"High performance" ... pushrods?

[Rusty Nail]

I've been buying new things to finish a head swap and purchased stock length "performance pushrods".
I thought "wtf is a high performance pushrod lol?" and I Google searched exactly that.
Huh.
I kept reading and wondering if I had made the right choice? Very interesting things about 5.3 pushrods for you noobs to learn too.

Thought i'd share because I KNOW how involved this MSB is with engine performance so why not kick in a lil if only to make YOU wonder ?

Says here pushrods are the key to performance. Whoulda thunk it?

www.enginebuildermag.com/2004/03/pushrods-key-to-performance/

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[Iowan]

I've been looking at some comp rods, thick and more durable.

 

[Rusty Nail]

Pushrods are expensive yo! I had no idea!!! The Jeg's brand are a hunnert bucks!

Sliek, am I fvckin up or what?

Milling the heads, deckin the blocks...it all makes sense and all I ever used was a stock length!

OBVIOUSLY all the Vortex guys are fvckin up! Prolly y their ****'s all slow.

 

[Honky Kong jr]

Pushrods are expensive yo! I had no idea!!! The Jeg's brand are a hunnert bucks!

Sliek, am I fvckin up or what?

Milling the heads, deckin the blocks...it all makes sense and all I ever used was a stock length!

OBVIOUSLY all the Vortex guys are fvckin up! Prolly y they're ****'s all slow.

Look up 7/16 chromoly lol for a big block.

 

[Rusty Nail]

"performance pushrods"....

So, you're tellin me that running a SHIM head gasket changes the PUSHROD length?

What. The. ****.

I have been seriously screwin around! I wonder if that's why the SS pops a rocker every once in a while?

I bet it is!

 

[Iowan]

I heard that anytime you do anything with the valve train to get new pushrods.

 

[4WDKC]

I heard that anytime you do anything with the valve train to get new pushrods.

I have heard the same thing but if they are straight and stock design swap whats the point? Isnt the point of adjustable valve train so it can be used to adjust for different variances barring deck changes, and rocker arm ratio changes. I understand the hardened rods to keep from bending under high pressure/high rpms but for stock push rods I ordered some from rock auto $25 shipped.

 

[Dutch Rutter]

When I did my aluminum heads on my built SBC I had to get longer chromoly rods because the stock length held the rockers at a strange angle which made the slightest contact with the valve cover and wore hole in the cheap tin covers I had at the time.

Can't say anything about the performance value but I am sure in some way it helps. Btw those rods I ended up getting were $9.25 each, so with a cost like that I would hope for some kind of improvement.

 

[gpmorgan]

Push rods become more critical when using full roller and roller tip rockers. You need the right length so the valve geometry is correct. You need the roller staying as close to the center of the valve tip as possible through its cycle. Don't waste your money on 2 piece pushrods if you use stronger than stock valve springs. Comp magnum push rods are a good choice.

 

[Jrgunn5150]

I have heard the same thing but if they are straight and stock design swap whats the point? Isnt the point of adjustable valve train so it can be used to adjust for different variances barring deck changes, and rocker arm ratio changes. I understand the hardened rods to keep from bending under high pressure/high rpms but for stock push rods I ordered some from rock auto $25 shipped.

Adjustable for preload, which you can use to get the rocker tip where you need it to a degree, but there's a fairly small window where you have the correct lash, or preload, AND have the rocker tip starting out where it needs to on the valve tip.

It's a fairly delicate dance and it doesn't take much to upset the apple cart.

LS engines are particularly sensitive it seems, my 5.3 had clacky lifters with just .030 decked off the heads.

Now, if your using stamped rockers, it matters alot less, and honestly, 90% of the people 90% of the time will never notice the difference. But if you were to take two engines side by side, one with stock length pushrods in spite of steel shim gaskets and decked blocks and heads, and one with the .015 shorter or longer or whatever pushrods that required, I can tell you which one would last longer at 7,000 RPM.

 

[Rusty Nail]

All this pushrod talk makes me consider the importance of a remote start switch.

I'm very excited to crank my **** while I stare at the pushrods.. lol seriously, I am.

 

[vkh]

Speaking of pushrods I cannot recommend comp high energy pushrods. I got them in a kit with rocker Arms and the tips were wearing off in less than a 100 miles. Not just one, several. This was a fresh motor, all break-in procedures followed, assembly lubed beforehand, and run with zddp. I was running mild springs and a mild cam. I replaced them with summit brand one piece hardened pushrods and never had a hint of trouble since. Maybe it was just bad luck but it's put a sour taste in my mouth towards comp cams since.

 

[Iowan]

All this pushrod talk makes me consider the importance of a remote start switch.

I'm very excited to crank my **** while I stare at the pushrods.. lol seriously, I am.

I heard on the GMT400 forum someone installed a remote start so they did have to get up and get in a cold truck, blew his whole ignition system.

Speaking of pushrods I cannot recommend comp high energy pushrods. I got them in a kit with rocker Arms and the tips were wearing off in less than a 100 miles. Not just one, several. This was a fresh motor, all break-in procedures followed, assembly lubed beforehand, and run with zddp. I was running mild springs and a mild cam. I replaced them with summit brand one piece hardened pushrods and never had a hint of trouble since. Maybe it was just bad luck but it's put a sour taste in my mouth towards comp cams since.

I saw one guy who had a Video on youtube and had a problem with nothing on the box saying MADE IN USA and he never bought another Comp product.

 

[Snoots]

Don't know about 'what brand' but, as I understand it, thicker walled push rods are better at preventing flexing harmonics.

There is a video somewhere that showed what stock push rods do at high rpm's and it ain't pretty.