How To Do Series:Learn how We Disassembled, Cleaned & Reassembled the 57 Nailhead Hydraulic Lifters

How To Do Series:Learn how We Disassembled, Cleaned & Reassembled the 57 Nailhead Hydraulic Lifters

Well here is yet another in the - How To Do Series. This month, were off on a special removal and cleaning safari for hydraulic lifters. Chances are you really don't need to buy new ones. Here we learn how to go about removing, disassembling, inspecting, cleaning and reusing the original flat faced Buick OEM hydraulic lifters that came as originals in your Buick.

Edit: We also Disassembled, Cleaned and Reassembled our Rocker Arms and Shaft but will not include that discussion in this detailed report regarding Hydraulic Lifters.

PREAMBLE: So this is how we went about doing our lifter facelift and think it is a good approach and can save you a lot of headaches down the road for either that engine that has been sitting forever or for those lifters that seem to be just too noisy. The cost is just your time and a little bath chemicals. We have also posted photos so you can follow the process as it unfolds.

BTW: We are sure you've seen at one time or another all those youtube videos where a couple of characters are attempting to start a sleeping motor that has'nt run for a number of years? Well, you can just bet that the lifters in those engines are most likely frozen with varnish including the bypass check valves of the oil pump and oil filter base housing (open or worse shut) by gummy bear oil by-products. Starting those engines by just turing the crank by hand a few times, maybe changing the oil (maybe) and hooking a gas can with a hose to the carb and priming is pure genius! That engine when last shut off most likely ran just fine thank you when parked those many years ago. But without attention to these other vital lubrication parts they are actually most likely wasting the engine as the video plays right before your eyes.

BACKGROUND: Now most know that hydraulic lifters played an important role in the change over from solid, manually adjustable lifters. So along came hydraulic lifters and ended the need for the annual mileage adjustment rituals. When attempting to remove, inspect and clean your hydraulic lifters, it is important to first set yourself up for the entire process and perform all tasks at a surgically clean work place. With hydraulic lifters the entire process of cleaning and inspection of the lifter is all done while disassembling. A good explanation of how the the hydraulic lifter and it’s components are actually designed to work in conjunction with oil/psi can be found in the Buick Shop Manuals. We suggest you first consult this reference to fully understand the inner working of each component to get a fuller appreciation of this important engine component.

What we are going to concentrate on today is a way to go about easily inspecting and servicing your Hydraulic Lifter and it’s internal components.

SETTING UP THE OPERATION: As can be seen in the photos, we first obtained a plastic holding container that accommodated separate solid sections that could individually hold all 16 lifters with a common tight lid that would not let any one section components migrate into another components section compartment. This is vitally important since you absolutely do not want to interchange parts from one liter to another. Keep each lifter by itself for itself. For bath containers we used separate bath washes consisting of first a quick “green” citrus orange blaster bath used initially to scrub clean each outside lifter unit before disassembly while using dedicated small brushes such as an old tooth brush. Also helpful were a bag of solid high quality plastic and wood tooth pics for detail removal of crud. For the actual disassembly component wash baths, a bath of lacquer thinner with lid and a bath of kerosene with lid were used.

JUST A LITTLE ORGANIC CHEMISTRY:When cleaning a component such as hydraulic lifters it cannot be over emphasized enough that thorough cleaning is the mantra of the day. When completed you want nothing less than a clean lifter and all of it’s internal components clean as well. Clean means no residues. The reason we recommend lacquer thinner is nothing we know of will melt/dissolve into a fluid state the years of that baked on good old-time reddish fuel/oil varnish better than lacquer thinner and within minutes. We are always a true believer in going “Green” but for this task, believe me, lacquer thinner is what is used.

THE LESSON: Lacquer thinner dissolves the varnish from a solid solute state to a solvent solute state. However this new solvent solute solution needs a carrier compound in order to remove it from the surface it resides on. A familiar organic chemistry mantra has always stated that: “Like Dissolves Like” and this is what’s going on here as well. Once dissolved the varnish is still on the metal component. Kerosene then is strictly used because it is an excellent solvent solute carrier compound. Nothing will strip away the varnish residue faster, nor as completely while keeping it lubricated without the risk of flash rust than kerosene. Kerosene will completely remove the lacquer thinner which is saturated with the solute particles of varnish. If you do not go to the Kerosene step the varnish will reappear as a solid dissolute product once the varnish flashes (quick evaporation) away to atmosphere. BTW: That “green” product your using these days most likely contains water as part of that green concentration design formula and you want no water used here.

