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I think members of the forum would benefit from knowing what was causing the rockers to break. For this reason, and this reason alone, I am leaving this thread open for now. This way, if Chris wishes to share with the forum the findings of Dwayne Gutridge, he can. Mr. Gutridge mentioned getting to the root of the problem. I think we would all benefit from knowing the root of the problem.

Mark or I will lock this thread up after Chris posts the findings of Dwayne Gutridge, or in about a week even if Chris hasn't posted by then.

In the mean time I would like to request that other members refrain from posting in this thread. I think everything that needs to be expressed has already been expressed.

I've allowed this thread to stand without locking it down first to avoid people thinking I was in some way protecting MME, because I have recommended MME to members here. Another reason for allowing this thread to stand was as an experiment, to see what would happen. I will summarize my thoughts on that at some time in the future, after Chris has had a chance to post Dwayne Gutridge's findings.

cowboy from hell
OK GEORGE - The bottom line is that incorrect part selection and incorrect set up resulted in a valve train that was out of control. A 12 page report was generated by Jesel detailing all the issues.

The issues that are happening are real and forum members should have the chance to judge for themselves the merits of any vendor they are considering using.

Chris Lewis
Interesting.

They way I read it it says 1)normally this kind of failure is only found in coil bind situations. There was no coil bind found.

2)It could have been caused by the adjuster nut being held on by only 1-1/2 threads. That was because the push rods were too long.

3) More likely it occurred because the pushrods were flexing because they weren't strong enough for the spring pressure.

4)The spring pressures may have been excessive or the cam profile too radical for the springs to maintain proper control of the valve train.

5)the rocker arms may have failed because the pushrods "flexed" enough for them to come out of their guides, the rocker arms then were uncontrolled and crashed on something or each other, bound and broke.

In my experience the pushrods are the fuseable link, i.e., they bend or brake first. That is what you want to keep the valve stems from the part that needs to fail. Therefore they probably aren't a mismatch at all. They didn't break. They are the super hardened ones and don't bend at all. When they fail the tips usually shatter. Ask me how I know that one.

Bottom line conclusion, the cam is PROBABLY too radical for DEPENDABLE street use, spring pressures PROBABLY too high for longevity BUT no one can prove it.

Culpret? ...drum roll here...who picked the cam? Great suspense but a predictable ending.

Incidentally I am sorry for your grief, expense and heartache. It's a lousy situation. I'm not picking on anyone or making fun of anyone. Live and learn I guess? I still am.
Some additional information for the forum.

The springs on the head are Manley Part No. 221424-16. The retainer found on them was tool steel and did not fit the springs. The retainers were loose on the springs not fitting properly at all.

According to Manley the correct retainer is a titanium piece that fits precisely this spring set. Please feel free to verify this with Manley.

Based on the all the evidence of the valve train not being in proper control I feel that it points to two basic areas: A)Mistakes in part selection (1. Wrong retainers, 2. Improper length pushrods) and B)Mistakes in the set-up.(1. Not properly shimming the springs to limit any tendencey for resonance. 2. Improper setting of the lash adjusters, thereby negativley affecting the geometry of the push rods vs the tail of the rocker arms.)

Anyhow that is how I read the report.
Hey, Doug,
>2)It could have been caused by the adjuster nut being held on by only 1-1/2 threads. That was because the push rods were too long.

Actually the push rods were to short. A shaft system needs to have the adjuster in the middle of it's travel, Doug.

> 5)the rocker arms may have failed because the pushrods "flexed" enough for them to come out of their guides, the rocker arms then were uncontrolled and crashed on something or each other, bound and broke.

The puhrods could not come out of their guides, because there are no guides on a shaft system.

> Culpret? ...drum roll here...who picked the cam? Great suspense but a predictable ending.
Well here it comes it's, it's,it's---------_________>MME's pick!


Thanks, P-MAXIMUS
Thanks Max, got me on that one, I kept thinking rocker studs, sorry. T many Martuni's.

