VCCA Home Forums GENERAL DISCUSSION New User Forum very noisy lifter on a 235

I have a stock 52 Chevy with a powerglide. If the car sets
for more than a week one of the lifters/rocker is so noisy for the first few minutes it is sure to damage something.
I have:
1) I use 10w 40 oil
2) old school mechanic has replaced lifters and push
rods
3) confirmed oil pressure is ok
4) mechanic says extra oil line run up to rockers.
He says that is common for that engine
What else can I do????

Are the lifters original and/or genuine GM?
I have heard of the problem before with todays replacement lifters.
Does the bottom end of the push rod have a grove cut in it where it sits in the lifter? This is necessary to allow the air to release from the lifter. The center top of the lifter also must have a air bleed hole.

The problem is the oil gets squeezed out of the lifter after a period of time.
Also I would suggest using 5W-30 or 10W-30 as the thinner oil will refill the lifter faster when cold. Depending how "tight" the lifter is adjusted t will cause no harm, no more that adjusting a solid lifter to .020"....jst refrain from over reving the engine for the first few minutes.
The lifters and rocker arms are lubricated from the rear cam bearing and does not require high pressure, just eough to get oil around the sides of the lifters and they will automatically pump up. You could also try adding a pint of Marvel Mystery Oil to the 10W-40 oil to thin in out a little. I have used both 5W-30 and 10W-30 in my '50 with original lifters with no problem.

On a 235 do you use the thinner oil summer and winter? An
old timer told me that Lucas has a product is used for an
additive that is high in zinc and is used for engine
break in. He says it is good to use in all engines. It looks
like it will thin the oil out a bit
Rons

When new they recommended #10 oil in the winter (below 10 deg. and #20 in the summer.) #30 for high speed driving above 90 Deg. That makes 10W-30 (which came out in 1954) the ideal oil for all seasons. #40 is too "heavy" for a splash fed connecting rod engine.
There was no zinc in the oils in 1950. Todays 10W-30 oil has enough zinc for a 1950 engine except for new camshaft break-in.
There are several zinc additives sold for camshaft break-in and I would not recommend any of the Lucas products....so if you are running the original cam additives are not necessary.

Other 235 guys can chime in, but I've also heard of bad aftermarket replacement lifters for these. I'd be suspect of the lifters if the oil pressure & rocker arms check out okay.

235 with P.G. = hydraulic lifters.
Finding N.O.S. hydraulic lifters is difficult.
Finding aftermarket hydraulic lifters is easy, BUT the quality (noisy) of these lifters is poor.
Rebuilders opt for mechanical lifters, rather than be bothered with poor quality aftermarket hydraulics.

The other problem is the aftermarket may make one lifter for all 235 engines. When new the 1950-1952 lifter was one application. 1953 was one year only and later Chevrolet discontinued it and sustituted the 1950-1952 lifter for 1953. Then the 1954-1958 lifter was another application and last due to more cam refinements the 1959-1962 lifter came along.
From what I see is the later lifter is being sold to cover all years.

As Gene has pointed out in another thread when using the solid lifter in a Powerglide engine the cam must be changed.