I have a crate 350 with a mild cam and roller rockers. I also have a tick on the top end. Sounds like a valve ticking. I've adjusted the valves ant it works for about ....10 miles and then the tick is back. I've retorqed the studs and even pulled the valve covers, started it, loosened eack on untile the slight tick, tightedthem untile it was gon and the the extra 1/4 turn. I've always done it this way and it's always worked. So am I missing something? or is something going wrong with the heads. Please help?!

Bad lifter?
Clyde

I only have a V6, 99, and it has had a tick for ever (maybe a little less than that) and we know it's in the head, probably a lifter, but cannot isolate it. Juat stays the same. I don;t know, been that way since 2003. Guess it just like to do that. Some thngs just aren;t worth hunting down. It sure is annoying though.

i would say lifter or valve spring

Never though of the valve spring. Thanks. No one else mentioned it either.

Thanks for all the help guys. One last thought. I thought that ifa lifter went badthan it woild stick. I recently changed my eld. performer intake to an air gap. I cycled the engine throught a complete cycle and Iwas watching the lifters. They all seemed to be moving freely. Am I missing something or do need some schooling on how a lifter works.?

if the car is hydraulic lifter, then the spring inside can crack/break,causing a tick

also could be if the heads have push in studs, the stud could have pulled out some, you can adjust the rocker and have it right, only to have tick come back if thats the case

They are hydraulic lifters. Sounds like I have to chanke the lifter. Is it better to try to find the bad on and change it. If so how do I find the bad one. Or should I just use it as an excuse to drop a bigger cam in it?

pull the intake, nothing needs to be done with the cam unless you want an excuse for yur wife, but replace all the lifters, not just one

ORIGINAL: riceeater

also could be if the heads have push in studs, the stud could have pulled out some, you can adjust the rocker and have it right, only to have tick come back if thats the case


And that's why I'm a believer in screw in studs at a minimum, pinning a screw in stud is even better if you plan on high revving.
Clyde

Thanks for allthe help. I think I will use it as an excuse to go all roller with a size up on the cam. I think it will be a nice upgrade from a mild cam.

Pull the oil filter cut it open and look for metal flakes, once adjusted you shoundnt need to mess with the hydraulic lifter. I would assume the worst case and work back from that.

Griff, Thanks for the responce. I did that when I cahaged the intake. No metal metal flakes. I was worried about the lower end so I figured that was the best way. Everyone else is saying bad lifter. It's not a loud knock it's an annoying tick that I hear at idle speed (6,000-7,000 RPM's)Where should I go from here? Thanks Shaun

ORIGINAL: 68ssap

Griff, Thanks for the responce. I did that when I cahaged the intake. No metal metal flakes. I was worried about the lower end so I figured that was the best way. Everyone else is saying bad lifter. It's not a loud knock it's an annoying tick that I hear at idle speed (6,000-7,000 RPM's)Where should I go from here? Thanks Shaun


Ummm, that's quite an idle there!
Clyde

Sorry Clyde, I'm a bone head. 600-700rpm's. It's just that I didn't think that this tick was all that bad, but now I'm worried.

if its only at idle, it may be a leaky exhaust gasket, do you have aftermarket headers, sometimes they make a tick

Many things can cause noises under the hood, it not always the engine itself. I had a intermittent hiss that sounded like a vacuum leak, it was really a pinhole in a radiator hose that allowed coolant/steam to escape a while after the engine came to operating temp, shortly after the thermostat opened and allowed proper cooling it would go away. Took me a while to find it. On another vehicle I had a slight tear in a fan belt edge that was just enough to hit the very close AC wiring harness at times. And so on, not all noises are engine problems, you have to investigate/isolate where it is coming from, sometimes it takes weeks if not months to figure it out.Oh, and I've had some small block Chevy engines in the past that ran well for years with a little lifter/valve tick. And of course my '69 Z/28 always needed the rockers adjusted every few weeks to keep those solid lifters performing properly.
Clyde

Thanks for all the help guys. You lifted the worry from me. I agree...... If it's something bad than it will get worse, but it hasn't. That's not to say that it won't. I will check the header seals though. That's a cheap fix. They may be leaking.