I would have bet that the bottom of the arms hit the spring retainers, especially with a short push rod. No mention of that though.

These rocker arms were the cup design right? 1-1/2 threads. Wow. Even I wouldn't do that.

I do know that I didn't spec the cam, and am really glad about that one. Smiler
Something else to think about.

1. Where the pedestals the correct ones ? where they the correct hieght ?
2. Where the heads milled the proper hieght by CHI ?

All this would have contributed to the incorrect geometry not just a push rod too long.

The rest of the surge and bounce theory with the wrong retainers caused the overheating on the shaft and rocker arm potentially combined with the bolt caught on the last thread ... too bad we didnt still have a broken rocker for it to be tested for stress cracks and see if over heating was the cause ? hint hint.

Ron
Thanks for the report,it makes for a very interesting and educational read.
My next engine is with shaft Jessels, and I notice that they say correct pushrod length is crutial, that is why they give you an adjustable pushrod, to set the correct length. With the advise given in the report I will put that technology towards my new engine.
Thanks, and good luck.
For the record I also believe it was wrong length pushrod. I have seen this before on engines down under.
Good luck.
Guys

First ... thanks for keeping things respectful. That's my biggest concern. I don't want members hurling insults at one another.

Second, I agree it would be nice to keep this thread open and give MME a chance to respond, so I'll do that. But I ask your cooperation. The chances of MME responding will be much better if the tone of the thread is not combative, accusatory, derogatory, etc. Give MME some respect too.

Lets stay focused on getting to the bottom of why the parts failed, that is something everyone can learn from. Its obvious to everyone here there is a dispute between MME & Chris, if that dispute spills back into the thread, the conditions will deteriorate & at that point any open dialog about why the parts failed will come to a grinding halt. Lets allow that dispute to remain private, and make MME feel welcome to discuss the parts failure & findings of Jessel. Deal?

cowboy from hell
quote:
Originally posted by accobra:
Something else to think about.

1. Where the pedestals the correct ones ? where they the correct hieght ?
2. Where the heads milled the proper hieght by CHI ?

All this would have contributed to the incorrect geometry not just a push rod too long.

The rest of the surge and bounce theory with the wrong retainers caused the overheating on the shaft and rocker arm potentially combined with the bolt caught on the last thread ... too bad we didnt still have a broken rocker for it to be tested for stress cracks and see if over heating was the cause ? hint hint.

Ron


Yea, I agree. The too long or too short of the push rod and the 1-1/2 thread business is still confusing to me. What is the difference in length of the push rod between 1-1/2 threads and 3-1/2 threads? Is that in the pedistal height or is that in the head gasket thickness?

I'm going to stick with stud mounted rockers. I understand them much better.

I didn't know that a spring can have too much clearance.

I think the reason is that these are some of the things that normally don't get looked at on an under 7000 rpm engine. I think that this is 7 to 10 thousand rpm race detailing.

I'm thinking that I wouldn't count on the springs being wrong for the application. The retainers being steel or titanium, what does it really matter? The important thing for me would be to match a CompCams retainer and a CompCams spring. They may have been the best choice for the application.

Exactly where in the manufactuters specs are the spring oscillations specified? Wink
Doug - Let explain why the retainer mismatch matters. It was not a mismacth simply of material.

The tool steel retainer was wrong based on FIT, not just material. The retainer found on the spring did not fit snugly inside the diameter of the spring set. This then permits the spring and valve a greater a range of movement contributing to the lack of control exhibited in the valve train.

When checked with Manley it turns out that the only Manley part that fits that spring set correctly is a titanium retainer.

So again this demonstrates another instance where parts selected were not the correct ones.

None of the valve train parts inclusive of the cam were chosen or specified by me. I left it up to the engine builder.
I get what you are saying.

You have the part number of the spring. What is the recommended retainer? If these are all part of the "cam kit" then the argument should be with the cam manufacturer?

