Sorry to resurrect a 3-yr old thread, but curious if there was any resolution to this tick? Sounds exactly like mine....have had a distinct tick from the day it was first fired and seems to be getting worse lately. Stage 2 470 w Johnson roller lifters and roller cam that started with stock rockers then went to TA roller rockers. Have installed replacement set of new Johnson lifters because one of them stuck. Never a change in the tick. Also ditched the mechanical fuel pump for electric with no change in sound. Have tried everything from .030-.050 preload with no difference. I’m curious about the comment about the lifter bore and side loading making the noise. I wonder if this was the cause for the OP and could also be the cause for my tick?
Is it just one valve or all of them? I had a lot more valve train noise with the Morel lifters. The Johnson lifters are a lot quieter, but I have found that it is never completely quiet except when the engine is cold. With the aluminum heads, there is always a small amount of noise when hot, nothing I can hear from behind the wheel, just when you listen with the hood up.
It’s definitely just one valve. Happens at all temps and it’s loud enough that I can plainly hear it behind the wheel. Sounds just like the video in the first post of this thread. A sloppy lifter bore might make sense since I can’t pinpoint the sound with a stethoscope on the exterior of the motor. And it would fit with the facts that the tick never changed when I replaced all the lifters, nor did it change when I went from stock to roller rockers. It sounds internal but definitely not a rod knock. I’ve just been continuing to drive it as is since I got it, but it does drive me nuts.
Good question. I thought these lifters may have come from a special run for BB Buick, but the part number on my box is an Olds/Pontiac lifter: https://johnsonlifters.com/Products/HydraulicRollerLifters/2112OPR.aspx This begs the question....if I investigate further I probably need to get a machine shop/engine builder involved as all I have is a simple dial caliper? I assume accurately measuring a lifter bore for taper, round and overall diameter requires specialty gauges. For the sake of discussion is it gonna make things worse if I do have a sloppy lifter bore and run it up toward 6k on the track? That was my first investigation....I went through 2 sets of Remflex gaskets and that was not the issue. They were sealing perfectly.
Not sure about Johnson, but these are oversized that will fit in a sbb; http://www.competitionproducts.com/...ers-Chev-SB/productinfo/PVT8097/#.WwNh-GeWxjo The solid roller lifters that Mart is changing to have the oil hole in the same place as the TA hyd. roller lifters do, not sure if the ones in the link are the same though? Oh yeah, the sbc link bar aftermarket roller lifters fit in a sbb and go up and down without any binding, good to go as far as that.
