bent pushrods with new roller rockers

[erhan ergin]

Hi Folks,
I am in the process of installing full roller rockers on my 383 stroker. 1.5 ratio rockers. I am reusing the pushrods. I had guide plates already. I must have over tightened #1 cylinder rockers as the two push rods (exhaust and intake) got bent as I was cranking and trying to adjust them. Also the #1 intake lifter seems to have collapsed.
1- How can I pump the lifter back up? It is so far down that the std length push rod goes too far in , can barely grab the tip sticking out of the guide plate.
2- Could there be another explanation to why the pushrods got bent?
3- Could there be more damage, I used a usb camera to check inside and cannot really see any issue other than the one collapsed lifter.

Thanks for any suggestions.

 

[G72Zed]

Sounds like something is binding or stacked solid in the valvetrain in order to bend those pushrods.

What rockers where you using originally ? same everything other than just the rockers ??

 

[wnmech]

I’m by no means an expert but you might have to pull out the distributor and get a priming tool and use it to spin the oil pump shaft and rotate the engine on the harmonic balancer little bits at a time until it get oil circulated thru out the engine.

 

[erhan ergin]

I had regular stamped rockers and I put these 1.5 ratio full roller rockers. They are speedmaster brand. They are cheap,but looked pretty decent.

 

[erhan ergin]

Priming with the oil pump via the distributor shaft makes sense.
Thanks

 

[COPO]

Check the other pushrods. If the guide plates have marked them badly then they aren’t hardened.

 

[HOGDADDY]

Cheap roller rockers is asking for trouble and more than likely no better than the stock rockers.

 

[erhan ergin]

I was wondering about that also, the current pushrods are I think not hardened and should not have been used with guide plates in the first place. I know these roller rockers are a bit of a gamble maybe I just replace the pushrods with hardened ones and put back the stamped rockers.
I hope I did not damage the cam as these pushrods bent, is there an easy way to check that other than taking off the intake and pulling out the lifters and see how things look?

 

[sandlapper]

If you insist on RR, then you probably Need plates in order to get roller aligned with stem --- stock stamped aren't nearly as finicky. cheap valvetrain will bite hard!

When switching to RR, and once correct geometry is achieved, it's not unusual to need different length PRs --- again stock stamped not as finicky on PR length.

 

[erhan ergin]

I already have plates.