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I always used flat tapper hydraulic lifters, but with the lack of Zn in today's oils, I was thinking about going to rollers. Are there roller lifters that can be used on old 440 and 383 blocks (1968 and 1969 motors)? What do I need to look out for going with rollers? Thanks all.



I would not even entertain the thought of a roller for a hydraulic type street build. Way too much $$$ for way too little benefit IMHO. Almost none of the aftermarket rollers are designed for long term use and by that I mean install them and don't go near them for 100,000 miles.

The simple solution for a flat tappet build is to run your favorite brand of 15w40 diesel oil and drive on. While all 15w40 oils have less zinc than they use to, they still have more than most passenger car oils ever had. If you really can't sleep at night, add a bottle of GM EOS or whatever equivalent zinc additive the cam companies are flogging.

90+% of cam lobe failures happen during break in and I would wager 99.9% of those were caused by the lifters not rotating. Very simple to check for. Before you put the intake back on, turn the engine over a couple of times and watch each lifter. If you find one that doesn't turn, swap it to another lobe. If it still won't turn, replace it.

Kevin