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| | | | Joined: Jul 2008 Posts: 18 Apprentice | | Apprentice Joined: Jul 2008 Posts: 18 | Without pulling the side cover is there any way to tell if an engine has solids or hydraulics? It is in an 54 chevy 3100 (six) with a Hydra-Matic which should have hydraulics. I just bought the truck and I believe the engine is a remanufactured so there is no real way of telling. I pulled the valve cover and by the tappet adjustment I would say it has hydraulics. Anyone have an idea without digging in any farther than needed. Thank You, Scott ( [email protected]) | | | | | Joined: Jul 2004 Posts: 5,708 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: Jul 2004 Posts: 5,708 | Scott,
If you run the engine and shove down real hard on the lifter side of a rocker arm you should be able to collapse it...the engine will start to shudder as it (intake) fails to open.
Obviously you can't get the same results with solids. It takes quite a bit of effort to do this and a wooden hammer handle used upside down works well as a 'pusher'.
Just eyeballing the rockers and noting they all have zero lash is a good clue too!
Stuart
Last edited by atomarc; 07/28/2008 11:18 PM.
| | | | | Joined: Sep 2001 Posts: 29,269 Bubba - Curmudgeon | | Bubba - Curmudgeon Joined: Sep 2001 Posts: 29,269 | 1954 trucks with Hydra-Matic transmissions had mechanical (solid) lifters.
1954 passenger cars with Powerglide transmissions had hydraulic lifters.
Post the block casting number or the engine serial number (in the ledge to the rear of where the distributor goes into the block) and if it is a 1954 truck block, it had mechanical lifters. The best way to check out the lifters is to do what Stuart suggested (or, pull the side cover and take a look as you adjust the valves). | | |
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