I'm assembling a bracket race 440 stroker motor with a set of 440-1 heads with a set of T&D single shaft 1.70 ratio rocker arms on both valves. it has a Jones solid roller lifter camshaft with .180 offset intake cup lifters along with the T&D offset intake rocker arms.
The cam card calls for .393 lobe lift on the intake lobes and .401 on the exhaust lobes, with .018 or tighter valve lash so that calculates out to be right at .650 net intake valve opening and .665 net lift on the exhaust valves.
I degree the cam in off of the lifters and then check the lobe separation angles(both intake and exhaust lobes) with light checking springs on the #1 valves along with checking the valve to piston clearances( it has .100 + PtoV clearances ). It had right at 5 degrees intake lobe advance and same amount on the exhaust side using a Cloyes 9 way timing set using the 4 degree advance keyway
I decided to set the valve lash cold on both valves using top dead center on the firing stroke and then redo them all using the race way, EO set intake lash, intake opens to max lift and starts to close set the exhaust lash with the heads torque down with the race valve springs and Manton series 5 pushrods. I saw a bunch of differences on the lash between those two methods I'm sure the rocker arm shaft deflecting causes that when the valve springs push down on the cam shaft and up on rocker arms
I ended up having to remove the heads to grind additional intake pushrod to head clearances on five of the intake port castings :wrench
Once I had the valve train set up the way I liked it I decided to check the net lift with the lash set .012 cold on both valves, I measured between .712 and .715 on the #1 and 2 intake retainers and .735 on both #1 and #2 exhaust valve retainers
I had set those heads up with the valve springs to have between .060 and .080 to coil bind with the smaller net lift so it was time to check them on the heads, I decided to check #2 first and found that by tightening up the intake valve opening by .060 on the intake valve and then checking it with a good dial indicator I was able to cycle it to max opening and still see a small amount of clearance between the valve spring coils with no noticeable hard spots while rotating the motor over. I then did the same on the #2 exhaust valve the same way and hit a hard spot just before max lift, NO GOOD
I'm now going to check every valve spring now on the heads using the rocker arms on those valve springs and remove the shims needed to get .060 from coil bind on all 16 springs. This motor had been run a short time before me taking it apart due to a spun rod bearing in it, It had 275 to 285 lbs. close pressure and right at 725 lbs. open with the calculated valve lifts, Shame on me for not checking the actual lifts before when I installed those heads and camshaft on his short block
I hate making mistakes, especially on a race motor like this Never, ever ASSUME anything on motor builds