Rocker shaft not sitting flush in head

[d100clubcab]

Rough stuff. Did you orient the shafts correctly using the notch in the end? If not, you'll have to start over.

Yup
using the manual pages someone posted above (THANKS FOR THIS) I was able to correctly orient the shafts with the oiling holes going in the correct direction (pointed towards valve springs)
Heads need to come off and and sent back to machine shop to remove this next bolt I snapped (this is actually the 2nd rocker shaft bolt I've snapped in there that they'll remove)

Take the rocker assembly back off. Screw in each bolt in the hole you plan to use them in. Insure that each turns smoothly with no tight spots. Run them in until they bottom out. Measure from the bottom of the saddle to the underside of the bolt head. Measure the diameter of the rocker shaft. If the distance from the saddle to the underside of the bolt is less than the diameter of the rocker shaft , remove the bolts and proceed with reassembly. If not, then your bolts are too long or the holes are full of gunk and/or oil.

Yeah, I think I want to get all ten holes reamed out to 3/8 because I'm having zero luck with these 5/16 and they are difficult to find unlike the 3/8 which are EVERYWHERE

 

[d100clubcab]

Dang, what springs do you have? Battleships? I guess I should have asked you why you took the rocker shafts off.

New set of heads.
Old ones got junked and reused rocker assembly on new heads.

 

[Bad Sport]

Yup
using the manual pages someone posted above (THANKS FOR THIS) I was able to correctly orient the shafts with the oiling holes going in the correct direction (pointed towards valve springs)

Just for future reference, each shaft has a notch on one end. When installing the shafts, on the driver side the notch will be toward the front of engine in the down position, on the passenger side the notch will be to the rear notch down. This will ensure the oil holes are correct.

You should be able to get that bolt out with an easy out.

 

[nm9stheham]

Yeah, I think I want to get all ten holes reamed out to 3/8 because I'm having zero luck with these 5/16 and they are difficult to find unlike the 3/8 which are EVERYWHERE

Sorry for all the trials and tribulations here...... But hold it there! The oil flows up around one of the rocker shaft bolts on each head (2nd from rear on passenger's side and 2nd from front on driver's side). So if you open up the holes in the heads' rocker stands and re-thread them for larger bolts, you will effect this oil flow through that rocker stand. Additionally, the larger hole on the underside of the shaft that lines up over the rocker stand is a certain size larger than 5/16" to make the right oil flow clearance from the rocker stand through that particular hole and into the interior of the rocker shaft. So that would have to be enlarged properly too, to a size larger than 3/8".

It is not so simple as it seems.

Were you using a torque wrench when you snugged down that bolt that snapped this time? I would get that out, and clean the threads as suggested, and measure the bolt shanks carefully for length and for length of the threads. It's hard to believe that graded bolts in 5/16" diameter are that hard to find.

 

[RustyRatRod]

Oh. My. Goodness.

 

[d100clubcab]

Demonracer

Demonracer came through for the rescue and got me straigthened out today.
Thanks again!!!!
Basically, threads were full of crap so we spent all the time running a tap down each hole.
Then the lifters sat so long that they filled with oil and were all pumped up so it made it a little more difficult to get the shaft to seat in its cradle.

All is well now.


Time for intake and carb now....

 

[toolmanmike]

Demonracer

Demonracer came through for the rescue and got me straigthened out today.
Thanks again!!!!
Basically, threads were full of crap so we spent all the time running a tap down each hole.
Then the lifters sat so long that they filled with oil and were all pumped up so it made it a little more difficult to get the shaft to seat in its cradle.

All is well now.


Time for intake and carb now....

That's good news. There are so many things that can cause problems. If you were close, one of us could stop by and check things out. It's amazing how many issues are solved here just by experiences and knowledge from the members. tmm