stud girdle question

[Brian F]

Why is it so aggrevating to adjust rockers with girdles?I mean I know everything aint supposed to be simple.I get the rockers adjusted and tighten the girdle and some get out of whack again.Is this a prob or a regular occurance?Any better ways of doing this?Im a newbie with stud girdles.

[Joe McCoy]

Don't loosen the girdle so much. I can adjust mine with the bars just slightly loose and when I'm done and tighten them up they stay the same. Once you get them right it should just require you to check them and mine don't require adjusting after that. If you have all new stuff some minor wear will occure but after that they should stay the same pretty much. I pull the girdle off about once a month. I check my lash, pull the girdle off and check my spring pressure, reinstall the girdle and just check the lash again. Been good every time unless I have to change a spring and remove the rocker. RM

[SMACdownracing1]

I know this is an old one but here's my $.02.
If you are running hydraulic lifters, flat tappet or roller, the adjustment is much more forgiving...you have .040" or so of fluid inside the lifter to compensate. So you won't neccesarily notice a change after tightening the girdle.
If you are running solid lifters, flat tappet or roller, the adjustments should be set per the cam-card recomendations...no exceptions, too loose or too tight will affect valve timing. They should be checked every race. Period!
Valve timing (looseness or tightness) will will affect ET...BIG TIME... hence the need for Poly locks//Girdles. Thes type are more susceptible to notice a change in valve lash after tightening the girdle.
When installing girdles, pay close attention to how accurate the bore centerlines are in the bar itself...the cheaper bars tend not to match up with factory rocker stud centerlines. I prefer the style that uses 4 spring loaded bars on one half of the girdle. They allow you to loosen one cylinder's valves at a time to make adjustments.
Just like always....the higher priced, name brand stuff seems to work better and seems to be held to tighter tolerances during manufacturing. Same thing goes for the poly-locks.
A side note: some aftermarket head manufacturers move the valve centerlines from the stock locations to allow for larger/smoother runners...beware of girdles made to fit these heads. They will bind when installed on the wrong style head.
This could be what you are experiencing...hope it helps.
I've got a few of the cheaper style girdles around the shop...$99 ones... we use them to chock tires, pry stuff, with or as chisels...seem to be great for that!:laughing:
SMACdownracing1