94VenomVette

Guys fairly new here with a few questions. I want to upgrade to 1.6 rockers. I was looking at the Comp Cams Ultra gold but will they work for my 94? Also Do I Need guide plates and what valve springs should I use? Ive heard LT4 springs but not sure.

Basically looking to do a HotCam, 1.6 Aluminum Rockers, and springs. But for now would like to just install the rockers and springs.

mtwoolford

well, if it's an Hot cam upgrade you want, get a complete Hot Cam kit, they're well thought out, proven and no surprises; plus you'll save a ton of money compared to piecing together every thing you'll need.

about those Ultra Gold rockers, first there is no listing for using them on an LT engine...which isn't a deal breaker, but if things go sour, it'll be on you. and they are very expensive. yes you'll need guide plates, and if you intend to use the polylock nuts, you'll probably need new set of tall valve covers too. Investigate what a set of those costs, and even more, try to find a pair that clear the LT accessory drive ...now you're talking some real money.

Final deal is it's all your choice and your money.

94VenomVette

thanks for the reply, are there any aluminum rockers that fit then? What about narrow ones? i read about center bolt valve covers which the LT has obv can cause issues with non narrow rockers. Lets Say I go with the Ultra Gold if they'll work what guide plates would I need, or is it a matter of pick and choose and trial and error what works rotating the engine over by hand pretty much

mtwoolford

well let'see. if you go on the JEGS website and lookup "LT4 Hot Cam Kit", they list the GM part numbers for every single part included in that kit.

A little history, the LT4 Hot cam was developed for LT1 and LT4 engines prepared for showroom stock series; I installed one in my LT4 and it was a drop in and I'm very happy with it. My LT4 already had 1.6 rockers do all I had to buy (although I bought a lot more) was the cam and springs. LT1 engines require more, hence the "kit". And everything fit under my stock valve covers.

With that said, the "kit" uses self aligning rocker arms..which I'm not a fan of...I've seen other Hot Cam kits for other SBC chevys that include guide plates and conventional, non self aligning rockers. As to those Ultra Gold rockers, price wise they're essentially the same price as the rockers in the Hot Cam kit (if purchased separately). So, if you're going to piece together your valve train over time the Ultra Golds are definitely an option. Of course guide plates will have to be purchased.

One of the few items of good news, price wise, is that the LT4 Hot Cam springs is one of the few bargains out there; I think they can still be found for about $45.00 a set. Other than that, let the list of the parts listed in the JEGs' LT4 Hot Cam Kit be your shopping guide; And don't forget a set of valve stem seals while everything is apart.

Good luck.

mtwoolford

well self guiding rocker arms do eliminate the hassle and cost of fitting guide plates so that's an advantage of the rockers in the factory kit.

there are adjustable guide plates available; but fitting any guide plate is gonna require extra labor and attention; of course some may fit right out of the box. who knows?

in any case you may also have to purchase aftermarket hardened pushrods to go with the guideplates...I don't know it the stockers are hardened, I suspect not.

And yes, no matter which way you go, you will be spinning the engine "over by hand pretty much".

Purple92

As mtwoolford pointed out - all the LT1 / LT4 motors use self aligning rocker arms. The Factory LT4 engines came with the 1.6:1 aluminum rocker arms - but those rocker arms did NOT use the adjustable poly locks - they used a different rocker arm stud that was designed to have the rocker arm nut bottom out when it was installed (supposedly for production reasons). I believe the rocker arms sold by GM were produced by Crane Cams, they are one very good source for 1.6:1 Rocker Arms. Comp Cams is another source and there are others out there. If you want to go with non-self aligning rocker arms - you need to use guide plates, and you need to use hardened pushrods, and you'll need to play around with the guide plates to get the roller tip to align with the valve tips. There are a lot of thoughts on which design (self aligning or non self-aligning) rocker arm is "better" - and while I'm in the guide plate camp - you can't argue with the fact that there are tens of millions of small block Chevies running with Self Aligning Rocker Arms that have survived for 100,000 miles without a hitch.

I prefer the polylock solution to the special studs that GM used on the LT4's, as you can put very little preload on the lifters to avoid "pumping up" if you are worried about valve float.

