The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop 54 235 solid vs 54 235 hydraulic

I need some decision making help. Pardon me if there's too much here for 1 post or this is covered already. I purchased (for a LOT of money) a 235 engine on ebay that is from a 1954 chevy 1/2 ton or 55 1st 1/2 ton:

Engine block # 3835911, head # 3835913, SN 223901 F55V.

It was purchased as rebuilt, and by removing the valve cover and peering through spark plug and fuel pump holes as well as new looking gaskets, it does appear to have been rebuilt and not run, how professionally I am not sure.
In searching for a course tooth flywheel (ebay engine one was badly cracked and my original 216 is a 39, so the bolt pattern is different) I found locally (at a flywheel only price) an engine pulled from a 41 chevy 1/2 ton truck. When I picked it up, I found that it was definitely not a 41 engine. By researching here and other sites, I think it is a 54 hydraulic lifter engine with a 53 head. The head has the 2 bolt valve cover setup and no 4 screw holes. I like this because it looks more like my 216, but I don't know if this mix is a good or bad idea.

Engine block # 3835911, head # 3701887, SN 891775 F54Y.

I am having second thoughts about installing the high price engine and stealing miscellaneous parts from the second, or maybe getting the second engine checked for internal condition or rebuilt and using it instead. Is there any advantage to the hydraulic lifter engine? I see by the old chevy manuals site that the hydraulics came with a few more horsepower in the automatic cars. What about the older head? I don't think having 2 of these engine is a bad thing as they both look like they will bolt directly into my 39, mounts, waterpumps, pulleys and all, with almost no changes. Guess I just need opinions and I've observed on this excellent site that you guys have those!

Hi steveinyuma; You've done a good job ID'ing everything. The "F54Y" engine is indeed a '54 Powerglide engine with hydraulic lifters. The 3701887 head decodes as a '53 and must've come off a '53 Powerglide engine since (if I remember right) that engine is the only '53 engine that had the "new" 18-bolt head. That should be an excellent match for your '54.

I kinda like the hydraulics. You just set-em and forget-em. I have a F54Y engine in my '53. They did make a bit more power than the regular engines and they are much quieter.

You're prolly going to get some differing opinions on this - some guys prefer the solids. After all, these are old trucks we're talking about here. Anyway, sounds like you've got 2 good candidates for projects there, maybe "his and hers" trucks, or maybe a cool retro Chevy coupe to go with your truck(?)

The problem with hyd lifter 235 now days is that there are no reliable hyd lifters being mfg. I had lots of probs with mine and swapped to a solid lifter set up. Unless your lifters are NOS GM pieces you may be in for some problems. Those 54 motors are perfect to swap in a pre 55 chevy with the high water pump and getting hard to find.
Best of luck

HIGH SPEED LIFTER BLEED DOWN

Every time a valve is opened the lifter bleeds down some.

Because aftermarket lifters do not seem to hold the close tolerance needed between the piston and the body of the lifter some bleed down faster.

It is this bleed down that starts the problem.

At high speed air trapped in the lifter reservoir enters the working area making the lifter spongy and noisy.

From 1950-52 Chevrolet must have had this same problem keeping close tolerances in their lifters so they vented the lifter by grooving the bottom of the push rod.

For jobs where the lifters are already installed or to prevent trapped air, you can vent your lifters by grooving your push rods on the bottom face.
It only needs a shallow groove from the center to the edge to allow air to escape.

This will only work with lifters with a vent hole in the push rod seat (which are the ones that seem to have the problems).

I have done this many times and recommended it to others with 100% results.

It is also a good idea to pre bleed your lifters (per shop manual instructions, not just soak in oil).


Here is a link to a 1950-52 push rod grooves.
http://picasaweb.google.com/pre68bo...v1sRgCOO2tJ767rre2gE#5327689421263380850

I'm beginning to think that I best stick with my original plan and install the solid lifter engine. If it behaves, I can check out the hydraulic lifter engine and keep it around for 20 or 30 years in case of "catastrophic engine failure". I really do not want to tear it down right now , though curiosity about its condition is killing me. Maybe I'll try to bench (in my case "pallet in yard") run it later to see what it sounds like. Anyway, it was 102 degrees under the old engine pulling mesquite yesterday, so I wasn't quite fast enough with this job and all will probably wait for fall. I might change my mind three times by then. Thanks for this input and any other comments.