Fuel pump pushrod failure

[HankRearden]

Has anyone else been struggling with fuel pump pushrod wearing out? My dad has had three fail in two years on two different big blocks.
The car only gets puttered to shows on weekends. Super low miles.
Two of them were from comp he can't remember the third but it was from the parts store.
Do we need to start hoarding OEM fuel pump pushrods?
Is the old man screwing something up?

 

[TrailBeast]

Has anyone else been struggling with fuel pump pushrod wearing out? My dad has had three fail in two years on two different big blocks.
The car only gets puttered to shows on weekends. Super low miles.
Two of them were from comp he can't remember the third but it was from the parts store.
Do we need to start hoarding OEM fuel pump pushrods?
Is the old man screwing something up?

Been seeing that more often over the last decade or so.
Probably same issue as with the cams and lifters of late.
(sub par metals)

Awhile back I saw hardened pump rods that solved that issue, but don’t remember where, sorry.
That is the solution though.

Went and looked it up.
Hughes Engines Hardened Fuel Pump Pushrod

 

[67Dart273]

Probably same issue as flat tapped cams and lifters. Not the correct "stuff" in the oil

 

[dadsbee]

Do we need to start hoarding OEM fuel pump pushrods

Yes . Everything being made today is junk. I changed my pump on my 383 Bee last year. OE push rod was still at factory spec after 157,000 miles!

 

[qkcuda]

I had my factory pushrod fail after a cam change. The pushrod wore 1/4 inch, but the cam lobe was still fine. It was a stock fuel pump, not a high performance one. I bought a new rod from Mancini's and a new stock pump, but I am afraid to use them until I figure out what caused the failure.

 

[mopar head]

I had my factory pushrod fail after a cam change. The pushrod wore 1/4 inch, but the cam lobe was still fine. It was a stock fuel pump, not a high performance one. I bought a new rod from Mancini's and a new stock pump, but I am afraid to use them until I figure out what caused the failure.

Had the same experience, same amount chewed off, bought same pushrod, all`s well so far.
Maybe new cams are harder than oem rods, my cam looked fine too. oil pump lost no pressure.
I`m lettin it eat, damage is already done. Good luck

 

[qkcuda]

I cut apart two oil filters and couldn't find any noticeable metal particles.

 

[RustyRatRod]

Do we need to start hoarding OEM fuel pump pushrods?

I'm gonna say a resounding yes. We probably need to start hoarding all kinds of good usable OEM parts, because we all know this stuff is now made in China. That's why I try to snag lots of slant 6 stuff when I can afford it. They ain't makin it anymore.

 

[MOPARMAGA]

I had my factory pushrod fail after a cam change. The pushrod wore 1/4 inch, but the cam lobe was still fine. It was a stock fuel pump, not a high performance one. I bought a new rod from Mancini's and a new stock pump, but I am afraid to use them until I figure out what caused the failure.

View attachment 1716143466

Besides the metal possibly being soft, is there any possibility that the arm on the fuel pump is bottoming out and causing excessive friction on the cam side ?
How does the cam side look & lastly have you measured a stock cam pump lobe vs the new cam pump lobe.. I wonder if there could be any measurable differences that can be causing excessive friction from **** machining

 

[qkcuda]

I did not check the stroke on the fuel pump arm, although it did seem rather stiff to push by hand. It is bolted back to the engine without a rod essentially as a block off plate. I did check the stock cam that came out and found that the lobe lift was 1/4 inch. I also used a piece of wooden dowel and spun the motor over to check the cam lobe lift and found it was also 1/4 inch. It was the original pushrod that went back in when I changed the cam, and the wear was on the cam end.