Hydraulic Lifters: Who's Making Them???
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 2,145
Likes: 1
From: Ft. Walton Beach, Fl USA
Hydraulic Lifters: Who's Making Them???
I've had three sets of lifters in the last few months from different manufacturers. Thing is, they are all the same. The outside appearance is exactly the same. Who's making these things for all the cam manufacturers? If you look at their ads they all tout the "special features" of their lifters but they're all the same lifter. 
I just got my CL kit from ISKY and the lifters are exactly the same as the ones that came in my COMP CL kit. Makes me wonder if these lifters are contributing to the apparent high mortality rate in Hydraulic flat tappett cams.
I just got my CL kit from ISKY and the lifters are exactly the same as the ones that came in my COMP CL kit. Makes me wonder if these lifters are contributing to the apparent high mortality rate in Hydraulic flat tappett cams.
Race Director
Joined: Sep 1999
Posts: 11,361
Likes: 383
From: Plano TX
All this stuff is pretty interconnected. For instance, only one or two companies make cam blanks, and then all the cam companies buy these blanks and grind them. Lifters is the same story. Maybe 2 or 3 manufacturers and that's it. Last year the single company making hydraulic roller lifters for the aftermarket stopped making them and you couldn't get hydraulic roller lifters for months until some other company started making them. Funny thing is that the actual manufacturers are companies you probably never heard of. I read about them but can't remember their names.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 2,429
Likes: 14
From: CA
Originally Posted by paul67
I may have missed the obvious. Why not go to your GM dealer?
Even the guy at the counter couldn't believe it.Oh well, at least the cam was only $130.00
Le Mans Master
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,499
Likes: 1,507
From: Little Rock AR
Back about 15 years ago there were about 4 manufacturers of lifters. Stanadyne, Johnson, Eaton, and GM. Now it may be down to only 2 or so and one of them may have a different name. I do not remember the specifics as it just did not realy matter to me. There are some subtle differences internaly between the typical assemblies and there are some proprietary designs manufactured by these companies for others such as Rhoads variable duration and anti-pump up designs. GM produced some realy nice hardened face insert lifters for high durabillity that are nice to have but quite expensive if you can find them. I have a set that I will probably try to get refaced some day.
Why does anyone pay extra for a name on the box. We throw the box away after the job is done so buy on price unless you need a specialty lifter. (Would you believe my speed shop back home was the one that gave me that advice? )
-Mark.
Why does anyone pay extra for a name on the box. We throw the box away after the job is done so buy on price unless you need a specialty lifter. (Would you believe my speed shop back home was the one that gave me that advice? )
-Mark.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer
Brett Foote
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years
Joe Kucinski
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!
Michael S. Palmer
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Le Mans Master
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 5,727
Likes: 38
From: Fremont CA
There are only 2 left and one (Johnson, I believe) has moved production to "Mehico" and quality has suffered. The GM lifters with the hardened tappet surfaces were some of the best! You can get lifters re-built for an extremely reasonable cost. One other source of "headache" is the dissappearance of Zinc in motor oils, I have covered this before but, here it is again: Valvoline makes a special high zinc blend of racing oil and it is labled "not for street use" on the can, go ahead and use it! if you are running a flat tappet camshaft.
