Solid lifters

[debaron]

Afternoon chaps.

I may have the opportunity to change to a solid lifters cam soon so questions abound!

What's it like running a solid lifters cam and what will I get over a hydraulic?

My engine is a balanced 4.6 with stage 3 heads and bigger manifold and injectors.
Compression is about 195 on all cylinders making about 300 BHP currently with a Crower 50233

I've heard they can be noisy at cold start (which doesn't bother me) as long as they can be set to run quietly when hot.

Also realistically how much of a ball ache is it to set the hot lash?

[spend]

debaron said:

Afternoon chaps.

I may have the opportunity to change to a solid lifters cam soon so questions abound!

What's it like running a solid lifters cam and what will I get over a hydraulic?

My engine is a balanced 4.6 with stage 3 heads and bigger manifold and injectors.
Compression is about 195 on all cylinders making about 300 BHP currently with a Crower 50233

I've heard they can be noisy at cold start (which doesn't bother me) as long as they can be set to run quietly when hot.

Also realistically how much of a ball ache is it to set the hot lash?

Hot Lash...~Impossible with adjustable push-rods... any adjustment being tricky....

You can only check a couple whilst hot (run get a rocker cover off as quick as poss & check a couple ~in&ex).

Obviously much easier with roller / group A (muted some volvo variant) rockers where an adjuster is provided on the rocker arm.

You really have to gauge what to set them at cold so that when hot they have the clearance you want.

Ours with oiling up the pushrods, solid arm spacers & roller rockers certainly hardly make any noise at all & probably quieter than std hydraulics.

How the F anyone sets hot lash unless on a test-bed with custom rocker covers (and certainly no chance with adjustable pushrods!) is beyond me.....

[carsy]

I`m obviously missing something here. Why are adjustable roller rockers easier to set than adjustable pushrods.

[AceOfHearts]

carsy said:

I`m obviously missing something here. Why are adjustable roller rockers easier to set than adjustable pushrods.

Access?

[carsy]

Ah gotya.

[phazed]

carsy said:

I`m obviously missing something here. Why are adjustable roller rockers easier to set than adjustable pushrods.

Adjustable pushrods are a pita to set, really awkward.

I have group B steel rockers which have an adjuster on the rocker just like old school motors, got a piccy somewhere.

[phazed]

My experience, solid cam, more power, no bleed down of lifters on TDs, adjusters a pain and to fathom what they should be adjusted to is a science in itself!

Bad bit, I had a set of lifters fail and the result lunched my engine! They were supplied by a well known source, (not Rob!) and I was told by another source that there were some rogue rubbish lifters around, how true that is I don't know.........

[Sardonicus]

No need to use cheap or poor solid lifters they are SB/BB Chevy so you have an abundance of choice I went with Comp Cams for mine a known trust worthy brand but really there are shed load of others running a solid cam no need to have excess noise if valve clearances adjusted correctly

[Alexdaredevils]

I had adjustable rods, solid cam and stock rockers, no noise no problems

But as Peter said a black art settibg it up

Rob at v8d did mine in the end

[Sardonicus]

Alexdaredevils said:

I had adjustable rods, solid cam and stock rockers, no noise no problems

But as Peter said a black art settibg it up

Rob at v8d did mine in the end

Piece of piss if when you fit the cam and lifters you draw up a valve adjustment sequence (lobe base/heel positions) I still have my Ford Essex and Cologne sheets somewhere allows full tappet adjustment in about 20 minutes of course you can use rotor arm position but seeing loads of us no longer have that luxury those adj push-rods look fiddly though and if your bad enough with the cam spec you choose you get a nice splashy idle to boot like this cars not bad either http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4p8B6R9F3rA

Edited by Sardonicus on Wednesday 22 January 22:59

[debaron]

spend said:

Obviously much easier with roller / group A (muted some volvo variant) rockers where an adjuster is provided on the rocker arm.

Yeah I had the chance to buy some group A ex-TWR adjustable rockers once and passed it up! Should have bitten the proverbial hand off!!

How often does the lash need setting assuming I can get it roughly on spec with my adjustable push rods?

Also I thought that you could run the engine with the rockers covers off but have never actually tried it…….
Surely that would help??

[debaron]

Sardonicus said:

Piece of piss if when you fit the cam and lifters you draw up a valve adjustment sequence (lobe base/heel positions)

Thanks Simon - could you elaborate?

[spend]

Plugs out & a good long ratchet on the crank pulley bolt......

Forget the sequencing methods, most important things are to wind round, cos you may miss the point want... these things that sound like you can do a sequence fail as you miss 1 point & you have to turn crank nearly 720degs to get back.... (unless you wind back 90 then wind on). It is actually easier to go down the banks in order (1357,2468) IMHO just schedule plug change/check at the same time so its easier to wind the engine & have a good ratcheting lever to turn with.

I find it easiest to loosen all lock nuts off (marks not done!) then do exhaust (when inlet just closing) and inlet (exhaust just opening) and flip lock nut down (marks done). Essential though is rock & press down on the rocker above the pushrod to get repeatable settings. How you do any of that with adjustable pushrods is out of my experience, I suspect after you've tried it on only a couple of cylinders you won't question paying the extra for rocker arms with adjusters