THE SAFETY FIRST: Working smart is not a hassle. Farming everything out to someone else is. Doing the cleaning is simple work. It is safe work if you follow our advice. So here we used quality, thin, 3 layers on each hand, durable chemical resistant gloves keeping an eye on our outside glove as it will tear eventually so you want to check from time to time, inspect and if need be, take the outer ones off and put on new ones. Simple. We also used a full face 3M respirator with 3M charcoal chemical canisters cans in an outside vented area with a small fan blowing our way to vent the fumes away. But you can also use a half face one as well, just don’t think you can use an ACE Hardware paper rubber band dust mask for the task. Only use those when racking up leaves and dusting only. So doing your cleaning this way works, is safe, is just fine and all the while your getting the job done. If you have a vented hood setup then use that instead of the fan.

TOOLS WE USED: As can be seen in the photos. We took a wooden block about 6 inches long and with a depth that was just about a 1/2 inch deeper than the hydraulic lifter body was long and used this as a basis for our lifter separator tool. To construct it, we first selected what is called a Fostner drill bit which was the same size as the O.D. of the lifter body. We then drilled it to a depth that was about 3/4 the total length of the lifter body. Then we used a drill bit made for Metal and not Wood to create a smooth bore, that was the same diameter size as the plunger O.D. and centered it at the bottom of our partially drilled hole we had just made with the Fostner bit. Then drilled it on out to the other side of our block. This was done to create a stop. This stop would allow us to insert the hydraulic lifter into the hole in the wooden block but would also allow the plunger which rides inside of the hydraulic lifter body itself to fall out the other side. It is slightly smaller as can be seen in the photos below and slides into the hydraulic lifter body. Note: This is accomplished by flipping the hydraulic lifter upside down and inserting it into the wooden block thereby allowing the center plunger to fall out the bottom and separate safely from the lifter body.

Explained another way, what you are actually trying to do here is making a tool that allows one to easily separate the inner plunger from the hydraulic lifter body in one easy step. You insert your lifter into the hole, invert it and gently strike it on your work table’s top. Repeating until you see the plunger start to emerge from the body itself. We found that using a heat gun as can be seen in the photos, made this work easier. So here is how we did it. We soaked and cleaned the complete lifter in our green solution for a few minutes, removed and scrubbed clean as needed. Then using our crimp pliers for hoses tool as shown, we use this as our lifter holding tool and applied heat to the lifter body and turned it as needed to give it uniform heating. (EDIT: This is done to liquify the varnish which is no doubt causing the lifter plunder inside to be stuck/frozen.) Then inserted the lifter into our wooden separator block and applied it to the work table surface with enough force to dislodge the inner plunger. Sometimes they come right out and sometimes you need to remove, reheat and try again. Doing it this way assures you will not damage the hydraulic lifter nor the inner components. We also used a large clean shop rag over the work bench surface to assure no parts would go too far if dislodged unexpectedly.

THE REMOVAL & INSPECTION: When you remove the lifters from the engine for cleaning it is very important that each and every lifter is put back into the exact cam valley lifter bore of which it came. This goes for the push rod itself and the rocker arms as well. But here we concentrate on what you will be doing once the lifter is removed. But keep in mind, as can be seen in the photos, we had our plastic container as explained above with each compartment pre labeled as to which lifter came from which bore and if it was from the driver’s side or from the passenger’s side. This is important, go slowly so you don’t mix anything up. So once removed from the engine and as can be seen by the photos, the complete hydraulic lifter consists of the outer housing called the Body. Inside it a cylinder unit called the Plunger rides inside of this body with it’s associated components which starting from the bottom of the body that rides the cam when installed in the engine, is the spring, ball retainer, check ball, plunger itself, the push rod seat and the last item, the retainer ring that keeps all these inner components together. ( EDIT: We took cleaned lifters before the actual disassembly down to our friendly head specialist machine shop. We packed them into the divided case we are using with the numbered slots so no one gets mixed up as to were they belong in the engine and will go right back into the same lifter bore location. The machine shop head specialists had the equipment to check for external out of spec measurements and abnormal wear. Ours checked out O.K.! )

