<VV> Re: Lifters

[vairologist@juno.com]

Smitty says:  At the risk of restarting the thread;   I had a good laugh
at the arguments and opinions expressed by proponents of various types of
lifters.  You who have been around long enough to remember Corvairs in
the back row at used car lots will know this is true.  You could go down
the row and start them and some would clatter and some would not.  Some
would quiet down right after starting and others would clatter forever. 
I think it is the nature of the beast.  I think it is safe to say that
99% of them had original lifters in them.  Most had not enough miles on
them to require much more than an "O" ring job.  A great many were there
because they needed an "O" ring job.
        I bought two sets of aftermarket lifters once just because they
were cheap.  I am sorry I can not remember the trade name.  Anyway they
were of the wide dimple variety.  To make an observation that the deep
dimple lifters "oil better" is too general to have any value because the
cheapies I bought fired a jet of oil like a fire hose.  It was near
suicidal to try to do anything with the valve covers off.  In fact they
converted me to doing all cold lifter adjustments because they would lose
a quart of oil just adjusting one side.
        I see no real world advantage to any I have seen except that the
deep dimple bay provide a better fit to the end of the pushrod reducing
PSI loading, though I will not deny that a lack of oil output could be
detrimental.  Enjoy my opinion.