So I decided to check my valve lash out since the motor was clattering a bit, and the rear cylinder was fine and required only the slightest adjustment. The front cylinder however is kinda screwed up. The exhaust lifter is flat, and the intake lifter is stuck high with a load on the valves. Gotta pull 'em out and make 'em happy. Anyone else ever have this problem?

I had a failed lifer(s) after about 1000 miles so I changed them all out.

There seems to have been a problem in the early years but I haven't heard of it happening with much frequency lately..

Doc

I'm not sure exactly what causes lifters to fail. I think it has alot to do with the first 2o minutes the brand new engine is run. Slow idling in the first 20 minutes might cause poor break-in and subsequent failure.
My dad (old mechanic) said that it is important to apply lots of Lubriplate grease to new cams and lifters. Then when you first start the new or rebuilt engine, you need to keep the rpm right around 2000 rpm for a good cam/lifter break-in, for about 20 minutes. The higher rpm helps the oil to lube better and carry away the metal filings created during initial break-in and it helps the lifters "seat" onto the cam at the average rpm range the engine will spend a lot of it's lifetime.
Another cause of lifter failure is tiny amounts of casting-sand and debris remaining in the block and lodging inside the lifter plungers.

Smart man your dad.

For a new or rebuilt engine it's also a good idea to change the oil after the 20 minute breakin.

Doc

DocShadow wrote:
Smart man your dad.

For a new or rebuilt engine it's also a good idea to change the oil after the 20 minute breakin.

Doc
Yup. Dad is one of the best mechanics ever. He had the pleasure to work on the 60's musclecars when they wer still brand new!
(Your'e right on the oilchange Doc! You're a smart man too.) I forgot to type in there what Dad said about the oil. You should change the oil and filter after the fisrt 20 minutes to get rid of the filter which is now plugged with assembly grease and metal filings. And the oil is full of finer filings that are too fine for the filter to catch, before the filings get embedded in the soft bearing material when you take her out for the first run to seat the rings.

Dad looked at my brand new Roadstar and could tell me more about the inside of that engine than I know. He's never owned or worked on a RoadStar, but he just has the ability to look at something and knows how stuff works inside.

So, a few gear-heads tell me I should take them apart, chunk them in the Ultrasonic tank until they damn near ignite, flush them clean, then pump them up in a press(with lifter submerged in MMO) and re-install them. Anyone try this? Heard more than one place that it works well.

jd750ace wrote:
So, a few gear-heads tell me I should take them apart, chunk them in the Ultrasonic tank until they damn near ignite, flush them clean, then pump them up in a press(with lifter submerged in MMO) and re-install them. Anyone try this? Heard more than one place that it works well.

I don't have a tank so I bought 4 new lifters for $35.

You can also use kerosene to pump up the lifters.

Doc

10-4 on the kerosene. That's what the manual calls out, and I've heard it before. The tuners said doing it with Marvel keeps you from feeling like you've diluted your oil and need to change it. I would guess that this mill would evaporate a dose of kerosene pretty fast though. Anyway, if I added a theraputic fluid such as MMO, I probably would'nt give it a second thought. Thanks for the info. Any truth to what I've heard about these being Chrysler lifters and pushrods? My Brother-in-law dropped that one on me. He heard it at a club function.

Brother in law is right.

The ones I have (JB2011 I think) are Melling lifters and are used in:

American Motors - 290 to 401 - 1966-79 - 8 Cyl.
Chrysler - 273-360 - 1965-02 - 8 Cyl.

Doc

DocShadow wrote:
Brother in law is right.

The ones I have (JB2011 I think) are Melling lifters and are used in:

American Motors - 290 to 401 - 1966-79 - 8 Cyl.
Chrysler - 273-360 - 1965-02 - 8 Cyl.

Doc
WOW! That is unbelievable Doc! AMC/Dodge lifters!
(so you are saying our Japanese Roadies ARE partly "AMERICAN Motors" and Dodge?)
...where are the HD lifters made?