Please Note: This cleaning process is performed on only one individual lifter unit at a time. Piece by Piece. Yeah I know, Tick-Toc, Tick-Toc. But hey, YOU do not want to co-mingle parts with other lifters at any given time during this complete removal, cleaning and reinstallation process. ( Take notice of container style used in photos below ) So with that said, upon separating each component as explained above using our wood block tool, we carefully separated our components and soaked them together in the lacquer thinner bath. We removed each item separately using a bendable/flexible arm tool with a small magnet on the end so we could easily fetch the components out of the lacquer thinner bath when needed. We scrubbed each component clean with brush and lacquer thinner and then when cleaned to our satisfaction, attached it to our magnet tool, and then first submerging the component into a separate final clean lacquer thinner bath then immediately submerged it into the kerosene bath leaving it there to soak while cleaning each of the other components assigned to that particular hydraulic lifter. EDIT: We find sonic cleaners are good for many applications and if you have a BIG enough unit which has the true and real current capacity to do the job it helps to use it somewhere with the initial cleaning process, but regardless have found as far as residue removal is concerned you still need to do that as explained here.

Upon cleaning of the lifter components we removed them from the kerosene bath and put all the components on a clean towel surface, wiped then clean n dry with a new towel, then started the inspection and reassembly process.

INSPECTION AND REASSEMBLY: What you want to do here is inspect the following with Magnifier Glass in hand while using a check list with paper and pencil so you do not miss any component for each lifter. First check the inside bore of the body for any grooving of the inside cylinder. Slight scoring is OK but large displacements means metal most likely scored the walls and if severe enough the unit is no good. Severe scoring causes binding and sticking on internal components. The next component to check is the wall of the plunger. Same thing holds true here. Next inspect the spring to see if undue compression stress has distorted the spring or it is abnormally worn on it’s sides or top. Most likely it is in good shape. Use your finger to gently compress the spring slightly while sitting on bench work top surface and access for firmness and spring back. Next inspect the steel check ball with your magnifying glass as well looking for oblong surface irregularities, gouging or out of round. Next check the ball retainer, that which holds and sets into the spring top on it’s bottom side and retains the check ball on it’s top side. Again check for abnormal wear and surface irregularities. Last check the push rod cap face for any possible undue eccentric wear caused by the push rod itself. Check also on how the cap fits into the plunger top. It should be a clean fit. Next with the help of a little kerosene, insert the plunger into the body to check for fit and slop. Here there should be an exact fit with easy movement up and down. Now do it completely dry. Nice tight straight fit as well. Remove all items and replace on the clean bench towel assembly towel laid out before you.

For assembly first place the internal plunger component upside down on the bench surface. That is, the end that the push rod seat sets into, is the side that should be placed down onto the work bench. Next carefully take the check ball and place it on top of the plunger body. Next, place the ball retainer over the check ball. Next place the spring over that. Now, carefully holding all the components together with one hand take your good hand and place the outer lifter body itself over this assembly and slide it down over the components held in place by your other hand. Then re-invert the entire lifter and place the push rod cap into the top and then reinstall the retainer snap ring. Here we found it best to use a very small and short standard screwdriver to help place and set the retainer. Note: DO NOT PRE-OIL ANYTHING - This entire assembly process is performed using virgin clean, oil free components. Wipe any and all residues or kerosene off off all components before any reassembly.

FUNCTIONAL BENCH TEST INSPECTION METHOD: There was and are stand alone units that are used to bench test the working functional performance of a given lifter. These involve a certain oil and leak down procedure that is timed. But since most likely no one has a bench test unit like this another manual method is good to use as well. This manual method presupposes that absolutely no oil whatsoever has been introduced into or onto the components surfaces of the Hydraulic Lifter upon final assembly. Upon reassembly, and re-inversion of the lifter body as explained above, and after the retainer ring is set in place and the lifter cylinder is once again held upright in one hand, depress the plunger with your tip of baby finger and release it immediately. The plunger and cap should yield slightly to pressure but should “slip back” and upward again into it’s former static position immediately upon release of the pressure from your finger. It is important that the finger pressure be released immediately after depressing. If the plunger is held down too long, the air trapped under the plunger will leak out and the test will be ineffective. For whatever reason no slip back is encountered, the unit may still have dirt in it or it was reassembled wrong or excessive wear is apparent.

