lifters still not spinning

-
o1heavy

o1heavy

1974 dart sport
Joined
Jan 7, 2009
Messages
977
Reaction score
400
Location
tarkington
i'am kinda out of ideas
i have four lifters that will not spin /tried new lifters and cam still no luck
sent cam to bullet racing cams had them check the crown they said that it was fine

they sent me there lifters and the cam back,installed and still no luck
spinning the cam with a drill and the intake & rockers are not installed
anybody have any suggestions
 
the lifter bores - have you checked the condition of them ? have you checked the ID of them?

have you felt the oil openings with your finger to feel for burrs?
 
have not measured the bores but they okay no slack when compared to a bore that the lifter rotates / cannot feel any burrs and the lifter seams to spin freely by hand
 
You won;t feel it. You need to actually measure it. If it's larger than .906 they may not rest ont he cam lobe prroperly, and may not rotate. But, before you rush to that... How exactly are you checking for it? Be specific.. What oil?
 
if the lifter moves up and down in the lifter bore ,whats the issue? maybe im not understanding...
 
will measure tomarrow have to bring the snap guages home from work
not using any oil on the cam or the lifter
thinking the oil would make harder to spin the lifter
 
install a fresh 360 ran it about 300 miles decided to fix my rocker arm to valve tip problem bought a set of the hughes 1.6 rockers removed the 1.6
mopar performance rockers and after the install thought i check if all the push tubes where spinning and been fighting the problem since
 
Are you spinning the cam with an electric drill? Is the cam gear installed? Are the pushrods in with rocker arms? You must have load on the lifters in order for the crown on the lifter and the taper on the lobe to make it spin, and then it looks more like a jerking motion than an a smooth spin. How is it that the valves are not hitting the pistons if you are spinning the cam independant of the crankshaft and rotating assembly? I am confused. The cam gear is what positions the lobes below the lifter bore and it is not centered, but offset. When you get ready to fire it up, have the break in lube on the lobes and the lifter face, but not on the sides as that will inhibit the rotation of the lifter. Use a good break in oil and prime the pump using your drill. Static time the distributor and have fuel in the carb so that it fires right away. By the way, who told you that you needed to check lifter rotation? Sounds like an old wives tale.
 
73AbodEE said:
if the lifter moves up and down in the lifter bore ,whats the issue? maybe im not understanding...
Click to expand...

A rotating lifter (caused by a slight crown on the cam lobe nose) reduced the wear on the lifter. If they dont rotate, they will wear a groove pretty fast on the lifter face.
 
"who told you that you needed to check lifter rotation? Sounds like an old wives tale."

Well, for me, it's part of assembly. The builder should check everything

This is how I do it:
I only use WD40. Oil's too thick, and dry the lifter probably won't rotate. You dont need any load on the lifter. So I spray the cam with WD40, and isntall. Install the cam gear only on it (no chain). Then spray the lifter faces and sides with WD40, and isntall. Mark the top of each lifter and bore. Then rotate the cam clockwise and look for the marks to move. It's only about 15-20° each lift cycle. If some dont turn, I'll swap a few arund until they all do.
that's it. I've never lost a cam, even using aggressive flat tappet profiles doing this.
 
pishta said:
A rotating lifter (caused by a slight crown on the cam lobe nose) reduced the wear on the lifter. If they dont rotate, they will wear a groove pretty fast on the lifter face.
Click to expand...
i see, ok well thats not something ive ever been concerned about.ive put together many a motor and i have never lost a cam or pushrod or any valvetrain. but, to each his own i guess.
 
Well, it's a pretty well known fact that lifters are not flat on the bottom and likewise, camshaft lobes are ground with a taper. Both these facts are designed into the cam and lifters to make the lifters spin so that the same surfaces will not be exposed to each other. That's a very important thing not to pay attention to.
 
thinks moper i will try the wd40 and i was wondering about the load on the lifter
 
o1heavy said:
i'am kinda out of ideas
i have four lifters that will not spin /tried new lifters and cam still no luck
sent cam to bullet racing cams had them check the crown they said that it was fine

they sent me there lifters and the cam back,installed and still no luck
spinning the cam with a drill and the intake & rockers are not installed
anybody have any suggestions
Click to expand...

Don't keep throwing money at it replaceing stuff, I"m sure its the lifter bore, they will egg shape in time, It can be honed out, it should have been done at the machine shop if its been freshened, most don't pay much attention to lifter rotation, but it is very important, don't know if the cam has a crown, but the lifter does along with the swirl pattern, most cam lobes get wiped because of this & people don't realize what happened.

A sure sign of seeing if the lifters are rotating can be checked while the engines running also, just look at the pushrod, it'll turn/stop, turn/stop, as the cam rotates, i'm sure the lifter rotates on the lift & stops while on the base.
 
going to try a a few more things then pull it back out dissassembly
and sent back to the machine shop
built a few smallblocks this sucks, man this thing runs hard was looking forward to getting back to the track
 
o1heavy said:
going to try a a few more things then pull it back out dissassembly
and sent back to the machine shop
built a few smallblocks this sucks, man this thing runs hard was looking forward to getting back to the track
Click to expand...

Have you tried starting and running it with the valve covers off and just watching the pushrods closely like JoeDust451 said? Draw marks on the tops of the pushrods so you can see more easily if they turn or not. Also having a heavier oil (heavier than WD40) lubricating the bores will make it tougher for them to turn without the load of the rockers/valvesprings on them.
 
I just love this site, I learn something new everytime I come here...:thumleft::supz:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
-

Back
Top