Maybe all of these "issues" contributed to the failure but I'll be you a nickel that the design of the arm gets modified so that this can't happen again. Bottom line, the arms failed and they shouldn't have. Use the stainless steel roller rockers instead of aluminum. Greater tensile strength. Would they have failed too? I don't know?

Yes. You paid the builder to make the RIGHT decisions for you. Got it! Smiler
Doug - The recomended part number for that spring set specifies a titanium retainer. According to Manley there is only one correct part number made by them for that spring set.

Again this why I am saying this was an error in part selection. Sorry if I was not clear the first time.

If I had stainless rockers I am sure that something more critical may have gotten broken, like maybe a valve dropping a head into the cylinder. As far as I'm concerned I was actually something worse did not occur requiring a far more expensive fix than waht i am looking at now.

Anyway you slice it an engine should not be breaking itself at less than 1500 street driven miles.
How can you blame Jesel for shipping parts the engine builder ordered?

The rocker arms were what was specified by MME, so if they were wrong for that application,

(Which nobody has said they were wrong. Jesel was given full specs of the cam and they said that the cam specs IN NO WAY EXCEEDED the capabilities of the the Pro Series Shaft Rockers.)

again wrong part selection. Again this would be the responsibility of the engine builder.

THE ROCKER ARMS WERE MOST DEFINITELY NOT THE REASON THINGS STARTED FALLING APART.
Things? What broke besides the rocker arms?

The explanation from the examiner is why he thought they failed.

They failed #1 because there was only 1-1/2 threads left to go before the adjusting cup bottomed out and because of the way the threads are cut on it, at that point was expanding the aluminum in the tip of the rocker enough to begin a stress riser.

The tensile strength of a stainless steel arm is much greater. Probably enough to have prevented the stress riser from starting. This is a strength of materials class. That's all.

Were all of the rocker adjuster cups set at the same height including the ones that didn't break?

You have hydraulic lifters. The plus/minus on the centering the plunger on them is more then a couple of threads on the adjuster. They are not all going to be exactly the same.

You use the shaft/rockers to eliminate the need for guides. The bearing assembly in the arm eliminates sway. What slop in the assembly? The arms? Again the arms are the only thing that failed.

When he is talking about excessive accelleration, he is talking about the rate at which the valve is opening because of the rate of angle of the lifter lobe. This is a roller lifter cam. What is unusual about that? That's the benefit of a roller lifter. It can open and close faster then a standard lifter cam.

Does that cause oscillation? I guess.

It didn't last? It lasted plus or minus what any race valve train would.

Should it be in a street engine expected to last 100,000 miles? AH HAH. Inspector Cleseau says NO, NO. NO, I have solvead the crime!

Kato? Kato? Where are you, you swine? roll on floor
Doug -

A) I do not have hydraulic lifters. I have mechanical roller lifters.

B)The rocker arms broke as a result of bad parts selection, lack of attention to detail and poor set up of the valve train. The breakage was a symptom, not a cause in and of itself.

The rocker arms themselves were not defective in material or workmanship. They have proven themselves in more severe applications when properly set up.

It should be pretty clear what the issues were that resulted in failure and it was NOT THE ROCKER ARMS THEMSELVES
As Doug is trying to explain to you ... A CAM usually comes with recommended valve train parts PER THE MANUFACTURER for most applications ... I purchase materials every day and LATELTY everything is getting shipped wrong ...boxed wrong, packaged wrong. All I say its a possibilty ... but as you made your point in not the same words ..the engine builder should have checked all this, your correct.

Read between the lines ... all the parties involved are not going to give you a straight answer .. who did the report and who paid them to do it. Take it for what its worth and have Mel analyis it further.

The rocker arms were the reason things fell apart ..they broke ... but not the cause of the failure.

What you need to do is pull the motor and redo the valve train.
Years and years ago a person could walk into a Shelby/Ford dealership and purchase a factory built race car and drive it home. My how times have changed?

The strange thing about it was that the only thing that was not really a race part was the engine.

