Those springs are not set-up for solid roller.

They didn't dis assemble the heads and check everything? I have never seeen a complete head that was bought that was set up right. Thats why most builder want them bare.


post the pics....
sounds like you have alot of problems

 

I agree that there's a lot of problems at this point. I thought that the springs were only good for .600 lift, and even if my cam had less "lift" than .600, I would be skeptical that it could handle the duration; i.e. higher rpm. He told me the springs that came with the heads can handle solid roller set-up's, which to me does not sound rights.

The heads were disassembled when the porting was done, and he says th spring pressures were more than sufficient for the custom solid cam!? For those that don't know, the LT1/4 engine has a front mount distributor known as an opti-spark. When I first got the engine, it would not start. It turned out he installed it incorrectly.

 

I was not aware of that.

What are the spring pressures etc? installed height open pressure? all that should be on the build sheet.

 

I wasn't trying to insult anyone or put them down, it was merely to illustrate that the problem is more difficult than it seems to be. My apologies to those that made that interpretation. Others have asked for pics, which I'll post soon, but it's already starting to look like someone may have solved the issue.

It was mentioned that the standard valve springs that come AFR 210 race readies are not sufficient to handle a solid set up-which would explain why these problems are happening.

 

I didn't get a build sheet that had these specifications. I was only told that the springs were checked and had ample pressure...whatever that means. It they are in fact the wrong ones, I think it's fair to say that's a deplorable oversight.

Another thing that I'm wondering is why he installed aluminum rockers on the engine. I had a few people wondering (before I ever fired the engine) if they would even last given the application. I just accepted the builders judgment and figured he had a good reason for it; yet after the first failure, he switched all the rockers with steel ones?

I'm starting to wonder if the thicker head gaskets were put on because the piston-to-valve clearance was too close or even touching? I'm not going to speculate because I don't know enough about proper performance set-up's

 

Sounds to me like you need a new builder.

 

Wow, after reading this whole thing, it sounds like you need to go through your whole topend. I even wonder if he has solid lifters in there.

 

Well, I dropped off the car today. The engine builder seems like a very honest guy and going to do everything necessary to make it right. I should know something soon.

The springs turned out to be ok. AFR says they're more than sufficient.

Interestingly, when he started taking apart the valve train, ALL of the push rods were breaking, or at least starting to.

 

What kind of pushrods did he put in your car?

 

There are waaaaaaaaaaay too many variables here for anyone here to help you, without having more detail and specs.

Just saying "those springs are good" means nothing. An engine builder should know what springs he is putting on a set of heads and he should know what they can, and cant do.

The springs were set up at AFR but the heads were dissasembled to be ported further? I am not sure I follow you there. You said race ready heads from AFR which would mean you had a set of heads ported by AFR. But you say they were dissasembled for porting... why? The entire top end of your motor needs to be gone over with proper measurements and tests to determine if it will work or not. The springs required are determined mostly by the cam. There are a few other items that can have an affect on proper spring pressure and installed height but for the most part the cam manufacture will tell you what to use. Not "they are good enough for a SR". Your cam is not that big honestly... I have a much bigger SR in my 355...


Also you can not tell how thich a head gasket is just by looking at it. If piston to valve clearance is wrong you do not adjust for it with head gaskets. You need to cut the pistons.

I also dont know why the builder would think its valve float... if he set up the springs he should know what they can do. If he just tossed in a cam without checking the springs first, you should find a new builder.

If you were losing power at 5000 rpm then someone really screwed up. A stock cam and springs will rev past 5k. It really sounds like you are either not getting the full story or your builder is not explaining to you what the problem is because you are not that familiar with what he is talking about.

BTW, FYI, this board is heavy with LT1/4 people and we are very familiar with an optispark...

 

I'm concerned that if the OP isn't very knowledgable, he might not realize that the builder doesn't know as much as he should.

 

You're correct! I know the basics of an engine, but not to a mechanic's degree. This is why I'm seeking feedback from others.

 

It just puts you in a tough spot. Good thing the guy seems honest at least. Maybe he will get it fixed for you after a couple tries.

 

I'll try to get more details from him. I just don't want speculate about parts I'm unsure of.

The technical advisor at AFR is the one who told me they were good enough. But I agree, it's not that simple; especially with a solid roller set up.

Yes, I tried to buy the AFR 210 Competition port package but the wait was more than 3 months! The builder told me to just get the race ready set and his head porting person could really improve them. They ended up flowing 313 cfm at Westech Racing in Mira Loma, CA. I had others tell me the same thing you have about the cam size itself, that they've run larger cams. In another thread, someone was running a larger solid than mine with suposedly the same springs that I'm running.

I asked him about the gasket and he's assured me that the piston-to-valve clearance is plenty. He said installed thick Cometics to decrease compression.

He did check the pressure before installing them back on the head and said they had enough pressure. He suggested after seeing the problems that maybe they're still not god enough. Yesterday he thought the push rods weren't strong enough, but doesn't know if that's the problem. I heard today from another professional builder that 3/8th's push rods must be used over 5/16th's in order to be reliable. I don't know what size was on there.

It should definately be making power over 6000 rpm's let alone 5000. It's my suspicion that he honestly doesn't know what's causing the problem yet.

I guess I forgot where I was posting. LOL

 

I'm a good judge of character. He seems genuinely concerned about making it right. He doing a leak down test on all the cylinders so I should know the status of that tomorrow.