1.6 rocker arm CLEARANCE?

[jess66chevy]

Did anyone run into clearence problems putting in 1.6 rocker arms on SHORTIE style valve covers???

[BTCHN 1963]

I am running thick valve cover gaskets and don't have any issues. Did you drill out the holes in the heads where the push rods go through? Also did you check the pattern on the valve tips to see is you need a different size push rod? By the way what size cam are you running and what engine?

[jess66chevy]

I didnt drill out anything or do anything to the heads. Someone just told me one time that if you changed to 1.6 roller rockers, you could get a little more horsepower. I have a 283 with a mild cam in it. Here are the ones I want to put on my truck.

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/SU...7/?image=large

What do you think?

[60ratrod]

i put a set of 1.6 roller tips on a stock(as far as i could tell at the time) 350 and i had the short style finned weiand valve covers and never encountered any clearance issues. its mostly when you step up to either stainless or aluminum full rollers is when you run into clearance issues cause of the larger body. but stamped steel roller tips won't cause any valve cover clearance issues. but like what was said before is you might run into push rod guide hole clearance issues. so be sure to check for binding on the heads when you are installing and adjusting them. but with a mild cam they should just be a bolt and go upgrade

[BTCHN 1963]

Jess66chevy,
You may get lucky and not need to clearance the holes but it is nice extra piece of mind. You can check them by either spraying them with some machinest dye or colored grease put on the push rod, I forgot what the grease is called. Then spin the motor over by hand and see if they rub. By the way drilling them out is not a big deal. you just go a couple sizes up on the hole size and use a hand drill. I just used my shop vac to suck up the chips from underneath while I was drilling. I did put some rags in the valley for extra insurance.
By the way the 1.6 rockers will give you about a .03 increase in lift, making the cam feel biger.
Before I forget for a mild cam and motor that will not see above 5500 rpm, I don't see that it is that checking the pattern at the valve tip will be that critical. It is to eliminate side load on the valves. But I would take the time to drill out the holes.
Edelbrock has a tech artical on adjusting the valves that makes quick work of it.
Rob

[jess66chevy]

Guys,
is it worth it for the horsepower gains? My engine will not be over 5500 RPM's anyway. The rockers from Summit are for "stock" heads so Im assuming there would be no clearance issues.

[60ratrod]

i think that it would be worth the hp gains. all these do is make your cam more agressive due to the extra lift they give. and the roller tips extend out the life of your valve stems cause of the reduced friction.

[Captainfab]

You still need to check for pushrod clearance going thru the head. It would also be advisable to check the contact pattern of the roller on the tips of the valve stems. Just my .02

Originally Posted by jess66chevy

Guys,
is it worth it for the horsepower gains? My engine will not be over 5500 RPM's anyway. The rockers from Summit are for "stock" heads so Im assuming there would be no clearance issues.

[shrunken66stroker]

Originally Posted by Captainfab

You still need to check for pushrod clearance going thru the head. It would also be advisable to check the contact pattern of the roller on the tips of the valve stems. Just my .02

Are there any other issues with stock heads and 1.6 rockers? I was in the engine section asking about this the other day. The issues brought up besides the ones already talked about here were press in studs pulling out of the head, needing guide plates, push rod length and springs handling the added lift. Somebody said the added lift wouldn't gain any hp but just make my engine/exhaust sound different. I'm so confused I'm going to leave mine alone.

[smoky02]

We installed some self aligning 1.6 rockers on my dads 283 with vortec heads. The pushrods where extremely close to hitting some we machined that down a little bit as we couldn't tell if it hit or not, and now he is running stock valve covers and having no problems.

[Captainfab]

When switching to 1.6 rockers you need to check for pushrod clearance, and check the contact area of the rocker on the valve stem. If it isn't in the center thru the range of valve lift, it can be corrected with custom length pushrods. Then of course you will need to make sure your valve springs can handle the increased lift as well as ensuring adequate spring retainer to valve seal clearance. Many guys just install 1.6 rockers and go, but that is not the correct way to do it......you're taking a big gamble not doing it right.

I can't speak from experience whether or not you can feel the difference in the butt-dyno, but it is bound to make a little difference in HP and TQ. Of course that also depends on the engine in question.

Originally Posted by shrunken66stroker

Are there any other issues with stock heads and 1.6 rockers? I was in the engine section asking about this the other day. The issues brought up besides the ones already talked about here were press in studs pulling out of the head, needing guide plates, push rod length and springs handling the added lift. Somebody said the added lift wouldn't gain any hp but just make my engine/exhaust sound different. I'm so confused I'm going to leave mine alone.

[jess66chevy]

So would I need longer push rods with 1.6 rockers on a 283?

[Captainfab]

I can't tell you that. You have to assemble everything with your stock pushrods and run thru the checking procedure and make that determination from the results.

Originally Posted by jess66chevy

So would I need longer push rods with 1.6 rockers on a 283?

[Sport/Truck]

Originally Posted by jess66chevy

So would I need longer push rods with 1.6 rockers on a 283?

Jess, I'll add that some "experts" will say just use your stock push rods. I had several people tell me I was wasting my time checking my pattern on my roller rockers and found I needed a .05 shorter length to get it dialed in.
I say take your time and make it right- you won't regret it.
s/t

[au03z71]

I have 1.6 Comp Gold Rollers on my 383 with Edelbrock finned valve covers. No issues.

[fiddy9apache]

im running 1.6 harland sharps with stock valve covers. im running a 7.100 hardend pushrod on my .570/.574 lift cam. but i also have alot of money into my vortech heads to work with the cam.