TR2/3/3A what lifters to use

[sp53]

I used the original cam on this project and I am thinking of what lifters to use . There have been posts in the past that talk about the new metal the lifters are made of or the new cams or something and how something tears something up, but any rate I do not understand. Anyways, my question is. Should I resurface my old lifters or should I purchase new, and if I purchase new lifts where should I get them?
Moreover, as I was looking through my old lift sets I have noticed some of the lifters had a small but uniform chip right at the top. I understand how lifts would dish out in the center, but this little chip has me perplex.

 

[TomMull]

My opinion, based on very little, is that I don't trust resurfacing hardened surfaces. In my case, I replaced three lifters that had visible wear and re-used the rest of the old ones. I got my new ones from TRF.
You will find all kinds of stuff on run in at 2000 rpm and oil additives. Probably couldn't hurt.
As for the chips, I seem to remember that they were sometimes marked that way after testing for hardness.
Tom

 

[TR3driver]

Resurfacing should be fine, as long as the shop knows what they are doing. The surface is not supposed to be entirely flat, there is a very slight radius that helps accommodate any angular misalignment of the lifter bore to the camshaft. I had mine done by Babe Erson many years ago, but I understand he is no longer in business.

If you do buy new, I'd suggest either having them tested for hardness, or buying from someone who 100% tests them, like Greg Solow. I've heard that the ones from BPNW are hard enough, but the hardness from other suppliers is variable. My plan, based on advice from Larry Young, is to buy the BPNW lifters then have them refaced to remove the chamfer. But that is only required for the hot cam I got from Larry, they should work fine as-is with a stock cam.

But if you are keeping the same camshaft, and the old lifters are in good shape, I'd keep the lifters mated to the camshaft.

Worth noting, perhaps, that the original lifters were not hardened in the usual sense. Instead, they were made using a process known as "chilled iron", which produces a very hard surface. The problem, as I understand it, is that the mold has to cool between castings and if it doesn't, the lifter winds up too soft. When done properly, the process produces a much thicker hard layer than other processes like case hardening do (hence the ability to reface lifters).

 

[doc50]

I got all my lifters, keepers and springs etc from Ken Gillanders.
He's getting on, so you may want to research him.....and call him soon. Everybody knows him.
I love the guy, he has a good story for EVERYTHING TR3!!
Thom
1959 TR3
#34909L(O)

 

[CJD]

I had both my cam and lifters resurfaced for this build. It was very reasonable...like $40 for the cam and $4 for the lifters.

I think what you might have heard is if you go with the used lifters, unground, then you should keep them paired to the same cam lobe they came off. They wear into the lobe on break-in. If you try mixing used lifters with unmatched used cams, you will frequently lose both the lifter and the cam lobe as they try to re-mate to each other. So, that is the no-no you may have heard about. A re-ground lifter will usually mate to a used cam, assuming the cam is in decent shape.