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Bummed that it has been ten years and my 68 is not finished.

Overdue.
But Scorpion are the only ones who will sell them with bushings instead of needle bearings.
Will a bushing roller lifter wear in an odd or egg shape the bushing since pressure is on only a small portion of the busing, roller pins can rotate in the housing, or am I wrong or missing something?
 
I have seen failed rollers.
I have also seen them wear grooves into the shaft as they do not get to actually rotate, just move back and forth with a very small contact area.
I feel much more comfortable with the bushings, they have much more surface area in contact with the shaft.
Buick used bushed shaft rockers for decades and I've never seen a failed one.
Intent is to drive this car a lot so bushings it will be.
 
I have seen failed rollers.
I have also seen them wear grooves into the shaft as they do not get to actually rotate, just move back and forth with a very small contact area.
I feel much more comfortable with the bushings, they have much more surface area in contact with the shaft.
Buick used bushed shaft rockers for decades and I've never seen a failed one.
Intent is to drive this car a lot so bushings it will be.
IIRC Ford also used bushed shaft rockers on FE BBF’s and SBF?
 
Trying to work with what I have on hand while waiting on the shaft rockers.
Got my intake gaskets that are a close match for the head.
Also got some plastic shim stock to simulate the head gaskets for height.
I am going to have some real work to do port matching the Weber intake.
 
Not happy with the port match of my CB Performance Weber intake.
Top, bottom, and sides are reasonable and a bit small so easy to match.
But the dividers are off enough that I am going to have to use epoxy to build up one side of every set.
Also shifts around a lot so I guess I will have to drop in a distributor to help with location.
Now trying to research the "Best" epoxy to use too.
 
Not happy with the port match of my CB Performance Weber intake.
Top, bottom, and sides are reasonable and a bit small so easy to match.
But the dividers are off enough that I am going to have to use epoxy to build up one side of every set.
Also shifts around a lot so I guess I will have to drop in a distributor to help with location.
Now trying to research the "Best" epoxy to use too.
I'd ask 68Chevelle what he uses for epoxy on intakes, would putting small dowel pins in the intake & head for locators be worth the effort?
 
Kind of obsessed with the El Camino and Lotus right now.
Actually put some of my other cars up for sale, partially to fund the obsessions.
Since I am out of funds right now now I am going to work on adding up expenses for the rest of the parts I need.
That should scare me plenty for Halloween!
 
Gack! :eek:
I was right, actually listing what still needs to be done is horrifying.
Even without putting a budget to it.
Despite my best efforts there is no way it runs by next summer. :cry:
Not willing to do a half-ass job, so this is clearly going to take longer than I am happy with.
Never expected a Lotus to be a simpler build than an El Camino!
Need to get the 2-post lift working so that I may lift the body off the frame.
 
If you don't have the lift already and are lacking funds, you may want to consider a gantry crane. It'd be less than 1/2 the price of a lift.
 
A simple cherry picker gets it done for me, one end at a time onto horses, spanners whatever, then the other end suspended, usually the front. Now simply roll the frame out and set on rotisserie, dolly or whatever.
 
A simple cherry picker gets it done for me, one end at a time onto horses, spanners whatever, then the other end suspended, usually the front. Now simply roll the frame out and set on rotisserie, dolly or whatever.
I have done the Cherry Picker method 3 times, it works, just have to be careful.
 
I do already have an American made 2-post.
Just need to replace the sliding blocks.
Which means taking it down to install them, then put it back up.
 
As the blood drained from my face in horror, I paid for my Scorpion shaft rockers today. :eek:
$1,636.36 and will finally be here next week.
This is despite a 10% discount which just about covered the bronze bushing upgrade.
This HAS to be the LAST insanely expensive item for this car.
Paint is going to be single stage enamel.
 
