Quote: having run both the erson and jesels,for very little difference in money,the jesel is way superior,and i like the ball/ball pushrods as well...just my opinion,but i would do it the exact same way over..zero valvetrain problems at 7500 rpm pass after pass...hard to beat....
Like I said the Jesels are now in the mid $900's, plus add in the extra machining of the pedestals AND the pushrod slots... The difference grows to more like $300-$400.
The new Ersons also use ball ball pushrods. The new stuff is nicer than the older Ersons you had.
That being said, I have the Jesel Sportsmans on our W2 dirt track motor, he's turning 7600-7800 every lap this year, those guys beat up valvetrain parts 100X more in one year than a drag motor. In the last 2 seasons his lash has not changed .001" on any rocker. It's definitely a fairly bulletproof setup. I actually wanted to put T&D's on it when I first built it, but at the time they were on about 6 week back order and Jesel had the sportsmans on the shelf. I like the T&D even better than Jesel with the T&D full pressurized rocker body oiling system.
And I agree with ANDY, if we had a $1200 R1A block readily available how many guys you think would still base their strokers on 35 year old 340 and 360 blocks? I think a $1200 race block would be a hot seller. If they were smart they would rename it and put the old X on it, would draw in the nostalgia guys who think the X is better than the R series stuff, and would keep with their new Direct Connection re-birth LOL. Would just be like the old days, heading down to your direct connection dealer, and ordering up a $1200 X block.
And don't even ask, because Jim said the tooling for the X is long gone. But I think it would be a good marketing move to bring out the R1A castings with the X logo and name.
