Hello, I've got a question about pushrods. I had an engine builder build my 390 fe and he used oil thru pushrods. The original pushrods are not oil thru rods as I'm sure most of you are aware. I'm using hydralic lifters with the original shaft rockers. I don't see how these oil thru rods will work together. I have just got the engine broken in and changed out the oil and filter and I've had trouble ever since. It will run for few miles then dies.
Could this be a problem with the lifters not holding pressure due to the oil thru rods? Sorry for the long question but I would really appreciate some advise on this.
Thanks, Don

 

When it dies, will it restart instantly, or have to wait 30 minutes or so, if you have to wait, I'd suspect loosing fire, or a problem with the fuel.

 

I have bought a new distributor and fuel pump and every thing looked good. I haven't got it started since last week when I drove it just around the block. Something is going on that I haven't encountered before and the pushrods are the only thing that might possibly cause this but i'm not sure. Thanks for your responce to my question.

 

For oil to pass through the pushrods, you would need a lifter that has an oil passage in the lifter itself located in the recessed cup of the lifter. FE lifters don't have that. Pretty much every valve pushrod on the market is made the same, with the material quality and precision of manufacturing being the main difference. A lightweight hollow tube cut to an exact length with each end (ball, cup, etc) welded in to place. I doubt the pushrods have anything to do with the run issue.

Depending on how long the vehicle sat while the engine was being rebuilt, you may have picked up a fuel delivery issue. Ethanol breaking down the fuel pump diaphragm, rust/debris in the fuel line somewhere, a gunked up fuel pickup sock in the tank, or a fuel filter that has clogged up. Semi-related to this is some people get the idea that, if one fuel filter is good, two or three fuel filters is even better. Depending on the year & model of the vehicle, the factory fuel filter could be mounted near the gas tank, on the fuel pump, or at the bowl inlet of the carburetor... I've come across vehicles that would have all three fuel filters installed, which means three filters to check & maintain when servicing.

 

FE pushrods have larger ball ends than those which are used in other Ford engines that don't oil the same way. I ran into this several years ago when I built a 428 with a hydraulic roller and stock non adjustable rocker arms. The lifters were the same ones as used in the 460 engine so after I figured out the length that I needed I had to order a custom pushrod with a 5/16 ball on one end and a 3/8 on the other.

 

I appreciate the feedback but in my 390 fe engine it has hydralic lifters with oil passages in the center of the cup. It has original shaft rockers that oil thru the shaft and rockers also. To me, using oil thru pushrods will force the oil to run back and forth from rockers and lifters not allowing the pressure to build up in lifters which in turn keeps the valves from opening and closing correctly. I have a pressure gage on the holly carb. that has a steady 6psi so I have eliminated a fuel problem. I guess I will have some solid rods made that way I'll know for sure. Thanks

 

Just out of curiosity, what is the oil pressure at idle when cold, and up at operating temp?

 

This truck has the original idiot pressure gage so I don't know the exact pressure. I do know it was reading on the high side when it was first broken in. I did get an oil pressure gage that I will put on there somewhere. I was hoping to keep it all original and not have a bunch of aftermarket gages mounted every where but I guess I'll need to get it done.

 

Just a suggestion, but you might try getting a test oil pressure gauge and hooking it up where the oil sender unit is. I don't trust my oil gauge in the instrument panel and will do this occasionally (once a year at most) for peace of mind. I too have original gauges and didn't want to add an aftermarket gauge.

 

I know that some engine builders do convert to the oil through pushrods & lifters while retaining the through the block rocker oiling passages. It's my understanding that this conversion is done to flood the valve springs with oil for additional cooling effect for the springs & retainers, usually for long pulls at high RPM (road race, oval track, pulling trucks, etc). With a street driven FE, it seems a bit overkill with the added expense of custom length pushrods to maintain valvetrain geometry, along with restricting oil flow through the block to the rocker shafts so you aren't completely flooding the top end.

 

I'm going to hook up a pressure gage just to see what it actually is. I got to get it running first.

 

The plastic line typically supplied with mechanical oil pressure gauges is okay for a temporary testing situation, but if you're planning to permanently mount a gauge in the vehicle, use the copper metal line. Most race tracks / drag strips don't allow the white plastic line to be used.

 

Oil thru push rods will not cause an issue unless they are to long causing loose of compression
Haven’t messed with new builds in a while but wasn’t aware of any FE lifters having oil thru holes, as I said it’s been a while other than the nos lifters we installed in a 360 last year
Do a compression test