Rocker Arm Studs + More trouble now

[70_F100]

Could be the fuel pump.

Get a piece of heater hose, hold one end to your ear, and hold the other end close to or touching the engine. Move it around until you locate the source of the knock.

Since you'll be working around the front of the engine, I would suggest removing the fan blade (leave the spacer and pulley on the water pump) and setting a box fan in front of the radiator for cooling. This will keep you safe from the turning fan while you're listening, and will also reduce the ambient noise level. Actually, you can remove the fan without ever loosening the belts. The pulley and spacer should stay in place, and you can remove the fan and then just put the bolts right back in. Same thing for reinstallation.

[Fordtastic]

i went and drove it a bit more .... it started making more noise other than the one i heard before... so i took it home and listened to it a bit... also, sounded like i had a bit of valve train noise on the drivers side.. sounds like i was hearing some noise from the passenger side valve cover and from the driver side.. i pulled the covers off thinking something had come loose since i had trouble like that before.

the dull knocking sound that comes and goes sounds almost like it is from the bell housing below or at oil pan..

when i removed the driver side vavle cover and wiggled the rockers the #6 exhaust rocker appeared loose...it didnt look like the nut had crept up the stem or anything.. I took it off and pulled out the push rod.. i've rolled the push rod on just about every flat surface i could find in my house and if bent it is ever so very slight.

[fordman]

did you replace the push rods when you replaced the cam? i think it might be true that the rockers can have a slight bit of wear to them. and putting a new cam and lifters in would change the push rod lenght. since the old push rods would also have soem wear to them. and if the rockers had any wear to them then that could be the reason it was loose.

[Fordtastic]

i replaced:

cam
lifters
pushrods
rocker arms
timing chain and gears

also everything is oiling very well up top..

[Fordtastic]

ive been trying to get a picture to turn out of the pushrod tip.. the side that was touching the lifter... they wont turn out... too shiney i guess... anyhow the tip seems to have another circle around the hole .. the surface feels perfectly smooth... i dunno if that means anything but i figured i better mention it...

When a push rod is bent how noticable is it? im almost tempted to say this isnt bent at all.

[Fordtastic]

i took a picture of the pushrod tip you may have to click the picture to make it bigger to see the extra ring near the top..

[70_F100]

Generally, when a push rod bends, it's VERY noticeable.

When you adjusted the rockers, how did you do it? Was the engine running, or did you adjust them before you cranked it?

Generally, with adjustable rockers and hydraulic lifters, they should be adjusted with the engine running.

Loosen the rocker arm until you hear it clicking. This allows the lifter to fill completely with oil.

Tighten it down slowly until the clicking stops. This takes the rocker arm to zero lash.

Repeat for all rockers.

Turn the engine off, and then tighten the rocker arm nuts an additional half-turn (some people say a full turn). Turning it the additional half-turn centers the plunger inside the lifter to the center of the bore, which allows the lifter to function as it is designed and to lubricate the rocker arms, etc. properly.

Let it sit for a couple of minutes to give the lifters time to bleed down, then crank it. It should idle smoothly, but it may take it a few seconds for all of the lifters to adjust themselves.

Oh, and by the way, make sure you either have GOOD self-locking nuts or nuts that lock with an allen screw. Otherwise, they WILL work loose.

If you adjusted them prior to cranking the engine, the only thing that was keeping pressure on the valve train was a very small spring. It's extremely difficult to tell when you get it adjusted to zero-lash. You can easily get it too tight, or, being too cautious, not tight enough. Too tight, you can bottom out the lifter and end up with a valve hitting a piston, causing a bent or broken valve or a bent push rod. Too loose, the clearances are so great that the oil will not be pumped up through the push rod properly, causing oil starvation, or, in extreme cases, the push rod could become dislodged from the lifter or rocker arm.

On the other hand, according to the 1970 manual I have, it says that adjustment isn't necessary. It says to tighten the rocker arm nuts to the positive stop on the rocker studs.

Either way, the lifters have to be compressed below zero-lash for their functionality to be correct.

Some of you small-block guys chime in here and help!!! Most of my small-block experience was on the off-brand vehicles...

[70_F100]

i took a picture of the pushrod tip you may have to click the picture to make it bigger to see the extra ring near the top..

That looks normal.

It's just where the contact and motion between the push rod and lifter or the push rod and rocker arm has polished it a bit.

[Fordtastic]

ok i guess the pushrod isnt bent then.


I have screw in aftermarket studs w/o positive stop that require adjusting the rocker arms.

I adjusted the rockers with the engine off when i was putting it together...

[70_F100]

ok i guess the pushrod isnt bent then.


I have screw in aftermarket studs w/o positive stop that require adjusting the rocker arms.

I adjusted the rockers with the engine off when i was putting it together...

Try what I suggested.

[Fordtastic]

my only issue is that this rocker came loose after 30 min break-in and a 20 min drive had happened.. I was then heading back out when i heard it...

[Fordtastic]

ok i guess the pushrod isnt bent then.


I have screw in aftermarket studs w/o positive stop that require adjusting the rocker arms.

I adjusted the rockers with the engine off when i was putting it together...

Try what I suggested.

Yes Sir! on my way to the garage right now

[Fordtastic]

when i adjust the timing do i need to plug up the hole on the side of the carb for the pcv valve too? and if so do i plug the hole into the valve cover it sits on?

i need to invest in those allen lock rocker arm nuts......

btw 30 mins and 1 qt of oil all over the place later i adjusted them with it running... I can definetly say every pushrod is throwing tons of oil out of it.

[Fordtastic]

nm i found the answer... anyhow i set my timing to 10degrees btdc.. the specs on it say initial is 6degrees... should i back this off?

Also, I still have the knock coming from the lower end i think. arrrrggghhh.