Now have a ticking noise after idleing about 20 seconds, just put new head gaskets and heads on, Any ideas, THANKS

 

Ticking or tapping? A ticking noise is electrical while tapping is mechanical. You can use a large screw driver as a stethoscope to help you isolate the noises location. Just put the handle to your ear and move the blade around to different parts of the engine to see where it is the loudest. Were these new heads or just new gaskets under the old heads?

 

Rebuilt Heads, is a tapping sounds like maybe a lifter. Does it matter how the rocker assemly goes on is there a front or rear?. i know there is a top and a bottom...

 

Usually a lifter taps on start up and then quiets down as the oil pressure builds. The rocker assembly has no front and rear when new.

All valve train components (lifters, push rods, bolts, retainers, rocker arms, and shafts) need to be replaced in the same positions they were removed from due to wear variances. There are 5 bolts in each rocker shaft with a retainer (concave washer) under each bolt head. These retainers are not all the same size and must be replaced from the same place they were removed.

Did you inspect the parts for excessive wear? Since there is no adjustment excessive wear can cause tapping.

Did you remove the rocker arms from their shafts because there are left and right rocker arms and care must be taken to keep them in their correct order?

Did you check the push rods for straightness?

 

I would check the push rods like SEAL said. I had a bad tapping and then one day it got worse with a horrible backfire and major power loss. I pulled the valve covers and every single rod was bent (some worse than others). I found that the backfiring was caused by the rocker arm on the exhaust valve of the number one cylinder being flipped 180 degrees (due to the bent rod). Luckily all I had to do was drop in some new rods and it runs like a top again.

One thing I would do is double check that the retainers for the rockers shafts are in the correct positions. The longer ones go in the number 2 and 4 position. I made the mistake of just putting them back the way I took them off on the passenger side and realized that there was too much slop in the rocker arms. So I had to take it back off and do it again. Whoever was in there before me didn't put it back together correctly.

 

Thanks Folks,,,, I put the concave washers back in correctly and found out the rockers arms were offset to the right and left. Noise is not there when oil is cold only when hot.

 

Does the noise increase with RPM?

 

No goes away w/rpm

 

Thinking of adding 30 weight oil.

 

Heavier oil may help but it sounds like you have a lifter that is not holding pressure.