73-87chevytrucks.com

73-87 Chevy _ GMC Trucks => Performance => Topic started by: 305chevy c-10 on April 23, 2011, 07:13:18 pm

Title: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: 305chevy c-10 on April 23, 2011, 07:13:18 pm
has anybody had a lifter hold down boss to break .........my question is can this be fixed by welding it back togather .........or will it be too much pressure on that bolt from the lifters .........heres what happened .first stupib me ........i was just putting the spider on to just see basicly what it does ......i thought the machine shop cleaned the hole out ....when i screwed the bolt down it broke one of the bosses .....ican still use the block and run a flat tappet cam ....but i was planning on running the roller ......one guy that build engines said welding that peice back on .isnot a sure thing that it will hold under pressure from those lifters ,and if it let loose i'm gonna have a major mess ( imnew at this motor thing i like to have hands on u know but maybe this time i should have left it a lone )i was so close to having all my parts for this build ...now seems like im going backwards.......the only fix i can think of is go with a flat cam .......any advice other than leave engine building to the pro's
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: 305chevy c-10 on May 01, 2011, 09:30:09 am
does anybody know if this can be fixed
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: VileZambonie on May 01, 2011, 10:01:10 am
It doesn't hold the lifters in, it holds the retainers in place. If you are saying you broke off the threaded hole in the block yes it can be welded, but just be careful.

Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: 305chevy c-10 on May 01, 2011, 08:13:37 pm
yes .....thats what i did .........this peice dont have a lot of pressure on it does it .....im thinking if it will just keep the retainers down .......the only stress this should see is during tighting the bolt down correct ..........by the way i did step down to a 650 cfm holley with 268 cam 490 lift ..............thanks for for ur feedback .......all advice taken seriously
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: 1979C20 on June 14, 2011, 04:39:41 am
I know this is old......... but i read it and cant help but comment on the....... Dots every.... 3-6 words....... The "period" "comma""space bar" are used to fill in inbetween sentences....... Not "........".
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: 305chevy c-10 on June 15, 2011, 09:05:27 pm
i like dots .......thank u ...........................................
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: zieg85 on June 15, 2011, 09:12:45 pm
i like dots .......thank u ...........................................

And a whole lot better than all capital letters...
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: 305chevy c-10 on August 12, 2011, 08:02:03 pm
Vile you said it can be welded back on ,but be careful .what could happen ,just trying to see what ifs .what and how much stress or pressure is actually on this boss .i'm kinda stuck with a delima .i got a custom grind roller cam and lifters ,but if this peice is not gonna hold up imay as well go back to a flat tappet (mutha thumper) cam .i dont know if it is possible to make the block weaker by welding in that area
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: VileZambonie on August 13, 2011, 10:33:11 pm
Well as with any weld preparation that you expect to hold you need to grind and prep the area. There leaves a lot of contaminating material in the engine if you're not careful. Also when you weld watch where the spatter goes. Is this a bare block on the stand?
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: 305chevy c-10 on August 13, 2011, 11:13:16 pm
well yes its bare but not on an engine stand ...i"m supposed to take it to the machine shop  next week for the stroker clearancing and crank balancing ,and he will look at welding that boss back on . he bored the  block about 2 months ago and put it in a bag ..he told me to just wipe the cyclinders down with wd-40 every so often until i get it put togather .
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: 305chevy c-10 on August 13, 2011, 11:20:34 pm
the main thing is that i didn't want to make it  weaker by trying to weld on it .some one told me u have to heat cast iron up before u weld on it .i don't know about that .i have worked  at a plant where we welded stainless and regular steel and alum,but not cast iron
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: VileZambonie on August 14, 2011, 08:45:19 am
As long as you grind/weld clean and carefully it'll be fine. Just make sure you clean it thouroughly after.
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: 305chevy c-10 on August 14, 2011, 01:48:25 pm
ok thanks for info . :)
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: jaredts on August 14, 2011, 05:46:16 pm
I haven't worked around engine block welding, but with machinery castings we usually do heat it nearly red and use stainless weld.
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: 305chevy c-10 on April 29, 2014, 08:28:08 pm
does any one know what the result  or signs of this boss comming loose. will it cause my rockers to keep getting loose . or will it cause lifter to rotate in bore and destroy cam .
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: HAULIN IT on May 01, 2014, 09:22:39 pm
I guess it depends on which boss it was. If it was the center one, I don't think it would have hurt anything leaving it out. One of the ends...I guess it could bonce up & down some & likely crack the spider in time. As far as "making the rockers come loose or the lifter to rotate". I wouldn't see either of those likely to happen as mentioned, there is no real pressure on the spider & one lifter can't turn unless the bridge was off.
Can we assume you have been running this engine for the past couple years & now have this problem or have you just recently got this thing going from the incident back in 2011?
Do you know for a fact the cam is destroyed or are you asking/guessing this may be a problem?
 
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: 305chevy c-10 on May 01, 2014, 10:19:36 pm
I just got motor finished and put in a week ago .it was built july of last year and stored in a bag .the rockers were tighten one cylinder at a time with lifter on base of cam .after couple of days just cranking motor .the roller rocker were back loose .(stamped steel roller tip non self aligning with guide plates ).had not taken it out for drive because of this issue .new 3.73 gears ,shift kit and 2800 stall .realy want to see it it was all worth the wait .my rockers have nuts on them i was thinking of using loc tite or buying poly locks .any suggestions
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: VileZambonie on May 03, 2014, 08:48:21 am
The retainer is required to keep the roller lifter inline with the cam lobe
Title: Re: roller cam lifter valley
Post by: thefarmboy21 on May 22, 2014, 07:36:20 am
To weld cast you use Nickel rods*
Clean it up with grinder and brake clean, heat it, weld it, then immediately peen it (tap it rapidly and lightly with a hammer OR use a needle gun)

If it breaks, your retainers could come lose. IF they do then the lifters could rotate and cause problems

If you're too worried you could shell out the $$$ for a regular set of roller lifters with the bar straps.