Edit: This finger test takes into account that the visual inspection portion found no marked surface irregularities. If you can source the exact size of the balls before reassembly then do as this component is the number one item that allows leakage. If not take the ball out of a new same quality lifter and mic it for dimension verification and use it instead if the body and plunger are otherwise in good condition.

So with that said, one of three things can be the reason for LACK of plunger immediate response slip back other than you forgot the spring upon reassembly and is the following: The first may be the pushed air is escaping through the check ball assembly because of residual dirt and is not seating properly or you over looked an out of round check ball or gouged seat ( highly unlikely but possible) ; or the pushed air is escaping thru the ball and or seat at the plunger base due to asymmetric wear or spring bind; or pushed air is escaping between the plunger and the inner wall of the body due to excessive wear or gouging. It is important upon assembly that clean parts are reassembled and compressing of the reassembled unit is performed until all air has escaped because a dry lifter assembly will prime itself quickly when the engine is first started and then fill with oil.

DO NOT AT ANY TIME put oil into the newly cleaned lifters at anytime during or after this process nor before you install them either. Because if you do and they by chance do not leak down by sitting until you start the engine, bent push rods, valves or piston damage will occur. So no oil! Note too, that when you have finished replacing the lifter back into the engine and with the push rods in place you should be able to also push on the rocker arm at the cap at the push rod thereby slightly forcing the push rod down into the hydraulic lifter’s push rods seat and you will find the lifter plunger will compress and pop right back up again. ( Just like it did when you used your finger during reassembly ) - This is what you want. Then all is well. However, this only works on a virgin clean lifter that has not been pumped up with the engine starting and/or running as the lifter will then be pumped up and set by oil pressure.

So go to it and get things cleaned up cause Buick Nailheads have always had at least four things going for them that separated them up above and away from the masses of other everyday metal: Very Balanced, Very Smooth Running, Very Quiet and Very Dependable Power Plants!

Edit: Yes, and this was all done under a shade tree!

New Edit: I have found that DOT-3 Brake Fluid is and excellent gummy bear/varnish killer and melter. It easily rinses away with just water since it is a fluid and not an oil. May want to substitute the lacquer thinner with the DOT-3 Brake Fluid in the procedurals as noted above. Happy Cleaning !

The photos of the process continues.....

EDIT: In the 1st and 2nd photos we noticed something was out of order in the lifter component layout. So - Starting at the far left and moving right please refer to the lifter body then the correct layout should be spring, cap, ball, plunger, pushrod cap then clip. Notice the photo shows the layout with the ball first then the cap which is not correct as the ball sits against the bottom of the plunger then the cap goes over it, then the spring over the cap.

The photos of the process continues here as well .....

EDIT: The reassembly sequences of photos should be starting from top left: photo 3, then photo 4, then photo 2, then photo 5, then photo 6, then photo 1.

Do not use regular grease, moly, or the like on the lifter bores or to coat the outside of the lifter body upon reinstallation back into the engine as it has the great potential to clog and crap things up and block vital oil feed passage ways. Yes - A No - No!

What to Use Instead: Notice the tube we are showing, this is Assembly Lube which is specially formulated to do the job right. Every moving part gets a hit since we want no bone dry areas when we go to start this engine up.

If the engine has sat for a long time it is also SMART, to pre-prime the engine by removing the distributor and by means of a large bladed screwdriver and a right hand VARIABLE SPEED electric hand drill, insert the bladed end into the area that is normally occupied by the the distributor shaft. Better yet, use an old distributor shaft out of a defunct distributor. Attach your right hand drill to that or if you must, you can weld a nut head onto the exposed end of the shaft so you can attach a socket over it. 1/2 inch is big enough. Then you can use an air powered ratchet, IF you have a way to spin the ratchet slowly and not not just rip into it with a blast of 100 psi air supply. Personally, we like the right hand variable hand drill attached to the distributor shaft end the best. Your whole frontal lobe mantra here is that you want to be lubricating parts and surfaces without the need to spin all engine components over dry to get them lubed, thus the term Dry Start. Yes, another No-No!

