Tom's 'roller rockers'

Discussion in ''Da Nailhead' started by DualQuad55, Dec 18, 2006.

  1. telriv

    telriv Founders Club Member

    Some time in late '07. I was made aware of this by someone else. He had 4 or 6 that weren't right compared to the rest. Thankfully I had a few of the correct ones to replace them with. In all total I sent back almost 200 pieces. The way you can tell is by the adjusting screw. Correct ones have the screw pretty close to the end of the rocker. The wrong ones have the screw farther away from the end. Some of the early sets have both types. People have used the wrong ones with good results, but these were on basically stock type engines. On those we worked together to come up with creative ways to get them to work with no problems by making some mods. So far there have been NO recurring problems. Recently installed a set that was bought & never used. Installed them, made some mods & the car went faster ET & MPH.


    Tom T.
     
  2. twoprimo

    twoprimo Twoprimo

    Aloha Tom,

    Any updates for us?
     
  3. TA Perf

    TA Perf Member


    Tom,
    I am very surprised that you would say these things. You and I have been friends for a very long time without any exchange of words and now I feel you are attacking my integrity. Lets be clear, you threw the rock and started this. Tom, yes you contacted me to build you rockers. Yes, you sent me a sample. Yes, it was taking way to long. Only until now have I realized any possible correlation to back then and now.

    "Once I told them I wanted ALL my stuff back shortly thereafter they had completely "Re-designed" everything I did & called it there own"

    Tom, I was told by our mfg only after I had your parts sent back to you that they were struggling with your input, so they just kept putting this project off. You had the engineer from ALL your calls, very frustrated. So when you called me wanting your parts back, all they said at that moment was, will be happy to send them back. Now, you never said you were done with TA, nor was there any talk about canceling these rockers, so I continued working on getting them finished for you. I understood you wanting your samples back so you would have them and it had been taking way to long for you and I. Now, what you may or may not know was a few days later I got a call from the engineer and he tells me he was starting completely over on the Buick Nailhead rocker design. This was even more upsetting to me. I was still wanting to get this finished for you so I felt a even further set back. He continued explaining that when he was on his way to work that day he realized that, in his words, "We build rockers, I design rockers, what am I doing". He tells me that he had been trying to make your rocker work or build from your design. I'm starting completely over he said, from scratch. Personally I thought he would have just look at your stuff and started from scratch in the first place, I really didn't care, I just wanted them finished. Within two weeks I had sample rockers for test fitting. Couple changes, more samples, they fit. So they filled our PO for 25 sets. Which were ordered for you my friend.

    "Once I told them I wanted ALL my stuff back shortly thereafter they had completely "Re-designed" everything I did & called it there own. So much for being honest."

    Tom, really. I'm not honest. As soon as I received these rockers I called you. You told me you didn't want them. Nice! They were ALL to be yours, and folks I did this for him without any deposit. Ok, now I have 25 sets of Nailhead roller rockers, in stock, no part number, not in our catalog, unadvertised any where, and no sales in sight. So tell me, what was I suppose to do with them Tom. I had a fair amount of time and now 25 sets worth of $$$ invested in this project.

    "Do you think I enjoy seeing possible sales go to someone else who basically took my design".

    Tom we did not use your design as was explained here, your layout did not work properly. The nailhead rocker is what it is, once you connect the dots, (needed locations), add mass to the dots, it starts looking like a rocker that will fit on a Buick Nailhead engine. So again, I did not take your design and had you took delivery of the 25 sets, our design would be Tom Telesco's. No one would be reading this and you would have rockers in stock.
    Tom maybe something similar is going with your mfg now that went on with my mfg back then.

    You threw the rock. Shame on you.


    Still friends,
     
    Last edited: Aug 6, 2016
  4. RVA65GS

    RVA65GS Active Member

    Perhaps I'm misunderstanding but, are these available for purchase?

