SMall Block retro fit roller lifters

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vgv8

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Hi all, I have been building up a mild 318 for a daily driver and have gathered all the parts to fuel inject it as well. I will be using a Megasquirt for the brains. What I'm worried about is the fact that the engine probably wont start first turn of the key and will damage the hydraulic camshaft or lifters I have. I dont want to wipe a lobe off and then have to strip the engine again. After doing research on this site I found that roller lifters dont need to be broken in at all. I realise I will have to buy a roller cam as well. Just wondering if anyone has gone through this process and how they got around it. I have come across these from MRL http://www.mrlperformance.com/index.html and these from Hughes http://www.hughesengines.com/Index/...ZW5naW5lcw==&level1=TGlmdGVycw==&partid=11035 My short block is still at the machine shop and I dont know if my lifter bores are chamfered or counter bored as in the photo on Hughes page.
 
You'll be miles ahead of the game if you go buy a late 80s/early 90s LA roller block. Otherwise check out Hughes hyd roller lifters, it's what I have in my 340.
 
Mate your lifters won't get damaged that quickly, if you cote everything in assembly lube when you assembly it, Just prime the oil pump with a drill and an old distributer shaft welded to a rod, driving the oil pump till you see pressure at the oil pump sender unit. if that happens you won't have a drama.
 
I think it would be easier to break it in with a carb'd manifold then swap on the EFI later on...
 
I put the Hughes lifters in my motor, with a 2000 5.9 cam. Worked well, other than having to clearance the block a little to get the lifters to drop in (not their fault IMO). My lifter bores are chamfered, pretty sure the Hughes lifter are designed for that possibility so it shouldn't matter (mine didn't).

Don't forget about pushrods, those will be custom (Magnum ones were too long for me). I ended up using a shorter set of Ford pushrods, lifter preload was like .080" which seems too much to me, but Hughes said that is about right. Been running all summer and no issues related to that.
 
If you go roller run your oil pump with a drill and priming rod with intake off turn engine by hand and make sure there is not hemorrhaging. And if you haven't built the engine yet go find a 318 roller block with the roller set up in tack. They are dirt cheap.
 
I'd deal with MRL. He is a member here in high standing and very on the ball.
 
My motor used to sound like a diesel. Found out I used the wrong mark on my timing chain and my cam was out about 45 degrees. All of my intake valves were hitting the pistons.

If you've never run the motor before, and it sounds like mine did, that's where I would start.

The roller lifters don't make noise like a diesel motor does.
 
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