vavletrain: lifters, rockers, and pushrods questions

building a 406. its got a mild cam with .460/.480 lift, flat tappet. heres my questions... i need to buy some rocker arms, what is the stock ratio? im looking at getting some summit brand stamped steel rockers just like factory, but in a higher ratio, like 1.6... im building this motor for torque in a chevy truck, what ratio rocker should i go with? 1.5, 1.52, and 1.6 are whats available in stamped form. also, will i need to get longer pushrods or can i use the stock pushrods? my last question, half the people i talk to say to never soak the lifters in trans fluid/oil, the other half say i need to soak them... whats the right answer? soak or not to soak?  

Stock rocker ratio is supposed to be 1.52 but due to deflection its more like 1.44.  Comp Cams makes the mmost accurate rockers thats what I recommend. On a mild engine like that I would use Comp Cams 1.52. You will not need longer pushrods but if your having the block and heads milled for compression you might need shorter pushrods. I dont soak my lifters but I do prime the engine before cranking.  

I cannot see the harm in using the 1.6s if they are available. I would check valve to piston clearance with the new cam and rockers however. Pushrod length should not change if the cam base circle and lifters are the same as stock.
I do not soak my lifters but I do pre oil them. This assures they are filled with oil on engine start up and the valve train will get oil sooner. I also spin the oil pump to pre lube the engine.  

why not get some rollers  

if ya gotta buy new anyway...
rollers reduce friction...
less internal parasitic loss equals more grunt at the flywheel  

becuase rollers are more expensive, and i wont see any gain from rollers since this is a low end "grunt" motor, probly wont see more than 3,000 rpm untill stuck in a mud hole. i can get summit brand rockers for like $50 a set. im already burned out on the motor as it is, but im finally on the home stretch... so if the stock ratio is 1.52, why do they offer a 1.5? i was always told the stock ratio is 1.4x, but i just asked to make sure, now im not really sure  

Hi there.
Why not check out Cranes selection. Not much difference between them and CHPP
gear for reliability in my experiences. What does your Cam read?.
  Have Never soaked a lifter and have never had one fail. All made in the USA..
 Good luck with the project..Skyeking...  

Since your wanting to use the summit brand rockerarms I would buy the 1.6 because they will prob deflect enough to be in the 1.50-1.55 range  

alright cool, i was leaning towards the 1.6's anyway.  

the stock factory ratio is 1.5:1,not 1.52:1.comp cams makes that ratio to add a little lift.i know,not much difference.i'd definately go with 1.6's all around.by the way,Crane cams went out of business a few months ago,so i'd stick with comp or whoever in case of warranty issues.  

S&S has acquired Crane Cams and has started production on the motorcycle lines and automotive ignition lines as well. They are supposed to start production on automotive valvetrain soon. I would use Comp regardless.  

+1 on the comp stuff!  

Everyone has their favorites but Comp has always been the most dependable for me.