warped is uncool.
 
Thanks for the replies. I drained the oil and wiped the magnetic plug on the towel by my finger and then ran a magnet through the oil and got what is next to my thumb.

I'm pretty much deflated right now. I spent every free hour of the very few I get over the last 6 months working on this thing.

Is there a way to pull a lifter with taking the intake off?
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You can sometimes grab them through the opening in your cylinder heads. Tricky but doable. I believe Justin has done it before.
 
I got em out by making a cardboard tube as a slide and used a telescoping magnet. Getting them out was easy,...back in was a bit slow and tedious but it worked.
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I pulled the #4 lifter which is the suspect one and pulled #8 too to compare. Both looked identical. I rotated the crank and compared the appearance of the cam lobes through the lifter holes
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