[oldman]

cam change was easy on the car, I'd worry about sooner or later wearing the head bolt threads, there is a lot of torque on these bolts or in my case studs. I go 10 ft less I think 105 from memory on the studs. I did some calculations a while back to show ARP is WAY too tight on their stud specs, maybe OK for a blown race engine, but 10 ft less was still way tight....

[Darth Martel]

thanks so much for the responses everybody.

I'm still waiting to hear back from my parts guy as he's the one negotiating with Texas Speed. I'm not very confident in them paying labor but, perhaps he can negotiate an upgraded part to compensate me instead. He's got a better chance than I do since they're a distributor and have a relationship they want to maintain. As a single consumer calling Texas Speed to make this right, they can tell me to pound sand and forget my name as soon as they hang up the phone or click send on the email. But, we'll see how it goes.

The installer told me $600 for the replacing the lifter. It's not horrible but, it's just more of a principle thing, at this point. At the end of the day though, I want it done right so, will most likely bite the bullet and pay it myself.

[KingLT1]

This is the risk you take when you buy a lower tier model and mod it for more power. Just gonna have to pay it and move on...if you want more power with a warranty then you buy GM's flagship stuff(ZL1, Zo6, ZR1) and leave it alone.

[Darth Martel]

I'm not worried about a factory warranty. I just want the stuff I buy to work and not have to pay for install costs twice for a defective $60 part. Companies should stand behind their product and make things right when their stuff is defective. That seems like basic good business practice to me.

[KingLT1]

I didn't say you were worried about a factory warranty. I said that as a alternative option to consider down the road because this kind of stuff happens frequently in the world of modding cars and yes it sucks...I feel your pain.

That being said, There is no way for lifter manufacturer to be responsible for a failure unless they are the ones installing the parts and verified the install.

For example, were the lifters cleaned, inspected, then soaked in oil prior to install? Was proper lifter preload verified prior to install.

You have no idea if it was a install error on your guys end that he isn't owning up to, so how can you expect TSP of lifter company to foot the bill?

[oldman]

plus a lifter is not a lifter is not a lifter, you can go anywhere from stock LT1 to LS7 to GM performance to cheap aftermarket (comp cams) to real lifters like Johnson at $750.
https://johnsonlifters.com/Products/...29-description

We all know that Johnson is the MINIMUM lifter that should be used with the TSP cam... or at least we should.

[cmitchell17]

What kind of lifters did they put in?

[Darth Martel]

Originally Posted by cmitchell17

What kind of lifters did they put in?

Whatever was included in the kit. I have no idea. I think the kit is from Texas Speed so, I would guess it meets their requirements.

[oldman]

Originally Posted by Darth Martel

I would guess it meets their requirements.

My first go around I got genuine GM LS7 lifters, I was going to pull the engine anyway and this was just to hold me over till I retired. The lifter lasted about 5K miles, I was only two weeks away from pulling the engine anyway and so it really was not a huge hit financially (could have been). I'm now of the opinion that it is impossible to have greater than .600 lift and / or a fast ramp on a street engine that is suppose to go 100K. And yes the LS7 lifter more than meets TSP's "requirements". Will it work? yep anywhere from zero to 10K would be my estimate for MTBF (mean time between failures).

[Darth Martel]

Thanks oldman! I appreciate your experienced insight. I know the factory lifters are bunk so, my inexperienced assumption was that whatever TSP included in the kit was an ample upgrade. It's an 1800 dollar kit so, that seems like a reasonable expectation to me. I get your point though about install. The installer is trusted but, I wasn't there and I don't know if he did everything that needed to be done or what. My buddy that's a GM wrench up in Michigan who works on those engines was skeptical, and asked if the installer forgot to torque that particular lifter down to the rocker enough. At this point, I don't know if it's worth the $600 to have him replace the lifter or if I should push back and at least ask if it's possible he might have messed that one up by forgetting a step or something. My guess is I'll just bite the bullet and pay up.

Originally Posted by oldman

My first go around I got genuine GM LS7 lifters, I was going to pull the engine anyway and this was just to hold me over till I retired. The lifter lasted about 5K miles, I was only two weeks away from pulling the engine anyway and so it really was not a huge hit financially (could have been). I'm now of the opinion that it is impossible to have greater than .600 lift and / or a fast ramp on a street engine that is suppose to go 100K. And yes the LS7 lifter more than meets TSP's "requirements". Will it work? yep anywhere from zero to 10K would be my estimate for MTBF (mean time between failures).

[Darth Martel]

An update... the replacement lifter also failed. The installer installed it in a different spot in case the manufacturer wanted to try and blame it on the engine. That lifter failed. I did find out that tbe lifters are Johnson lifters. So, we'll see how good a company they are and how they stand behind their product. I'm now wondering if they're all from tbe same batch and if they'll fail on my drive home. I'm thinking they should all be replaced.

[KingLT1]

Johnson Hy-lift or actual Johnson lifters(2110/2116)? There is a significant difference and not the same company.

[oldman]

The lifters do need pushrods to select fit the preload. I purchases 6 total +/- length pushrods. So 22 total, along with one adjustable length pushrod. It took me about 4 hours to set the preload. AFAIK, too long of a pushrod will prevent the lifter from pumping up, I don't know if it will actually fail the lifter by shoving the plunger all the way down.

[KingLT1]

It will fail if it bottoms out. And this goes back to what I posted earlier about LS7 lifters being popular because they have a wide tolerance for pre-load due to the excessive plunger travel. Short travel lifters are far superior but the preload must be precise. I have seen some have to run different length pushrods and or shim the rocker pedestals to get the preload correct. Can be a PITA for sure.

When I did my LS build, shop said 7.4 pushrods should work. I used a Morel drop in lifter and with my combo 7.4 rods were too long. I ended up needing 7.350 rods and I was in range on the intake and just in range on the exhaust so I didn't go shorter for the exhaust valves bit it was close. It would be nice if somebody made a full adjustable rocker arm that fit under stock valve covers and is light over the nose. Those comp ultra pro mags look solid but not sure if they will work.