Sure it was hotter then the regular Mustang GT BUT it was the same engine as supplied in the production Shelby GT350 street car. Why?

To avoid the inevitable hard feelings between the two parties, the buyer and the seller when the "super duper race engine" broke.

This certainly to me is a case in point. You have a race engine with all of the warts that go along with it. The reality is that even if you paid a "gazzillion dollars" for it and Jack Roush built it for you, at some point it is going to break. As the owner of it I would hope later rather then sooner, but it is inevitable.

To me the mistake here was made by both parties in that the buyer had no idea what the nature of this engine was going to be and the seller presumed that the buyer understood the nature of the engine he was getting.

The logic that I see is that if you don't like the risk inherent to the valve train in this type of engine, change it.

Bottom line is, ALL THAT HAPPENED WAS THAT THE ROCKER ARMS BROKE. Blame it on the Bush Administration. Everything else is.
For the Forum Participants

As you can see still no response from those who shall remain nameless.

I hope you took the time to read the report for yourselves.

The latest is that the engine will be pulled within the next couple of weeks hopefully.

The word has gone out to the Jersey Panteras membership and I will try to pick a Saturday when the most members are available to help. It should only take a few hours to get the engine out.

I plan to re-spec the entire valve train. I have not decided at this point whether I will stay with a mechanical roller or change to a hydraulic roller set-up.

I will say given the overall poor attention to detail, cutting of corners, and the lack of checking whether things were set up correctly to begin with my plan is to thoroughly examine every aspect of the motor. I will be photographically documenting anything found.

If the engine ends up requiring a complete re-build I just hope I can have my car ready for next years CSD and other shows.

I am still absolutely blown away as to how an engine built by a quote "top builder" could require a complete rebuild with less than 1500 miles.

Thanks to all the people who showed support for my situation both publicly and privately.

I will keep you updated.

Chris Lewis
Ron Lombardo (accobra)- As usual your response is clearly an attempt to instigate and distort the situation.

There is no shortage of qualified local engine builders that are willing to take on this job, so no worries there.

I did say that I was going to re-spec the entire valve train, yes? I am assuming you can read, if only selectively.

If I go to a hydraulic roller set-up I will get a compatible cam ground and installed. It should have been clear to you but either you didn't read what I wrote or you are just looking to distort the conversation.

As for your comment about only getting 1500 miles, why is that funny? It is very apparent from your comments that you enjoy other people's misfortune.

Again I did not do ANYTHING wrong here.

I went with a builder whose reputation was good from everything I could research. When it came down to it they cut corners on the build leading to an early demise for the engine. Due to lack of customer service skills or really caring about their customers it became an issue that I shared with the forum so that other Pantera owners could be aware.

I have nothing to hide or be ashamed of, so why do you keep trying to push it back on me?

Maybe your answer will be something other than your usual sarcasm and sniping. If you have an answer that has some subtsance it is most welcome.

If your response is the usual sarcasm that we have come to expect from you here I am sure that the forum members will see it for what it is.

-Chris Lewis
Chris

Your limited intellegence is the reason you dont understand my statements.

Chris your pulling an expensive motor outside in a gravel driveway in New York at the begining of the winter ... give the car to a professional shop and let him fix it for you inside a shop .. other wise this situation is going to go on forever and you will never get to drive your car. Give the car to OLSEN or Cerralli ... you want intellegent conversation ..no sarcazm ..here it is !

Ron
Yikes! Do you guys drive by each others houses and shoot out the windows too?

I was going to bring my hoist but maybe I should bring a gun?

Chris seriously. Are you going to pull the engine on an unpaved driveway? I hope that is a joke?

The hoist, at least mine would be fully extended to reach the sucker and you are going to need to roll the hoist back on a good concrete slab. The wheels are cast iron and you would wind up bending the legs and maybe tipping the hoist.

Wait? Your engine is all aluminum? No problem then. Six guys lots of beer and pizza. Who needs a hoist?
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