I wouldn't want to rebuild my car in this economy. So good on you for sticking with it and still buying quality parts. I think we've all learned the hard lesson of buying it twice or more with cheap parts. How much is your peace of mind and time worth. To me, money and time well spent on your behalf.
 
Got the local body guy to come out and look at the El Camino 1/4 panel repairs this morning.
He is willing but does not seem enthusiastic.
So I guess I am probably back to doing it myself.
Time, harder to find than money!
 
Scorpion rollers came today.
Now I get to figure out how to make them fit properly.
The stands are custom for these heads, with some relief cuts to the underside to help clear the ARP nuts.
So far it looks like I need to shorten eight studs by .350"
This assumes* that I will be using at least the thick shim under the rocker stands.
I may also cut the head stud pockets just a bit deeper, maybe .125" using a 24mm counter bore tool.
This is the only tool that is not stupid expensive and still a close fit.
Using some of the thinner ARP washers will also help.
Seems odd that Brownfield/AFR would use .920" Dia. head bolt pockets as that is NOT a standard size.
Of course to determine exactly how much shim is needed I first have to fit some lifters and my checking push rod plus Checking Springs to a pair of valves.

Not sure of the best way to shorten ARP studs?
Bench grinder is not on my list!

*Yep, still a very dangerous thing to do.
More checking required.
 
Scorpion rollers came today.
Now I get to figure out how to make them fit properly.
The stands are custom for these heads, with some relief cuts to the underside to help clear the ARP nuts.
So far it looks like I need to shorten eight studs by .350"
This assumes* that I will be using at least the thick shim under the rocker stands.
I may also cut the head stud pockets just a bit deeper, maybe .125" using a 24mm counter bore tool.
This is the only tool that is not stupid expensive and still a close fit.
Using some of the thinner ARP washers will also help.
Seems odd that Brownfield/AFR would use .920" Dia. head bolt pockets as that is NOT a standard size.
Of course to determine exactly how much shim is needed I first have to fit some lifters and my checking push rod plus Checking Springs to a pair of valves.

Not sure of the best way to shorten ARP studs?
Bench grinder is not on my list!

*Yep, still a very dangerous thing to do.
More checking required.
For checking springs I've used Bifold closet door springs from Home Depot, Seem to be the same as Comp Cams checker springs, I have flat ground ARP studs on a bench grinder using the side of the grinding wheel with a nut on the stud to debur afterwards, worked perfectly and if you have enough threads dbl nut so the depth gauge nut doesn't spin only leaving the amount of threads you want to remove, I had to do that on my Brodix heads ARP Exh studs, still have the first set of ARP studs that were too short for good geometry for my liking
 
Studs cut on the lathe, head recesses cut on the vertical mill.
Nice to have this little job done at last.
Bought epoxy at Summit racing the other day, went with some high temp Permatex.
Set the manifold on and stuck a distributor in place, then put a few bolts in.
That removed most of the play from the intake.
I adjusted it for the best fit and have marked which side of each divider needs to be built up.
I intend to cut some horizontal slots into the intake port walls to help with adhesion.
I will be removing much more metal from the overhanging side than I am building up the stepped side.
 
A little more progress on the EC engine today.
I installed checking springs into #1.
I put some balls of clay on the top of the piston in several spots.
Assembled the shaft rockers and set the adjusters 1.5 turns down from all the way up.
Found my best valve stem pattern with just the intermediate thickness shims.
Also determined pushrod length with adjusters 1.5 turns down and .020 lash.
Intake 7.921", Exhaust 7.891" end to end.
.030" difference is not a real surprise as these are splayed heads.
Except for quench my balls of clay remained untouched so I have plenty of clearance.
I may repeat this one more time with thicker clay to get a more exact measurement.
My valve lift is not extreme so I was always confident they would clear.
I could almost put the heads on for real now.

One concern does come up.
Every stud is a "Wet" hole.
ARP wants me to use their lube on the threads but I doubt that it is a super sealant.
What are you guys using?
 
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