I don't think valvesprings are your problem. Did you adjust the valves with the motor running?...If not, you probably had them too tight.
Are you sure the cam/crank phasing is right? Did you line up the dots on the crank and cam?...Cam at 6 o'clock/crank at 12 o'clock.

Frank

 

Yep, dot to dot

 

im sure you know either the valves are extremely tight or the springs are coil binding to bend all 16 pushrods.

 

With #1 piston at TDC, right?

 

Yeppers

 

Double check with Shoebox, but I believe cam dot @ 6, crank @ 12 & cam dowel @ 3 is # 6 TDC.

Might make a difference...

 

You are exactly right. I said that wrong, its been a long couple of days. I did it dot to dot. Cam dot @ 6 and crank dot @ 12 with cam dowel pin at 3.

 

Dude sorry to hear about your luck.....I have done the same thing but i didn't adjust the rockers right and it bent a couple of them....good luck

 

Another thought is that I hear the Comp R lifters use very little lash. That means that the effective lift is a little more than with a standard lifter (won't be much, but a little). If the previous owner was not using Comp R's, maybe that is the difference. Check for coil bind as already suggested.

 

Someone on another board mentioned something about the LT1 being a non-interference engine. Is this true and if so, should I pull the heads anyways to check for valve kisses on the piston just incase? Thanks guys.

 

I think you mean interference (which it is), not the opposite. It depends on what caused your pushrods to bend in the first place. If there was that much contact, valve to piston, I would think you would hear it. If you can't figure out any other reason, pulling a head might be a good idea.

 

Heres a quick vid that my buddy made of the short time that the car ran. Sounds pretty nasty if you ask me. Lets just say I plan on yaking the heads after listening

Right Click, Save As

http://www.dragtruk.com/PICS/C1OHH07GWOA81.mpg

 

Sorry to hear about the luck.
Did you ever get the black rims on? Pics?

 

Hey, nah, just about the time I bought the rims, a friend of mine offered me a killer deal on the cam and springs that I just "installed" on my car so I never got them on. A buddy of mine was kinda in a bind and needed some rims so I let him have them. They are on a red Z28 with black stripes-VERY SHARP!

 

I think I would look at the cam and crank sprockets, first and then pull the heads if you wanted to inspect.