Replace lifters or just go with it?

[wasco]

I was cleaning up the engine on the stand and was trying to get the plugs out of the side so I turned it up a bit to get some light on it and I heard a clank clank clank.....clank. Four of the lifters had slid out of their bores. Several others were about to fall out, but didn't. I've heard all about keeping the lifters in the same bores but now what? Can I just replace all of them or do I have to throw out the cam with all the lifters now?

Also, those coolant plugs look like brass and are pretty much round. Any tricks to get them out?

 

[Kern Dog]

Did the lifters come completely out and mix together? If so, there is no way to know which hole they were in. You are taking chances by just stuffing them back in.
You can keep the cam but replace at least the lifters that fell out. That OR replace them all. I have never heard of anyone replacing just 4.
Good luck, report back.

 

[wasco]

Yes, the four lifters fell out and in such a way I couldn't tell which came from which bore. Thanks - sounds like I should go with replacing all of them, which beats having to pull the cam as well.

 

[Kern Dog]

In 2006, I had a rocker shaft break in my 440/493. 4 lifters popped out of the bores as a result. I slipped them back in and replaced the rocker shaft just to see if the engine would run right and to check for any other problems. It ran the same afterwards and had the same oil pressure numbers so I felt confident that I didn't damage anything else. I changed the cam and lifters afterwards because there was a lobe and lifter going bad on the other bank. The temporary mismatch of lifters was of no consequence in this case.

 

[wasco]

The temporary mismatch of lifters was of no consequence in this case.

I'm taking that as "go ahead and run those lifters as-is, you'll probably be fine"! This is just a $500 motor, get it running and build an engine for it later sort of scenario. Maybe I can get away with running some break-in oil to get the lifters and the lobes to make nice. Maybe I got the four lifters back in the right holes!

 

[Kern Dog]

You have a 1 in 4 chance in every hole.
What is the engine? A 318? If so, the cam is so mild and the springs are so mild it may not hurt. Its not MY engine so GO for it!

 

[RT K_line]

I would just put them in and run it if you are planning on building another engine. I've never done it but had a friend who was always short on cash and bought used cams all the time and didn't have a problem. He went thru cars faster than cams. . I've wiped a cam doing all the right things so now I run a roller.

 

[HT413]

In the old days, my dad used to go to the junk yard, pull a piston / rod and stuff it into his motor, then when a lifter was bad he’d reach into his coffee can full and pull out a winner.

Course last year I wiped a cam during break in, so I gotta admit I’m kinda traumatized.

 

[69L48Z27]

Stick'em back in and make sure you have some fresh lube with zinc just to be safe.

The frost plugs come out by tapping them inward on one side. It should rotate the other side up, when that happens grab the lip with pliers or vise grips and pull/pry it out.

 

[wasco]

Very encouraging stories - reminds me of farmers I used to work for that had leftover parts from engines over the years and would do the same things. The motor is a 383HP, so maybe I’m pushing my luck, but if it buys me some time, why not. Thanks all!

 

[wsutard]

Umm, just replace the 4. You can get individuals at the parts store. Not that much money and it’s the perfect time instead of later when it’s in the car and then you have to change the cam also!

 

[Cranky]

Factory cam? I would go for it too....low lift and mild spring rates shouldn't hurt it. Look at the cam lobes and the bottoms of the lifters and see if there's anything out of the ordinary. If so, the cam lobe will also have an abnormal wear pattern too.

 

[wasco]

The frost plugs come out by tapping them inward on one side. It should rotate the other side up, when that happens grab the lip with pliers or vise grips and pull/pry it out.

I meant the drain plugs - one on each side of the block. Those things are STUCK

 

[Ranger16]

For what it's worth, I believe the same goes for the push rods.

When I replaced my cam two years ago, I had then all in two 2x4's with holes drilled so they where in the proper order and oriented upright. As luck would have it I dropped one and they where like "pick-up sticks" all over the garage floor. I just randomly stuck 'em in holes. Haven't had a problem.

 

[Cranky]

I meant the drain plugs - one on each side of the block. Those things are STUCK

It didn't take very many years for those things to become stuck. The factory put them in pretty tight in the beginning too.....

For what it's worth, I believe the same goes for the push rods.

When I replaced my cam two years ago, I had then all in two 2x4's with holes drilled so they where in the proper order and oriented upright. As luck would have it I dropped one and they where like "pick-up sticks" all over the garage floor. I just randomly stuck 'em in holes. Haven't had a problem.

And you probably never will since they do not see much action as far as wear goes with stock cams but they do wear and are not really expensive to replace. If I'm replacing rockers, the push rods get replaced too....

 

[Mebsuta]

I flattened a lobe mixing up lifters. This was the original 383 hp cam with original valve train. Not a big deal at the time because everything was going to get replaced anyway. If I did anything like that now, it might be expensive and a lot of work to fix.

 

[miller]

A lot of that will depend on how much time is on the motor, as far as wear patterns. I have, in the distant past, cleaned up tappets, including the bottom face, and re-used them. Of course, cam lobes needed to be good, too. Didn't matter what hole, since the surfaces were 'freshened up'.
But, better oil back then.

 

[Don Frelier]

I would either stick them back in with some zinc additive or just buy 4 lifters and do the same. Both the cam and lifters are already case hardened from the heat cycles. Just make sure the face on them looks good.