Stainless, Bushed PRW Rocker Arms

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Ironmike said:
so, did you go to pushrod oiling? And if so, did you block off the shaft oil passages?
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It has both
Pushrod and Shaft oiling.
I added pushrod oiling before I sent them to RAU.
That still did not keep it from wearing out the Rocker Arm bushings.
I left it that way even after getting the re-worked Rocker Arms back.
It's been fine since.

I just wanted to add that it has a high volume oil pump, I'm not sure if I'd run both types of Rocker arm oiling with a standard oil pump.
Also this is what I would call a Hot Driver not a Race car.
I don't spin it much over 6000
 
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Mopar69gts said:
It has both
Pushrod and Shaft oiling.
I added pushrod oiling before I sent them to RAU.
That still did not keep it from wearing out the Rocker Arm bushings.
I left it that way even after getting the re-worked Rocker Arms back.
It's been fine since.

I just wanted to add that it has a high volume oil pump, I'm not sure if I'd run both types of Rocker arm oiling with a standard oil pump.
Also this is what I would call a Hot Driver not a Race car.
I don't spin it much over 6000
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I'm guessing your oil pressure is fine. Surprising since you're using 2 completely different oiling methods. When I made the move to PR oiling, I put setscrews in the block to stop that factory stuff. Been using factory PRW rockers 4 seasons now. Springs are 640ish pounds open. Solid roller. No problems. Yet.
 
I'm not sure why it was wearing out the bushings and also flatting out the roller wheel tips on the out of the box prw's.
But while I was waiting for them to come back from RAU I put on a stock set of 273 rockers and shafts with only shaft oiling and drove it that way everyday for a couple months, when I took them off there was No sign of wear.
I'm pretty sure they had banana grooved shafts and that may have the biggest difference in wear.
I'll have to dig them out to confirm that.
I'm glad you are having better luck then I did.
Thanks
 
Mopar69gts said:
I'm not sure why it was wearing out the bushings and also flatting out the roller wheel tips on the out of the box prw's.
But while I was waiting for them to come back from RAU I put on a stock set of 273 rockers and shafts with only shaft oiling and drove it that way everyday for a couple months, when I took them off there was No sign of wear.
I'm pretty sure they had banana grooved shafts and that may have the biggest difference in wear.
I'll have to dig them out to confirm that.
I'm glad you are having better luck then I did.
Thanks
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How old are your rockers? Mike at B3 worked with PRW to update the rockers.

One issue I have is they didn’t make the rocker with enough ratio in them. I think mine measure 1.610 and the new rockers measure 1.651 IIRC.

That’s a huge deal alone. They also made the rocket have more spring clearance but that wasn’t needed if guys would just correct the geometry.

If yours are older like mine (I’d have to talk to Sean at PRW again to verify but I think I’m close) then they may have updated the bushings in the new ones.

I’m never a fan of a split bushing like they do it.

How RAU or what’s its name fixed yours is how they should be made with a solid bushing and the oil hole plugged in the top of the rocker.

And that hole is about 3 times bigger than it needs to be.
 
Newbomb Turk said:
How old are your rockers? Mike at B3 worked with PRW to update the rockers.

One issue I have is they didn’t make the rocker with enough ratio in them. I think mine measure 1.610 and the new rockers measure 1.651 IIRC.

That’s a huge deal alone. They also made the rocket have more spring clearance but that wasn’t needed if guys would just correct the geometry.

If yours are older like mine (I’d have to talk to Sean at PRW again to verify but I think I’m close) then they may have updated the bushings in the new ones.

I’m never a fan of a split bushing like they do it.

How RAU or what’s its name fixed yours is how they should be made with a solid bushing and the oil hole plugged in the top of the rocker.

And that hole is about 3 times bigger than it needs to be.
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I bought them from Mike @b3 around may 2019
At the same time I went to TF heads.
He was a Huge help after the first set of bushings wore out he warrantied them.
Then that set did the same thing he helped with sending RAU some extra needed rocker arms and shafts to make 1 good set.
He stepped up even when PRW didn't.
I really hope they made the necessary changes to make them a better product.
I can't say enough about how awesome Mike @b3 and Gary at RAU are!
Thanks guys!!
 
I have this same set up, trick flow heads and hydraulic roller from Mike B3, the time line, probably around 4 years ago. I haven't had a bushing failure like that, yet. I probably have 5 thousand miles or so on it. I have always had a ticking, my rockers and shafts appear to be fine. Have adjusted the lifter normally and currently lashed like a solid roller. Same ticking. Guess that I have just gotten used to it. I do check it often, just can't put my finger on anything. Have also replaced the roller tappets. No change.
 
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Mopar69gts said:
I bought them from Mike @b3 around may 2019
At the same time I went to TF heads.
He was a Huge help after the first set of bushings wore out he warrantied them.
Then that set did the same thing he helped with sending RAU some extra needed rocker arms and shafts to make 1 good set.
He stepped up even when PRW didn't.
I really hope they made the necessary changes to make them a better product.
I can't say enough about how awesome Mike @b3 and Gary at RAU are!
Thanks guys!!
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You might want to call Mike and see if you have the updated rockers just so you know.
 