There is a notch at the end or top of the oil pump shaft that accepts the distributor's bladed shaft end so it will allso accept a similar sized blade end of a screw driver. Of course will have to waste and permanently remove the handle of the screwdriver thereby forever making this a dedicated tool or at least a screwdriver with no handle!

By doing this, you now have a shaft your right hand electric drill can be attached to. Now by firmly holding the drill, gently start your right hand Variable Speed Drill and begin spinning the screwdriver shaft. What is happening is you are now also spinning the oil pump shaft which spins the gears inside of the oil pump causing them to draw oil up into the oil pump, up and over to the oil filter housing and oil filter, through the filter, then upward and onward to the main engine oil galley which is integrated into the engine block. This oil flow is directed and pumped up and down to the crank, cam area, lifter bores, and upper head components. While you are doing this one can actually watch where all the oil is going to since you will have the engine valley cover off and the valve covers off. Notice the oil is coming out of the rocker shaft ends as well since the oil is being delivered to the rockers by the shaft. The Buick Nailhead engine has solid shaft push rods and are not hollow like other engines and instead oil is delivered to the rockers/shaft directly via a dedicated oil route.

If the engine has sat for a long time it is first a WISE idea to drop the pan, remove the oil pump, clean it out and also remove and clean the oil by pass spring and ball. Also remove the oil filter, remove the oil filter mount and clean out the by pass spring and check ball located in the mount as we can almost guarantee, that these by pass valves and check balls will be gummy beared up as well. Ok now reinstall the pump and oil filter to the engine. Then just set the oil pan back up no gasket and with a few bolts holding it hand tightened, pour 6 quarts of cheap non synthetic dino 20 weight oil into engine, and for peace of mind, put a large rectanglular flat concrete mixing pan from the hardware store under the engine pan area and get on to pumping oil. If you don't use a mixing pan idea at least lay some plastic 4-mil vis-queen out instead to catch any drippings.

Well this is all too easy, so get on it, and get er done!

David, great article and pics to describe a real money saver. One question I have is about the kerosene. Is Kerosene the same thing as "White Gas"?

John,

I believe kerosene is more oily and not as flammable as white gas (camping gas). Stick with kerosene.

Thanks for the reviews.

John: As far as I know, white gas is gasoline without anit-knock additives. Coleman Fuel is a admixture of naptha and base stock distillates which make it far less combustive than white gas.

Kerosene is for the most part the same as Jet Fuel-A. Both of which contain a good certain % of sulfur. The evaporative rate between kerosene and gasoline is gasoline is much more volatile and vaporizes at ambient temperatures far faster than does kerosene or Jet Fuel - A.

Kerosene is also a distillate but does not go further in the refinery process than say white gas or gasoline.

David, just wanted to say thanks for all of this information. I'm about to take one of my lifters apart soon(something which I've never done)and this post will help a lot. Looks like these lifters are pretty much put together the same way as mine. Great timing! I've saved it for future reference. Thanks again!!

Without changing your topic, I wanted to ask about the White Gas because I'm getting ready to open my carb for my 56 and the manual says to soak the carb in the Benzoclean but then to wash everything with White Gas. My mechanic and my NAPA guy both say todays carb cleaners have been less than totally effective and I was wondering if it made sense to wash the carb parts in the laquer thinner and then wash it all down with kerosene, or if I'd just be wasting time and materials to do so?

I dipped my carb parts in Berryman Carb Cleaner/Dip(the gallon bucket)a few times followed by a rinse with water. Blew out all the little passages with air then cleaned up the leftover spots of gunk with lacquer thinner followed by kerosene. Worked well for me.

Sorry, it's not benzoclene, but Bendix Metalclean. Well, my carb kit arrived today. Hope to get to it in a week or so.

John, If you want some details on how to detail your carb, let me know. I have researched it some and have a pretty good level of what should be what color etc. We can get your carb looking factory new if you want it that way. I mean, you are rebuilding it and while it's apart and all.... Shoot me a PM if you want. I don't want to get off track on David's thread here!

I have a carb cleaner cautionary tale that I'd like to share, if the spasms and shakes would subside long enough for me to type this. I was about 20 years old. A neighbour up the street, John, was/is absolutely crazy about old cars. There was always something dazzling to see on his driveway or in his shop, usually of the mid-Fifties Imperial/Chrysler/Plymouth persuasion. He had at least one DeSoto but, oddly, I don't recall him ever owning a Dodge.

