I’ll fess up........
For years I used a set of their stainless 1.5 rocker arm sets with good results. When I first got them (this is around 2008-ish) the adjuster studs were junk. A couple of them broke upon adjustment. I called them and actually got great response. They said they did have a vendor problem with them and had just recently switched vendors and designs. They sent me a full set of the newer ones free of charge. Those rockers served me well in two engines; first on a ydraulic cam, then on my current solid. Year after year I would do my wintertime maintenance adjustment and find them to be right on the money.
So when I decided to try a 1.6 rocker, I decided I’d give them another shot at my business. They had just released their new “DNA” rockers. They say they’re CNC’d from billet 2024 aluminum; the set comes with studs, aluminum hold down blocks, a full shim set to set them with, and a pushrod length tool. Looked like a lot of value for the money, so I pulled the trigger on a set.
https://speedmaster79.com/Mopar-Chr...A-Aluminum-Roller-Rocker-Arms-Set?page=1When I got them I looked them over real good with mixed feelings. The arms themselves, and all the supporting hardware looked really good. The issues I found were
A: at a couple of the rockers, the shaft bearings (caged needle setup) didn’t roll completely smoothly. I blew them out with air thoroughly, sprayed them with some comp valvetrain lubricant that I had, then soaked them in oil for a few days. After that they were nice & smooth.
B) the pushrod length tool they send in the kit is a ball / ball tool, while the rockers have a ball end adjuster nut for a cupped pushrod. This is the sort of stupid crap that makes them look 2nd rate as a company. I called them and explained the idiotic mistake they made with their kit, and they didn’t have any cupped pieces to help me with.
I made due, ordered a set of pushrods and moved on. When I got the car running, I ran into another issue. After a couple of street sessions, I begun to hear more & more rocker noise. So I Pulled the covers and sure enough they were way loose. Now I’m nervous, but I see nothing really wrong, so I readjust and away we go. The problem persisted again however, so I tore the whole set down I found myself again dealing with subpar adjuster studs. The ball ends on the adjusters were wearing badly! Important to note that the pushrod cups upon tear down were all full of oil and the pushrod cups themselves (smith bros.) looked fine. I called Speedmaster and sent them pictures of my situation. The guy I talked to was at least willing to listen and was actually very eager to work with me. They offered new studs, but admitted that they would be the same ones that would have been in my set to begin with. So, I declined and bought a set instead from 440-source. They did offer me a credit on future purchases.
Since installing the new adjuster studs, no issues. One season on them and all seems just fine. Admittedly and importantly, I run a flat tappet cam with modest spring pressures (160 seat & 350 open IIRC). I would probably not run these or any budget pieces on a roller setup with higher spring pressures.
I realize the OP was more looking at head castings, but I thought I’d share my experience with them, which is: mixed bag.... they seem to be able to make decent stuff, but insist on using subpar accessories along with them.
