Solid lifers now? hole in them ? where

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jgrady

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hi , i have several really good older Isky cams , however recently built 450” 392 with modern comp cam , full extra hardening etc . I was going to use Howard’s lifters with holes there , bought them , but comp says no cam warrantee without theirs , ? not sure about Howard’s oil hole it was new at time . Comp has now too? Groove down side may make more sense . But have the Howard’s , with hole .
Engine is 270 dodge hemi ( did you know smaller front to back than LA ?) Won C altered against ~ 1000 283 -301 sbc at Nats 57-62 WON 5 years in a row, Billy Rasmussen . Toasted Yunick Jenkins and Ramcharger Plymouth in finals Love that motor. In 12’ s with 270”, 32 ford .
No 270 cam cores around , but have an old engle nib.
All that noise about oil changes causing solids failure was imho mostly bs, I know engine builder lost 7 race engines that year that he had to eat , comp at the time told him oil. He let them keep yelling ,dug themselves a hole , he measured the new lifters they WERE obviously different machining , hardness etc from prior .
Then he told them after they shut up that he was running off same 50 gallon barrels of oil for past 4-5 years . =
deafening silence . NOT the oil .

So asking here what latest thinking is on solids . What is good stuff ? holes no holes grooves .
Chrysler 392 300 hemi went 300k on stock solids no problems 57-58 . need those lifters … no holes or grooves , healthy springs 280 degree cams . 56 354 , same deal dominated NASCAR , 6 k rpm , slant six too
jkg
thanks fabo
 
I run those Howard’s edm solid lifters on my healthy stroker small block.
very happy with them, extra insurance to help prevent wiping lobes.
 
Strange isn't it? The lifters of yesteryear never needed 'holes' & lasted just fine......
If it was my engine.....
Find some 25+ yr old lifters & use them; if used, have them re-faced.
I routinely grind a groove down the side of the lifter for extra lube using a Dremel. Does it do any thing? Doubt it, have always thought that the lifters get plenty of oil.....but the groove cannot do any harm.
 
Thanks guys ,
that is about where I am . old lifters you never know what you have regrinding .
I am mainly asking what is to good deal today ?
Are comp ok now?
Maybe stick with howard’s , but as mentioned comp would not honor guarantee without their own ! not sure what to read into that ?
seems they would not cause themselves problems, or $ anyway ?
 
I won't use anything Comp Cams as far as lifters or camshafts anymore. They were the only one I ever had a problem with.
 
Last edited:
jgrady said:
Thanks guys ,
that is about where I am . old lifters you never know what you have regrinding .
I am mainly asking what is to good deal today ?
Are comp ok now?
Maybe stick with howard’s , but as mentioned comp would not honor guarantee without their own ! not sure what to read into that ?
seems they would not cause themselves problems, or $ anyway ?
Click to expand...
If u bought the cam from Summit they will honour the warranty.
 
Comment in post #4.
Well, if you are re-grinding 25 yr old lifters, yes you DO know what you have. And that is: quality, US made lifters, that will not fail if they are properly re-faced & broken in using the correct procedures.

If you buy new lifters, doesn't matter what cam company, because none of them make their own lifters, you do not know what you are getting....
 
I tried the Crower Cam Saver lifters in the 400 In my 75 Ford F250 and was very disappointed. Of course they were hydraulic, which is sorta apples and oranges here....and sorta not. They broke in on the camshaft just fine. No problems with the lobes or lifter faces. The problem was when the engine warmed up, it sounded like it had a solid cam. Every single lifter ticked and loud. So I snatched um out and put in a set of stock Melling lifters, did another break in and it's been fine for over a year. So I don't think I'll mess with any type of lobe oiling lifter again.
 
Bewy said:
So Crower hyd lifters had a hole in the base?
Click to expand...
No, they use a flat ground all the way down the side of the lifters. I surmised that they bleed down when they are hot because the flat is too big an area. THe EDM lifters us a .025" hole in the face, which is much less surface area than the flat. I didn't measure the width of the flat, but I bet is was every bit of 1/32 of an inch. Possibly wider.
 
I have been grinding a groove down the side of FT lifters using a Dremel...for more years than I care to remember. Never had any that were noisy.
Condition of the engine might have an impact. Worn brgs, oil pump maxxed out supplying enough oil at idle?
 
Bewy said:
I have been grinding a groove down the side of FT lifters using a Dremel...for more years than I care to remember. Never had any that were noisy.
Condition of the engine might have an impact. Worn brgs, oil pump maxxed out supplying enough oil at idle?
Click to expand...
New build. It's perfect with the Melling lifters. That was the only change that was made.
 
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