In hopes of putting your mind at ease on this issue a little, I'll share some of my studying on the issue oil flow and sludge concerns which appear often on these forums.


It is NEAR - if not ABSOLUTELY - impossible for chunks of chain guides (as well as caked oil deposits -"sludge"-) to get into the oil passages in the 5.4L engine. If it isn't stopped by the oil pickup screen, it would pass easily through the 'gearator' type oil pump and be stopped by the oil filter. From there the clean, pure, "hot" oil is enclosed within the main oil supply gallery in the engine block and not susceptible to contamination. It is moving fairly fast and not susceptible to roasting or frying into the typical pumice type deposits. The galleys carry what is not used in lubricating the bottom end through "restrictors" into passage ways in the heads where, again, it is still hot clean, filtered, protected, supply oil until it lubricates the cam journals and lash adjusters, where some "splashes" on lobes and followers and becomes return oil draining back into the pan. The rest continues on through the screens of the VCT Solenoids and then into the phasers and chain tensioners where leakage, splash, and bleed-off from phaser actuation drains back down the timing chain cover / chain and into the pan, where the cycle repeats. Any junk in the passage ways would be stopped by the solenoid screens to protect the phasers.


An interesting article on this subject (although it is slow to load) is at:
http://www.justanswer.com/ford/4glhq...m-heads-5.html


However, I do believe it is "imperative to check/clean the oil pickup screen. ANY junk or sludge in the pan will ultimately cover the screen and cause the oil pump to "cavitate" and churn the oil up into foam - causing definite oil pressure problems.


Wishing you good luck - and following your progress. Thanks for sharing with us.

 

Thanks for the parts list, looking forward to hearing about the outcome.

as far as the lash adjusters go, a simple YouTube search will teach you just about all you need to know about replacing them. the good news is, there is no adjustment required as far as timing goes, because they are run by oil pressure. the cam takes care of all of that.

 

we're kind of in a holding pattern until the parts come in, should be here tomorrow.

 

we got the vct's, timing chains, guides, tensioners, phasers and water pump replaced.
cleaned the parts, son wanted to paint them so what the heck? looks good i think.
should have it all buttoned up this afternoon and we'll give it a test run and let you all know.

 

truck started up with no issues and seems to run good.
there is still a ticking noise on the right side of the engine.
we did not check lifters or valve adjusters. might need to replace them. wish i would have known that before putting everything back together...

 

Not to poke you in the eye, but I wish you had checked that too. Mine has had that annoying tick for 200k miles and I'd love to know what it REALLY is. I think my short 2 - 3 sec noise on cold soak is the chain touching the cover before tensioners take up any slack. And I'm pretty sure the diesel noise comes from slop in the locking pin less than about 850 Rs. But that damn tick sounds like its coming from everywhere around the A/C dryer.


I'd love to know what you find - if you find it.

 

well my son was quick on getting it put back together while i was out of town.
i've ordered 24 lifters and the 3v spring compression tool. should be here by the end of the week.
i did drive the truck yesterday and the engine felt really good... actually strong would be a good word. much better than before. the ticking noise is coming from the driver's side valve cover. with a new front timing assembly you can hear the lifter tick.
removing the valve covers again is not that big of a deal as the front cover, but it is a chore.
with 180k on the clock i'm just going to replace all the lifters. thinking about replacing the roller rockers also, but they looked good when i had the covers off.
i'll post pics of that evolution when we start...

 

Can you pull the lifters out without pulling the cam?

 

yes, you can pull the lifters without removing the cam.
you just need to remove the roller rockers first.
you need a spring compression tool and pop the rocker out then pull/replace the lifter.

Super price on OTC Tools - 303-1039 at ToolTopia.com


there are cheaper places to find this tool (amazon is the cheapest i've found online) but thats it.

 

btw, we drove the truck 50 miles yesterday and the ticking stopped and now the truck sounds great.
maybe one of the lifters were just stuck and it freed up.
who knows. but the engine sounds great now and pulls hard.
now on to the next project...
tomorrow we get the tires... cooper discoverer RTX's and we ordered a cat back flowmaster 44 exhaust system with dual black chrome 18 inch tips.

 

Glad to hear everything worked out for you! builds my ambition to try it myself.
are there any tricks or advice that you have for someone attempting the same job? and do you plan on replacing the lifters anyway?

 

@mjlewis;


Did you remove the passenger side valve cover without discharging the A/C to remove the metal coolant line? Any words of advice in that area? I'm in about the same stage as Flatbed79F250.

 

yes we were able to remove the passenger side VC without touching the AC. but you have to remove the VCT valve first.
its a tight fit.

 

got the F150 back in the garage to replace all 24 lash adjusters.
i got the fancy OTC spring compression tool and lifters.

question do i have to 'prime' the lifters before i install the new ones?

thanks.

 

I believe I would prime them somehow. I'll be following your results - and may be trying to relieve you of your fancy spring compression tool when you're done!