What is the best bang for the buck for springs, lifters, and push rods. I am rebuilding my top end and need help quick. I am not porting the heads or the intake because of money reason's and just want to fix the head gasket. What parts should I buy with a car with over 160,000 miles. Are LT4 lifter and springs pointless? Just want the car to run strong for the next 3-4 years before I totally do the engine with a 383.

 

If I were you I would buy parts now that will work with your future plans. If you don't, you will be in the same boat I am in........I bought LT4 springs and 1.6 self aligning roller rockers for mine last year. Now i'm looking at swapping the cam and for that I'll be tearing off the self aligning RR's and replacing them with non-self aligning RR's hardened pushrods and guideplates as well as springs to take the higher lift......So the $400 I spent last year will end up in the classified section.
Also I would suggest LS7 lifters

 

LS7 lifters... very cheap and extremely reliable. They are built to handle higher rpms than your car will ever see.

Pushrods, I am still running stock pushrods with my heads/cam car so I have no recommendations there.

I'm running 918 "Beehives" and they've been just fine for me. Not extremely expensive.

While you're there, you should find a used cam for 100 bucks or so and pep up the car.

 

I went to autozone.com and they want $250 for lifters!! I just don't want to go to crazy because the go is to slap on the head gaskets and go. But while I am there I want fresh parts I guess not high performance. I don't want to do the cam. I will go all out way later on, just want to drive the car and not be broke.

What are the BEST HEADGASKETS? I saw some on autozone.com for $96. I think there all steel.

 

Stock lifters [Mine held 6500rpm with a CC306 no problem]
Stock pushrods [Low spring pressures and tame lobes dont need anything crazy, but you can get Comp Hardened ones for $25]
Stock springs [$50 for LT4/Hotcam ones are cheap insurance and can handle a Hotcam or XE503 down the road]
Stock Rocker studs
Stock rocker arms [You can get 1.6 3/8" rockers for $150ish and it would free up some power]
New valve stem seals [$30]
Felpro/GM Impala/Mr. Gakset heada gaskets [$40-45] [Felpro work great, but if you want a little extra compression for a camshaft later one get the thinner Impala or Mr. Gasket ones]
New Head bolts [$25 - You need these since stock torque to yeild cannont be resued]
Intake Gasket set [$25]

So your looking at least $130 just to do new head gaskets and $190ish for some better valve springs. Folks are selling Hotcams for $100 that you could toss in there if you want since you have the intake off anyways. There is NO reason, NONE, to run LS7 lifters, especially on a stock cam. Hell you can even run a Hotcam with stock rockers if you want considering how tame the lobes are.

I have sets of good stock lifters lying around along with a few other stock valvetrain parts if you need anything.

-Dustin-

 

X2, use stock parts and find a small used cam. Done deal.

 

My LS7 lifters were only a little over $100, I got them from www.gmpartsdirect.com

 

Yep, that's where I got mine. Don't buy anything else from there if you don't want to get butt-raped on shipping.

 

Thanks for the list guys. Just that I think the lifters are done because when a little bit coolant mixed and I could hear the lifters tick loud for 15 min but it did go away.

How can I tell if the springs are bad? Do they just wear?

 

Springs will fatigue. I have good spare stock lifters if you want a set PM me and I'll send you my paypal. $40 sound fair?

-Dustin-

 

1.6 Scorpion rockers nsa (I use them and they work very well), Patriot springs (Recommended by Lloyd Elliot), LS7 lifters like mentioned above and some trick flow chromoly pushrods. Make sure you get a pushrod checker so you can get the correct pushrod length. This will get you a stout top end imo. Then some ported heads, intake and a cam and you will be on your way.

 

I feel like some of you guys are not understanding what he's looking to do here.

-Dustin-

 

Uhhh.

 

If you are buying any kind of lifters at all, buy the LS7 lifters. This way, you won't have to purchase lifters a SECOND time when you do the 383. They are lighter weight and more reliable and they won't cost you much at all. If you buy all used stock replacement parts now you will increase your total amount spent by at least 40-50% by the time you replace everything again for the 383.

 

I got my LS7 lifters from Scoggin Dickeys. They were $100. If you were looking for a cheap and good set of springs a while back, I would recommend the Crane 10308 kit, but you can no longer buy that kit new since Crane went out of business. LT4 springs and GMPP 1.6 SA rockers will be good if you are running a stock cam. If you just blew a headgasket why are you replacing the valvetrain? I would just replace the head gasket and be done with it if it was me.