all right so i went and got a dial gauge today so now i can finally get half lift dead on.
now i'm curious if there is anything wrong with using shims. if i don't use shims the cap is pretty close to the back of the rocker so i added a small shim and tried to get the adjuster lined up with the valve stem. this is the latest setup, let me know what you think.
You can either use shims and lengthen the pushrods to pull the rockers back (if you have to) or you can back-cut the rockers and lengthen the pushrods a little. Either way the adjusters are still not straight with the valve stems, according to the picture. Whatever you can do to keep the shaft centerline perpendicular to the valve stem's contact surface, the better. You're getting close.
all right here we go again. i thought i'd add an even bigger spacer so i could get a little more clearance. i think this is about were i'm going to keep it, i don't want to add too many shims if i don't have too.
You've chosen the easier way, shimming. That will achieve the adjuster needs, in terms of clearance and angle. the further away you push the shaft centerline, the more the adjuster is going to travel across the valve stem, but it'll be better than if you don't have your angles right - I'd call it decent and move on.
doorpz, is your adjustable pushrod RIGID enough to stay straight against your HD springs? If you noticed that the pushrod flexed/bowed out as you rotated the engine and the pushrod came against the spring pressure, you did not achieve full lift and therefore did not quite get true 1/2 lift...
This is why I install a weak spring from a HW store so that my adj. PR (made out of a stock unit with threaded rod and locknuts connecting both halves) stays "straight". But ideally you would need a spring compressor tool for the heads. If you bought your head pre-assembled from ACE, you have to rely on a very strong adj. pushrod to get correct lift measurements.
And I think that you have your adjusting nut down too far; IMO maybe 2 turns OUT would be "best" since that still gives you more adjustment range.
But ask Art at ACE for his input; I know almost nothing compared to him.
I think you have the shimming correct in the first picture above. From there you should grind the rocker a little to provide more adjuster movement and make the pushrod a little longer. Then recheck your half lift to make sure it hasn't changed significantly and you're good.