    Thanks,

    -Joe
     
  5. TA Perf

    TA Perf Member

    Joe,
    TA 1308. They have been available since August of 2004. They are 1.60 ratio, complete with roller bearing rockers, hardened ground gun drill new rocker shafts, billet rocker shaft stands, ARP hold down stud kit. And if anyone was interested the roller bearings are a full complement Torrington bearing and they are most definitely not something more to go wrong. I understand that some folks have been told that. Roller bearings have used in all high end roller rocker assemblies for many years.
     
    GranSportSedan likes this.
  6. 87GN@Tahoe

    87GN@Tahoe Well-Known Member

    '64 Riviera Telesco roller rockers...
    14.662 @ 92.78mph

    (Right lane)
    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Stock 600-CFM AFB carb with zero tuning...

    Engine is original numbers-matching 425 nailhead, rebuilt with .030" over pistons from TA, Total Seal Gapless rings, TA "heavy duty light weight" 455 wrist pins, TA "extreme duty" rod bearings, ARP rod bolts, ARP main studs, ARP head bolts, Telesco roller rockers, TA20 cam, Ford 2300 valves (11/32" valve stem), bronze guides, valve seals on exhaust and intake, Romac aluminum balancer,

    Aluminum dual-pass radiator with fake battery as overflow tank. Optima battery relocated to trunk.

    Transmission is a Switch Pitch 400 out of a '65 Buick. Has a shift kit and stock SP nailhead converter. Converter and kickdown currently activated by toggle switch. Shifting when she screams and stops pulling haha (no tach)

    3.23 Posi rear

    TA 2-1/2" mandrel-bent exhaust with rear mounted Magnaflow mufflers.

    I have a spreadbore intake, a 800CFM quadrajet, and a 1000CFM Thermoquad I'm contemplating throwing on there just for fun. See if I can break into the 13's
     
  7. Bigpig455

    Bigpig455 Fastest of the slow....

    Awesome! I've got a thread out there somewhere about track testing a Q-Jet set up vs. AFB, and various Q-Jet set ups. I'm not sure the Q-jet set up will cover .6, but there's always a half second somewhere... Good luck and keep us posted!
     
  8. 87GN@Tahoe

    87GN@Tahoe Well-Known Member

    Thanks! I'll look for your thread! Later in the night I bumped the timing a TINY amount (barely turned the dist.... had no timing light) and picked up 1 MPH but pushed through the lights, had a horrible 60', and got eliminated. I think if I made ANY effort to tune it I think I'd be close just with the AFB... Problem is I live at 6500ft elevation, and the track is at sea level, 100miles away...
     
  9. Marty World

    Marty World Well-Known Member

     
  10. dual-quadism

    dual-quadism Black on Black

    Hi Marty, I just sent a 65 console/shifter/etc to Switchman in Canada for his 63 Riv SP conversion. You can not use the stock 64 shifter and get the most of a SP40 since there is no 1/2/D pattern on it, just L/D. To do the conversion right, you need a 65 console. I have one or two more I am going to sell and I have at least one shifter. Let me know if you have questions. I also have the proper kickdown bracket, as the switch is different too.
     
  11. 87GN@Tahoe

    87GN@Tahoe Well-Known Member

    I'm still using the stock 64 shifter and consol
     
  12. Marty World

    Marty World Well-Known Member

    How do you make it work (65 trans) with your original shifter and console?

    Marty
     
  13. 87GN@Tahoe

    87GN@Tahoe Well-Known Member

    I have a toggle switch wired to the kickdown and SP. If I put the shifter in first it'll stay there until I release the toggle (effectively no longer in kickdown and sp) it'll then bump to second, then I'll put the shifter in D when I want 3rd... that's for the track. On the street I just have in D, and when I release the toggle it goes to 3rd. Doesn't bother me to have 2 speeds around town any. There are small block cars that came stock with the power glide...
     
  14. Tom,
    Do you have any roller rocker sets left?
     
  15. telriv

    telriv Founders Club Member

    Sorry, no I don't. I've been working on the past issues with the manufacturer.. They are getting closer, but I can't say when & would hate to make any commitments.


    Tom T.
     
    GranSportSedan likes this.

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