I got mine from Mike, too. They are the updated version also. No more aluminum for me since a Hughes broke on me. I wouldn't even buy a T&D or Jesel aluminum. I do too many street miles. Saving up for T&D stainless........they're pricey and a 3 month wait time. I guess they build for order.

Seems so far, the PRW's are fairly stout. I just wish I got a little more oil to the roller.
 
So I remember a discussion about lifter bore bushings and people using different materials for the bushings and them wearing quickly. There is a cheaper material and an expensive material. Don’t remember specifics.
 
When the Chinese aluminum heads first started becoming a thing, it wasn’t uncommon at all for them to have the bronze guides wear out with rather little use on the heads.
You’d install guides of known better quality, and miraculously they’d last much much longer.
No changes to oiling or any other such issues…….. just replacing the butter soft import bronze pieces with something better solved the problems.
Eventually, they started using better material guides in the heads and the problem kinda went away.

I suspect it’s a similar situation with the bushings in the rockers.
 
Just curious if this ever turned out to be a common condition of the prw rockers?
Did other members experience this issue?
 
I didn’t read all eleven pages. Is this a hydraulic cam with typical hydraulic valve springs pressures?
 
BSB67 said:
I didn’t read all eleven pages. Is this a hydraulic cam with typical hydraulic valve springs pressures?
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Yes
340
Comp. XE 268h
TF heads with hydraulic flat tappet springs
PRW 1.6 rockers.
just a pretty typical street build.
But I do drive it daily.
After all the problems I had,
RAU modified them to last.
I'm very Happy with them now.

I don't know if PRW improved them since i bought mine 4 years ago or not, but if they haven't I would not recommend them.
Mike D.
 
Mopar69gts said:
Yes
340
Comp. XE 268h
TF heads with hydraulic flat tappet springs
PRW 1.6 rockers.
just a pretty typical street build.
But I do drive it daily.
After all the problems I had,
RAU modified them to last.
I'm very Happy with them now.

I don't know if PRW improved them since i bought mine 4 years ago or not, but if they haven't I would not recommend them.
Mike D.
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Yeah, i guess that was my round about question, if they improved since your original post, thanks for your opinion!
My current build also has the same trick flow heads, a cam not so far different, and I also bought my prw 1.6 rockers from Mike at B3 with his shim kit (great person/business to deal with).Hence my concern.
Since I don't see prw complaints here on a regular basis, I would think it has been corrected
 
Mopar69gts said:
Yes
340
Comp. XE 268h
TF heads with hydraulic flat tappet springs
PRW 1.6 rockers.
just a pretty typical street build.
But I do drive it daily.
After all the problems I had,
RAU modified them to last.
I'm very Happy with them now.

I don't know if PRW improved them since i bought mine 4 years ago or not, but if they haven't I would not recommend them.
Mike D.
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Your patience and tolerance are commendable.
 
4eighteener said:
Yeah, i guess that was my round about question, if they improved since your original post, thanks for your opinion!
My current build also has the same trick flow heads, a cam not so far different, and I also bought my prw 1.6 rockers from Mike at B3 with his shim kit (great person/business to deal with).Hence my concern.
Since I don't see prw complaints here on a regular basis, I would think it has been corrected
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Just curious - were the shafts grooved that your bought from B3? At some point in this thread some people were saying it was an absolute must with these rockers.
 
The PRW rockers are more or less a complete roller rocker kit. Mike doesn't do anything to them, he just adds a small correction kit for the geometry on the trick flow heads. So the kit is rockers, spacers and shims to center the rockers and non banana groove shafts.
I did not groove my shafts. It's been 3 or 4 years, not saying not to have that done, or get them.
 
mopowers said:
Just curious - were the shafts grooved that your bought from B3? At some point in this thread some people were saying it was an absolute must with these rockers.
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No, the shafts i received around June of this year were not grooved. They did have the oil holes on the top and bottom of the shafts as the original poster had said. The bushings appeared to me as a single piece with a groove.
 
CRUZE 418 said:
The PRW rockers are more or less a complete roller rocker kit. Mike doesn't do anything to them, he just adds a small correction kit for the geometry on the trick flow heads. So the kit is rockers, spacers and shims to center the rockers and non banana groove shafts.
I did not groove my shafts. It's been 3 or 4 years, not saying not to have that done, or get them.
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I only got about 100 miles on mine before I lost a lobe on the cam. After the holidays I will open up the engine again and Inspect the shafts since I will have to get all the metal flake oil out anyways, but i doubt anything will have shown up in that short amount of time.
I like the idea of the grooved shafts, but the images the OP posted of the roller is even more disconcerting
 
CRUZE 418 said:
The PRW rockers are more or less a complete roller rocker kit. Mike doesn't do anything to them, he just adds a small correction kit for the geometry on the trick flow heads. So the kit is rockers, spacers and shims to center the rockers and non banana groove shafts.
I did not groove my shafts. It's been 3 or 4 years, not saying not to have that done, or get them.
Click to expand...
Mine aren't grooved either and my PRW rockers are going on 8-9 yrs or there abouts without an issue whatsoever. I was just asking because if it was so necessary as stated in post #52 by Rat Bastid, why are there so many folks who haven't had a problem running the stainless PRW rockers without grooved shafts (myself included)? And why does B3 sells them if grooved shafts were needed?
 
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