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#1
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They use Johnson bodies which is good quality to start with. And with the lube option it's about as good as a flat tappet gets. Nitride the cam on top of that and it's a pretty solid setup. I don't even worry about it.
Hard for some to get past the noise though. |
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#2
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I had a Rhoads lifters failure. Roller in now |
#3
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Yeah Bill but you also found springs that only had 80 lbs. on the seats. I wouldn't call that a cam and lifter failure, that was just the result.
What likely happened, and I posted in your thread about this, because I tore down a pontiac engine with a similar issue that had the same spring pressures you found, is those weak springs were causing all kinds of ugly harmonics, valve seat bouncing and not really controlling things well at all. Couple that with what ever lash you dialed in with the lifters there would have been all kinds of lifter bounce and other weird things going on. Not good for camshaft life at all and will eventually cause wear and tear. The engine I tore down only had a few thousand miles on it which is basically nothing, and it was already eating at the retainers and locks pretty severely as the springs rotated under the retainers. That's just the first sign of springs not doing their job and it leads to other issues that eventually turn catastrophic. You're lucky it was just a cam that went flat and not a dropped valve. Unfortunately that thread was closed over some chest beating before you really got any chance to explain much more and possibly put a lid on it. Well maybe I shouldn't say that, after all the thread was 2 years old before all that got out of hand but that part is pretty damn funny though LOL Last edited by Formulajones; 04-26-2024 at 04:41 PM. |
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#4
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I definitely searched out and found a very reputable engine builder to go through my heads and setup the valve spring pressure for my roller cam. I wonder how many cam / lifter failure were the results of weak / improper setup springs ? Usually the blame goes to the wrong oil and break in process. My springs did not have many miles, but I understand the concept of fatigue and thermal cycle impact. |
#5
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That's a good question Bill. I would say likely a lot more than we hear about as most of these threads go unresolved or people are reluctant to admit any fault and blame the cam and/or lifters. Typically there is a root cause and yes sometimes lifters and cams can have issues, but I think that number is skewed a bit when it comes to the internet.
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#6
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That's a good question Bill. I would say likely a lot more than we hear about as most of these threads go unresolved or people are reluctant to admit any fault and blame the cam and/or lifters. Typically there is a root cause and yes sometimes lifters and cams can have issues, but I think that number is skewed a bit when it comes to the internet.
You're one of the few that actually posted other issues with the engine that were likely the cause and I thank you for being honest. |
#7
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540RAT’s oil testing does nothing to replicate how a lifter scrubs itself over a cam lobe. My guess is you had two things happen, 2 lifters were not machined all that well, requiring more of the oil, and the oil ended up not doing it’s job. Instead of the lifter scrubbing over the lobe it slid it over the lobe. Eventually the taper was gone and the lifter quite spinning. My guess is those 2 lifters had a problem with the finish, and oil with more zddp wouldn’t have hurt, it would have helped. Quaker State 5w30 synthetic is a decent oil, outstanding for some things, but it is also known to have a fairly weak detergent package for some applications. It doesn’t seem to hold on to it’s Viscosity very well with extra use. I don’t think you can totally rule oil as not being one of the causes. It seems like there are about seven different issues that cause failures with flat tappet cams, which is worse than ever…it is getting harder and harder to not get hit by one of them. With that in mind, and Vmax lifters now over $300, it doesn’t seem like a bad time to go roller. I don’t think Rhoad’s or HLJ are immune to trouble right now. But either can be successful yet, I set up a Vmax lifters that had the superlube option for a friends 455 and a 60919 cam that has over 20K mile on it now. I know it has been past valve float several times. It just got refreshed and put in a different car. All the bearings were trashed, so they were replaced, but the cam looked like new and is still in it, operating again. The superlube option should extend service life, but if there is machining or lubrication problem the super lube option is not going to make much difference. All you can do is to try to stack your odds and run the best parts available. Last edited by Jay S; 04-30-2024 at 01:44 AM. |
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#8
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What are you building?
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468/TKO600 Ford thru bolt equipped 64 Tempest Custom. Custom Nocturne Blue with black interior. |
#9
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A 1968 400 YC engine with a little over 40k original miles. I’m replacing the cam, lifters, valve springs, timing chain & oil pump. The stock 15 heads have pressed in studs so probably an 068 cam.
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#10
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they do their job well
i am seriously considering them for my 1977 350 C20 truck build it has 4.10 gears so i want the engine to have some legs but i also want all the torque possible at stock converter pull from a dead stop
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A man who falls for everything stands for nothing. |
#11
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I've been using Rhodes since 1987 and never had a problem on the 4 engines I used them on.
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1979 Trans Am WS-6 .030 455 zero decked flat pistons 96 heads with SS valves 041 cam with Rhoads lifters 1.65 rockers RPM rods 800 Cliffs Q Jet on Holley Street Dominator ST-10 4 speed (3.42 first) w 2.73 rear gear __________________________________________________ _______________________________ 469th TFS Korat Thailand 1968-69 F-4E Muzzle 2 |
#12
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Quote:
https://rhoadslifters.com/Shop/
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1975 Grand Prix 1959 F100 |
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#13
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Ran Rhodes lifters years ago in a 400 at the suggestion of Ken Crocie and Nunzi. They worked great.
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“It takes considerable knowledge just to realize the extent of your own ignorance.” Dr. Thomas Sowell |
#14
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If Rhodes lifters have been proven to be bulletproof. And so many are having troubles with hft cams.
THERE is your answer. Just but a cam a little bigger than you need and run some Rhodes. Besides, its a PONTIAC and we like our cams BIG. |
#15
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This is something that I’m considering personally since I’m concerned about installing a HFT cam in the engine I have on a stand currently
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