TMar99Z28

I'm just finishing up my prc heads/cam swap and need to make a decision. The reason I'm doing the swap is because I bent a pushrod and decided it was time for more power anyway. Do you guys think I should go ahead and put new rocker arms in or do you think they'll be alright? The car has 63k miles on it, 15k have been pretty hard. Any opinions? If you guys think I should change them what would you recommend for a stock style replacement? TIA!

RPO_Z06

iTrader: (11)

To be honest the stockers are pretty good units, other than the occasional bearing falling out I can't say anything bad about them at all.
I would only upgrade if I was going adjustable, the prices for a decent setup start at around $600.00 and up.

KillerSS

i would at least buy new stock rockers stock ones work fine i kept stock ones on mine and i shift at 6800rpm and i drive it daily

TAF Motorsports

iTrader: (10)

you could replace the trunion bearings with harland sharps

http://www.harlandsharp.com/bolton3.htm

https://ls1tech.com/forums/generation-iii-internal-engine/211917-modified-ls1-rocker-arms-new-bearings.html

SAM98WS6

Good rockers will give you more power and RELIABILITY

SLowETz

iTrader: (12)

Not neccessarily true. Stock rockers are good peices, and are made/designed to operate efficiently/reliably for a LOT of miles.

Start getting into insane spring rates/lobe profiles and any OEM/aftermarket rocker can fail.

JMO based on the real world as I know it.......

JoeyGC5

iTrader: (24)

About time you start working on that car T. Stock rockers are fine, but if you want peice of mind, go Jesel

SAM98WS6

I said aftermarket more efficient and reliable. stock are barely even acceptable for a stock motor because several people have had them fail. Come to the real world where everyone else is.

TMar99Z28

Hey Joey, I haven't talked to you for a while. I haven't been home from school much so I started getting withdrawals from my car. I've been going home a lot on weekends trying to get this thing put back together. I'm probably going to stick with the stock rockers even though I'd like to get some Jesels or Harland Sharps. I'll try and give you a call one weekend when I'm home and not running around (My little bro is playing iron man on the highschool football team and it's looking like they're gonna end up playing in the state game again this year!). I'm coming back for the whole Christmas break so I'm gonna be playing with the car when I'm not working.

Anyone have any personal experience with the Harland sharp pieces? I read a thread on here the other day (can't remember if it were the HS parts or the Jesels) but another member had one break and jack his car up?

JoeyGC5

iTrader: (24)

Don't have any experience with the Harland Sharps, they look like nice pieces though. Let me know when you get back. Agent ever get his car going?

TMar99Z28

He actually sold it. Got tired of the ****** motor falling apart with the kenne bell on it. He was going to have a new motor built but decided to trade the car in and now he's just got an '04 Z71 standard cab. He's been through some pretty rough family **** lately so I think he just wanted things to be simple for a while. Word has it that there may be a '66 Nova sitting in his garage before the year's up though. I guess I can't blame him when the car puked up two motors and he never really got a chance to fully enjoy they money he put into it. I'll give you a call and let you decide what I end up doing about the rocker arms and stuff. I probably won't be out flogging the car like I used to until I get the drivetrain squared away, the last thing I need to do right now is blow the rear or clutch out.

SLowETz

iTrader: (12)

"Barely even acceptable for a stock motor"?

So just how many stock rockers out of the tens of THOUSANDs produced have failed? Several?

Can we say without doubt that these iscolated incidents(given the large quantity produced)were not a direct result of age/spring pressures/lobe lifts, or even user/intaller error, and failed because they are barely acceptable?

How many aftermarket parts out of the thousand's produced have failed?
Just as many.

So, we've all seen the few threads about a stock rocker losing it's lunch. We've also seen the threads about aftermarket rockers breaking in HALF.

Stockers have their limits to be sure..... race parts can fail at nearly the same if not at a higher rate. I'm not saying that there are no benifits to an aftermarket peice, only that the stockers are more than suitable for the majority of the applications out there. I would venture to say there are more folks using the stockers in modified motors than not w/out issue.

FWIW.... I've run stock rockers in a 457/424 rw. 11 second motor.... beating the **** out of it on a regular basis for FIVE years w/NO rocker issues at all.
I guess they really are barely acceptable.

THIS my friend is the REAL world..... not an internet board where everything you READ is gospel.

Peace-

SAM98WS6

Dude you are missing the point. GOOD high quality Aftermarket Rockers (jesel, Comp Pro Mags) not only give more power because of reduced friction etc..but they have much higher reliability than stock...thats the reason to upgrade...and thats what he was asking. You cant correlate stock rockers vs. aftermarket on a stock motor...because no one does that. If you look at Aftermarket rockers on a big cam and their failures you have to factor in improperly adjusted failure and other factors...so lets not compare stock vs. aftermarket. My current cam has EXTREMELY agressive lobes and my Pro Mags (along with comp R lifters) are holding up fine. I had stock rockers fail with a T1 and slightly more agressive custom cam. Why take the chance especially since he can upgrade?

You could make more power with Aftermarket. I hope one of your stockers never lets loose...its a bad feeling and easily avoidable.

It doesnt matter what you or I run either...it has to do with stock rocker failures just by people on this board...dozens and dozens. Real world is stockers have much higher failure rates..by people that really drive their cars...they are fine for "stock" LS1s in trucks...but as soon as you start pushing them by racing and rpms ...they have a breaking point much lower than aftermarket....thats a fact. I run the stock rockers on my Avalanche...because I dont race or over rev it but if I ever have it apart...they are getting changed. My buddy that works at a Chevy dealer has seen LS1s come in with broken stock rockers...it happens.

Nasty N8

iTrader: (33)

Harland Sharp full rollers $360.00 are the way I would go. But if you absolutly do not want to go that way at least do our bearing conversion on the stockers $245.00

Nate

DJ's Z

iTrader: (10)

Nate, sent ya an e-mail...

TMar99Z28

If funds allow it I will be sending you a pm in a few weeks to order the full rollers, I really like the design and it would give some piece of mind. Plus they look pretty cool, lol.

SLowETz

iTrader: (12)

SAM98WS6-
Dude.... I'm not "missing" the point. Really.

I'm not corrolating the difference between stock/aftermarket on a stock motor.
I NEVER said GOOD aftermarket rockers had no merrit or were not needed in aggressive spring rate/lift/rpm applications < (KEY words in my first post).

What I WAS trying to do was to say that for the MAJORITY of the run of the mill H/C NA motors, an aftermarket rocker capable of dealing w/the loads of a high reving, high lift, high spring rate was not necessary(IMO), and that a blanket statement such as the one you posted is not necessarily gospel. Realize that not everyone is using monster cams, high spring rates, and twisting their motors to the moon. That is all.

To say that your stocker failed as will all other stockers b/c of the lift involved w/a T1, and that user error needed to be factored in with respect to an aftermarket failure is somewhat of a biased personal opinion, and quite honestly a bit narrow minded(IMO).

I hate it for anyone who's broken parts. There will always be parts failures when modifying anything that is pushed to the limit, and should be expected. That is not to say you don't install what's neccessary to limit the possibility of failure, but there is such a thing as overkill when dealing with applications that are not upwards of "heavily" modified or extreme.

Seems everybody subscribes to the bigger is better philosophy in an effort to achieve big #'s, w/out paying attention to the details of the combo. Why does a smaller brand "X" cam end up making more power than the larger brand "Y" cam? The details.

Again FWIW, I(as you put it)really drive my car. I am only stateing the facts as I know them from my years of personal experience with my motors and those of others.

Sorry for the rant.... I'm done and am now bowing out gracefully.
Peace-