As for the LT4 springs and retainers - I know two people who have broken one of those LT4 springs. Both of these people tracked their cars - so there was definitely some significant time spent at higher RPM, but if I were to do springs on an LT engine I would probably NOT choose the LT4 springs - I'd go with a spring from a company that starts off with better material and does not worry about the price point as much as GM does. Comp Cams, Crane, Manley, etc. all make valve springs - spend a little time looking through their catalogs and you'll find that there are a lot of options, and don't be afraid to call up the tech people at the cam company and ask them for advice - they have people that know more about cam grinds and retainers / springs etc. than you'll find anywhere else... Any spring that is compatible with the LT4 "Hot Cam" or something roughly equivalent from the aftermarket should work just fine with the stock cam.

The cam in the Hot Cam kit is a reasonable piece - but if you change the cam or even the heads - count on needing to modify the PCM - the stock programming isn't going to cut it with either a cam swap or heads. I did the 1.6:1 Rockers and springs years ago - and I was able to get by with the stock programming until I made some "bigger" changes.

One last thought - the rocker arm and spring swap is pretty straight forward - use compressed air to hold the valves in place, each cylinder will take 15 - 20 minutes. (Since the plugs will be out during the job - you might as well have new plugs available to put in - there are a few cylinders that the plugs are easy to get out - and there are a few cylinders that are a bit more of a "challenge".) The cam removal is quite a bit more complicated - there are some really well written threads on here that describe the job in detail, do a search and you'll find them but the cam swap is not something that you can do in a day.

mtwoolford

yeah; what he said :I agree: Stock LT4 rockers mount on pedestals using a special, one of a kind 10mm stud and are not adjustable in the usual sense; just bolt 'em down and, for better or worse, that's it. True they were made by crane cams, but I didn't find any in the aftermarket; I had to go to the Chevy Parts counter and pay to replace two damaged rockers at $75.00 each. The LT4 hot cam kit has a much more desirable, and conventional stud mounting and are adjustable. Eventually I plan to swap out the oem LT4 rockers. Maybe for some Ultra Gold? Good luck, let us know how it all works out for you.

Purple92

mtwoolford ... If you do eventually change out the rockers - one of the reasons that I like the non-self aligning type is that on the self aligning rockers - the "ears" of the rocker arm are slightly below the roller tip - so those "ears" are what keeps the rocker in alignment with the top of the valve stem. I've seen significant wear on the "ears" of a set of Comp Cams Stainless Steel self aligning rocker arms - if steel rocker arms can wear - you just know aluminum rockers would be worse. This was on a car that was tracked, and saw 20 minute sessions where the RPM's rarely dropped below 3,000 - but still ... not a good thing to see. I was able to get a set of 1.6:1 Comp Cams Stainless steel rockers with polylocks under the stock valve covers of a 92 (that had the magnesium covers) - yes some work with a die grinder was needed, but they did fit...

mtwoolford

just for the record; what precipitated replacing two rocker arms, stock, oem, self aligning, was finding one shifted entirely off the valve stem, the other partially off the valve stem; both had been damaged. I'm not a fan of self aligning rockers. Good to know about polylocks and compatibility with stock valve covers. Thanks

Blue Cheese

Guys, while we are in the area... is the LT1 a roller cam?

mtwoolford

yes;

Blue Cheese

Thank you Sir.

John A. Marker

When I blew the head gasket on my 95 LT1 in September of this year, while it was down I did several things. Gasket matched the heads, intake manifold and exhaust manifold. Replaced all the valve seals. Then since I had the springs off anyway...replaced stock springs with GM LS6 beehive springs GM 12499224. and used Comp Cam retainers 134-3701 on springs. Then installed 1.6 Scorpion SCP 1036 narrow self aligning roller rockers onto heads.

94VenomVette

thanks for all the info everyone

Mishawaka

If your just looking for a bit more HP then I would just go with the 1.6's. Easy to do and don't have to tear the opti out along with everything else. And costs a lot less.

Mishawaka

I forgot to ask if you have a manual or auto transmission since the duration will be effected also, it shouldn't make a difference but wanted to let you know. Also, you may want to just install the 1.6's on the intake side.

Mr. Peabody

Back when my 95 had only 70K on it, I had the Hot Cam Kit installed along with the HD sprocket and timing chain kit. I had already had SE long tube headers installed but as mentioned previously when installing a cam a good retune is needed to yield the best results from the cam.

The car was dynoed on the same mustang dyno both before and after the tune. I picked up just over 40 RWHP ( I asked for a conservative tune for drive-ability)

That was 60K ago and the car still runs great. I was pretty happy with the results of the hot cam kit.... and that coupled with the long tube headers ... results in a wonderful sounding car

mtwoolford

A 96 LT4 with a Hot Cam and Corsa exhaust sounds pretty sweet too.