John's garage was well equipped for all sorts of mechanical work, with compressed air, a grease pit, and enough fluorescent lights to illuminate a small town. He had a big motorized parts washer and a vat of carb cleaner.

I was then trying to keep a '72 BMW 2002 running (lost cause) and brought the little Solex carb over to John's one day, to ask for his advice on rebuilding it. I had a kit and some instructions but no experience. He was headed out for a while but told me to dismantle the carb and clean it in the washer, then soak it in the carb cleaning solution. He'd give me a hand with reassembly when he got back.

Well, I dove in with both hands, literally, and got all the little bits nice and clean. I was sluicing stuff around in the cleaner with my bare hands, when I started feeling very strange. Dizzy, sort of pumpkin-headed, and my fingers, hands, and arms were going numb. A wicked headache settled in, which didn't subside for about two days.

By the time John returned, I'd already stumbled home, barfing in several hedges and flower beds along the way. When I'd recovered a few days later, I went back to John's shop and casually asked if we could put the carb back together now. I never did tell him about my toxic chemical near-death stupidity. If he noticed that all the skin was flaking off my hands in sheets, he was too polite to mention it.

Yeah Rob, youth may have it's benefits, but common sense is not one of them. Good point that helps to reinforce the fact that age has it's many acquired benefits too. Reminds me of a title bout with Ever Clear in high school! 180 Proof :eek: But I never tried soaking my hands in it.

Ugggghhh....reminds me of my 21st. Me vs. a bottle of Golden Grain. I believe it was around 190 proof. Guess who won? I think that stuff would peel a few layers of skin off too......and clean a carb up real good.

In high school, I had my brother's 55 ford out one night and ran out of gas due to a stuck fuel gauge. We had a gallon of this stuff and out somewhere in no where land, so decided to pour it into the fuel tank. The car started right up and got us back into town. Amazing. I never touched the stuff after that.

:)This thread should be a "sticky"

Without changing your topic, I wanted to ask about the White Gas because I'm getting ready to open my carb for my 56 and the manual says to soak the carb in the Benzoclean but then to wash everything with White Gas. My mechanic and my NAPA guy both say todays carb cleaners have been less than totally effective and I was wondering if it made sense to wash the carb parts in the laquer thinner and then wash it all down with kerosene, or if I'd just be wasting time and materials to do so?

JohnD: Yes just do the same as here. Lacquer thinner, Kerosene, then a final wash with isopropyl alcohol, then air dry with your compressor then put components together or if you have to store away for a while, into sealed top plastic containers. Preferably clean ones without cigar ashes or spaghetti sauce still left inside.

Um, if this does become a Sticky, let's leave my little adventure out of it. One of my kids might stumble across this someday and they'll blame their ghastly genetic defects on me.

Rob: Speaking of genetic defects. Just where in the hay is our Official Buick Dealer Interior Book? It's going on 140 posts and over 12 months plus now. According to my calculations it should be here any day now.

P.S. You know we all love Ya.

Oh for any of you guys out there that are as generally "challenged" as I am, it might help you too, to note that instead of lacquer thinner, DOT 3 Brake Fluid has been found by yours truly to be an excellent de-gummy bearer, de-varnisher, oil degreaser and de-nail polish remover. ,,,,,, er, regarding the last item, let's not go there and just say it works for that too.

Since brake fluid is a fluid and not an oil it is easily washed away with a water based cleaner such as Orange Blaster or the like. Even with that said, water just by itself is reported to be an adequate wash for virgin brake fluid by itself but while using it as a carrier solvent, use the Orange Blaster degreaser to wash it all away. Happy Cleaning! :cool:

…. just for you guys who have acquired a "sleeper" for winter restoration.

Just a note to anyone using this great post as a guide to cleaning up lifters on a later model 401 Nail Head engine. Any Buick lifter I have opened (1964 and later ) has a tiny second spring about 6 mm x 3mm that fits under the check ball and keeps it tight against the base of the ball cap opening on filling. I was surprised to see these lifters did not have them. But look for the tiny ball check valve spring when you take off the check valve cap. Here is a diagram of a similar if not identical lifter    

Great post and I agree should be a sticky.

Joe