[updated:LAST EDITED ON 07-Apr-02 AT 10:32 AM (EST)]My newly rebuilt 351W ran like a scalded dog....for a lil over 300 miles, then developed a skip. We checked all the normal stuff like plugs and wires, then removed valve covers to check the valves. The pushrod on the intake for cylinder #5 is broken!! It had rubbed the guide plate until it was thin enough to bend. We checked the rest of them and found that all had varying degrees of scoring. We talked to several people (this being Saturday machine shops weren't open of course) and all said to open the guide plates up a little. So we did and installed a new set of pushrods. Drove it 5 miles and pulled the covers again....and they all show signs of wear. The heads are 66 289 heads that I bought from a guy at the machine shop where I had the engine bored. They've been ported and polished, bigger valves, and screw in studs. The shop did a valve job at the same time my engine was being bored. I also bought roller rockers from him that he said had been ran less than 100 miles. Both were on a drag car he had, before he switched to aluminum heads. I would have been leary but the owner of the machine shop told me what all had been done to the heads and said I would love em.....especially for the price. I'm taking these pushrods with me to the machine shop tomorrow but I wondered if anybody had ever experienced this and what they did.
Thanks for any input,

Ron

 

Did you use the hardened pushrods that are designed for guideplates?

 

Not to sound dumb (although there aint much way of avoiding that) but no. To be honest I didn't know they required special pushrods, nor did the guy that helped me (and this was his 73rd rebuild). This is my first rebuild and I had the machine shop get what I needed. They got my cam and lifters, pushrods, etc. And he did all the work on the engine and did a valve job on the heads before I brought it all home. Guess that'll be something else to ask him tomorrow. Thanks for the reply.

Ron

 

Yep, definitely need hardened pushrods with guide plates.Don't feel too bad we all live and learn from our mistakes.

Billy

 

First off thanks for the help here guys. I've been checking out pushrods at Jeg's and Summit and frankly I'm confused. Most all of them say they are heat treated but didnt find any that say they are hardened (or is that the same thing)? Some say they will work with or without guide plates. The prices range from $28 for a set of 16 to over $100. I'm a firm believer in you get what you pay for most of the time. Any ideas here? At this point I trust ya'll more than I do the machine shop.
Thanks again,
Ron

 

Not all heat treated pushrods are hardened for guideplates. The Crane cams pushrods that Summit has are about the best you can buy, but there probably overkill for most engines. I think the Summit brand ones would work fine for your application. Normally i wouldn't use the store brand engine parts but pushrods are pretty hard to screw up!

-Jon

 

That's what I ended up doing Jon. After looking all over the place I decided to err on the side of caution and ordered the Crane pushrods and guide plates from Summit. They aren't cheap......but hopefully will keep at least THIS problem from coming up again.
Thanks for the reply,
Ron