Valve lash

[Anonymous]

I just rebuilt my solid lifter 170. I set the valve lash .016 cold. Now I find out it should be set hot. I don't like the pounding the valve train takes with big valve lash. I also don't like valves not closing good because of small valve lash. The way they are set now sounds like plenty of clearance. I know you can't set by sound, BUT, still sounds like plenty of lash. My vacuum guage sets just as steady as can be with 23" @ about 700 RPM. No indication there of to tight valves.

Should I reset the lash with engine hot. I wonder what the lash will be now if I check it hot? .001, .002, .003 less or how much? I'll find out because I'm going to check even if I don't change it.

BTW, less than 50 miles since rebuild.

L.D.

 

[rickwrench]

Set it hot. Setting it on the loose end of tolerance while cold gets you pretty close too, but why take a chance on a burnt exhaust valve?
Rick(wrench)

 

[Anonymous]

I have no idea what the recommended valve clearence is for a solid lifter 170. But i was totally surprised at the figure of .016. this is the gap typically used on points. I have had many solid lifter engines (mostly motorcycles but a couple cars) and worked on engines built in the 50's in the military. The largest lash i remember ever using was .006 exhaust and .004 intake (bsa motorcycle and this is horribly noisey) more typical was .03-.04 exhaust and .01-.02 intake. always set hot (always prefered while engine running if accessable). My 54 Lincoln was .01 intake and .02 exh. As i said i don't have any way to look up an I-6 170 so this is simply an observation not a recommendation. We used to buy these thin feeler gauges in strips about a foot long x 1" wide and break off the tips as they got peened out of shape(caused by doing a runnuing engine).

 

[Anonymous]

danwagon, good points. I remember older cars, older than what we are talking about here, having valve lash less than .10 and in. was even closer. I have a Studebaker and the lash is .026. Can you believe?

UPDATE


I just rum valve lash, engine hot, guess what, I had 2 intake valves that I had to kinda push hard to get the gauge in and then it had lots of drag. I loosened only about 1/16 or so round so the gauge would slip with just a little drag. My openion for what it is worth is don't make no difference where hot or cold when setting.
L.D.

 

[Anonymous]

Hey guys,

I have a 144 six in my 62 Falcon and I am currently having some of the same issues with valvetrain. First of all, my engine was rebuilt about 10k miles ago (I bought it like this). It began to idle rough along with some bad hesitation. I then bought a Ford factory manual from 1960-62 (the one techs used) for it and one of the suggestions was incorrect valve lash. I set about checking both cold and hot, and sure enough, both intake and exhaust were at zero! I followed the instructions in the factory manual and it said to set both intake and exhaust to .016, so I did. The result was awesome performance, a great exhaust note, and the incessant ticking. I tried several different tolerances including (these are all adjusted hot) .012, .010, and finally .008. At the last one, the peck was gone, but my loppy exhaust, rough idle, and bad performance were back!!! SO, now I've been running them at .012 and get great mileage, great performance, but the pecking drives me nuts!!! Any recommendations guys? BTW...I was reading that the 170 and 144 have the same specs, just different strokes. So any info you have on yours should help me.

Thanks so much for listening!

 

[jimarlie]

Sam,

Are you getting good oiling to the top end ?

Jim

 

[Anonymous]

Turn up the stereo. Replacing the weather stripping around the doors and glass and sound deadening stuff in the floors quieted my wagon down more than anything else. Solid lifters make noise especially when cold because they are just that- solid steel against solid steel and there has to be some clearance for very hot conditions as all the metal expands. Rough idle with too small a gap is generally the valve not closing completely or too soon and opening too late and compression escaping (great way to burn a valve).
I still have problem wrapping my mind around .016 lash. Triumph motor cycles are .003int and .006exh and they are noisey as hell plus they are air cooled aluminum which seems like it would grow more than cast iron water cooled. I typed .01 and .02 for my 54 Lincoln but i meant .001 and .002. kinda like the thickness of paper
I have a 144 and it runs great so i haven't looked under the valve cover but it is pretty quiet--makes a little ticking but i guess if i had only owned hydraluic lifters all my life it would be a lot more noticeable.

 

[Fred]

Didn't Ford make a weird little oval shaped spring thing to go between the valves and rockers on the latter solid lifter small sixes? The spring device would squish slightly when the valve was opened, thus acting a bit like a hydralic lifter and allowing zero lash. This could be the reason some motors are louder than others.

Be careful comparing old motors. Flatheads are much quieter than overheads because there is less stuff getting slapped back and forth and the valves are deeper in the block so less sound gets out. Also, Lincoln went to hydralic lifters in the '30s, so the '54 should have had no lash.

And just to be technically correct, normal typing paper is .004 to .005 thick (I just measured three sheets).

 

[Anonymous]

In 1953 Lincoln stated making an overhead valve V-8 the 54 was the same -a little larger cu in(called the V-205 -denoting HP) with an idle speed of 450 rpm. with a throttle body style 4 barrel, a 4 speed automatic and special low pressure tires for increased handling.
Not saying .016 is not correct just expressing my surprise at the size. Increased oiling in later models would probally allow larger clearences with larger oil cushioning.

 

[Fred]

Acually Lincoln went OHV in '52, the same year Ford brought out their first OHV six (even though they kept the flat six in big trucks through '53).

 

[Anonymous]

Triumph motor cycles are .003int and .006exh and they are noisey as hell plus they are air cooled aluminum which seems like it would grow more than cast iron water cooled.

The primary reason that the Triump is louder is as you mentioned due to the fact that it is air cooled. Water cooled engines are just beefier & quieter. If the valves start tapping on my Panhead, it tends to amplify noises through the tin covers etc.
Doug

 

[MustangSix]

The clickety-clickety is part of the charm of solid lifters. And the need for periodic adjustment is the zen which brings you closer to mechanical enlightenment.

 

[Anonymous]

The primary reason that the Triump is louder is as you mentioned due to the fact that it is air cooled. Water cooled engines are just beefier & quieter. If the valves start tapping on my Panhead, it tends to amplify noises through the tin covers etc.
Doug[/quote] This is 1 of the big reasons that people with older bikes abhore 3/4 and full helmets, that valve noise floats up into the helmet and resonates even more lol. My old BSA has a big tinny valve cover like your pan and it makes the old triumphs seem fairly quiet. There is a fair amount of Valve noise in my newer Harleys even though they are hydraulic lifters, 1 has 257 cans(570 lift) and it slams the valves closed so hard that it sounds like lash. Cars having hoods, winshields and firewalls insulate you from a lot of engine noise. I once drove from Daytona to Vermont in a 62 econline with the hood open(timing was wore out and had to drive with my hand on the dist. for over 1000 miles--now that was LOUD.

 

[Anonymous]

Danwagon, I installed a windshield on that pan and it breaks the wind, but it also funnels a ton of more engine noise up to the old noggin.