You are correct that all oem are a needle bearing roller. I think something else to consider however is they are all also hydraulic and not solid lifter so not subjected to the same shock loads.

Not sure on your issue. Would be curious what lifter to bore clearance is. I've read that that brand can have a bit of an undersize/taper at times.

I use a different type non needle bearing lifter on mine and with the unbushed lifter bores needed to have a specific base circle and max lift as to not uncover the oil passage. Just something to consider as I'm not sure how big "large feed hole" is.