Tappet???
Thanks pros.
The reason your breathers are being soaked is the motor is getting older and it has blowby. With the PCV hooked up the blowby would get sucked into the carb.
The tappet noise is one or more lifters. This could be related to the PCV valve as well. The PCV keeps the crankcase pressures under control and helps with the oil control. Try hooking the PCV back up to one of the vacuum ports, preferably to the back one for the brake booster. Use a T to hook it up if you are using it for power brakes. As insurance, buy a new PCV.
Have you ever heard of turning the shop vac on and stick the hose in the valve cover and cup your hands around it to seal it?
When I took my first car to get an oil change at the quick lube, the guy stripped the pan bolt. When he went to replace it with a new one, the pan was already full of fresh oil. He had a co-worker hold the hose of the shop vac in the valve cover and seal it. He then removed the old plug to change it. The vacuum held the oil in the pan while the plug was removed so he could change it without wasting a drop of oil. That was a crash coarse in crank case pressures!





