I finally took my Elky racing this weekend and it broke. I started hearing valve train type noises from the passenger side so I shut it down. When I pulled the valve cover, I had antifreeze visible toward the back rocker and a couple of loose rockers. It looked like the antifreeze was actually flowing into the top of the head while to motor was cooling down. I suspected that I lifted a stud or two and it started leaking and chattering, but I haven't pulled anything apart yet. What should I look for when I start disassembling the top end?

Some Info:
327 w/Performer RPM cam
461 heads and old Z/28 style manifold.
Motor is balanced and blueprinted with about 3000 miles. Studs are screw in, but not the kind with a nut on them. My builder was going to take them out, but he told me the time charge for working on them would be high and they should be fine. So, they are technically screw in studs. Rockers are full roller crane with polylock nuts. Motor has ran great for two years.



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Got Chevelles?
Jeff Carpenter
65 Chevelle/65 Elky (http://www.chevelles.com/showroom/jeffc1.jpg)
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Team Chevelle Gold #61

I suspect that you have a cracked head. The screw-in studs that do not have the jam nut can actually cause, or contribute to, the head cracking. When using the studs with jam nut, the rocker stands are milled flat so there is a surface to tighten the stud against. With the style of screw-in rocker you have, the stud is sometimes overtightened and will crack the head in the vicinity of the rocker stands. Good luck.

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Bill (MI)
64 Chevelle Malibu Sport Coupe (original owner) car now has 427" BB, Chrysler HEMI 4-spd. trans., 12 bolt 5.57 w/spool & axles.
"HOT RODDER is NOT a dirty word"
"Too much horsepower is just enough"

I'd check the torque on the headbolts

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1970 Chevelle SS396/M20/4.10 My 70 SS396 (http://www.chevelles.com/showroom/mr4speed70SS1)
Engine pic (http://chevelles.com/showroom/mr4speed70SSengine2)
My Black Cherry 70 SS454 (http://www.chevelles.com/showroom/Photo0031.jpg) 13.74 @ 97.45/2.04 60 ft. with exhaust manifolds,radials and 2.73's
1968 Oldsmobile Cutlass convertible
1985 Cadillac Eldorado
Chris Corwel,TC Member # 785
Member # 141 AMCA

A little follow up....

I finally got around to pulling this apart for inspection. I have the "street" screw in studs; the ones that have the boss in the stud but no actual nut so you don't have any machining.

Well, one of those backed out and let some water up into the head and down into the oil. When I rattled the rocker around I found the one that backed out, cleaned it up, sealed it up with indian head and put it back in. I tightned it up, changed the oil, set the valves and fired it up. I'm still getting some lifter noise on startup, but it goes away after 20 or 30 seconds. I have good oil pressure very quickly so it doesn't seem like they're pumping up and quieting down, so I'm thinking I may have damaged a lifter.

I'm contemplating a cam/lifter change since it's relatively cheap and I won't worry about a possible damaged lifter down there, plus I can inspect the lifer bores while I have the intake pulled.

Thoughts/Comments/Ideas welcome....

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Got Chevelles?
Jeff Carpenter
65 Chevelle/65 Elky (http://www.chevelles.com/showroom/jeffc1.jpg)
67 Elky Project (http://www.chevelles.com/showroom/jeffc4.jpg)
68 Camaro SS (http://www.chevelles.com/showroom/jeffc5.jpg)
Team Chevelle Gold #61