Have you tried swapping lifters around between bores to see if they still hang up? There is usually a tolerance with the lifter diameter and the lifter bores in the block, last time I did a FT cam I had to do that with some of the lifters until they matched up with bores that allowed them to spin freely.
To be honest, with today's concern over cam/lifter failures, I don't know why anyone would put a flat tappet engine together without using a burnishing ball. The small investment is worth the peace of mind.
Goodson shipped yesterday :thumbsup:
FedEx tracking is sort of goofy though. It was in MN yesterday, tracking hasn't moved yet, but I'm going to receive it in WV by 2PM today. I paid for ground service too, not next day, 2-day or even 3-day. :realcrazy: